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THURSDAY, MAY 23, 2013 RAJAB 13, 1434 AH www.kuwaittimes.net Militants free Afghan More English Spurs blow 7 Egyptians interpreters at French late lead, kidnapped win right to universities? beat Grizzlies in Sinai8 new life9 in UK Debate14 begins 93-8920 in OT Speaker insists no political Max 41º Min 27º crisis; tweeters get respite High Tide 09:50 & 23:07 MP claims drinking water, bottled water contaminated Low Tide 03:46 & 16:53 40 PAGES NO: 15817 150 FILS By B Izzak and A Saleh conspiracy theories KUWAIT: National Assembly Speaker Ali Al-Rashed said yesterday that there is no “political crisis” in the country Where are the MPs? and only “the use of constitutional tools” in the form of filing to grill ministers. “Things are moving in the right direction and there is no political crisis in the country. It is simply the use of constitutional tools ... and I don’t see any problem in using them because they are a monitor- ing instrument,” Rashed told reporters. Rashed said the By Badrya Darwish available information indicates that the government will attend the forthcoming Assembly session on May 28 when the requests to grill the oil and interior minis- ters are expected to be discussed. He said he has official assurances from the prime [email protected] minister that the government will attend the session on May 28 and which has been confirmed by HH the Amir. The government boycotted the Assembly sessions on Continued on Page 15 ot long ago one member of parliament ques- tioned Kuwait’s minister of interior about pur- Nchases of arms from Israel. The minister denied the accusation. The story was revisited by a rights abuses local Arabic daily yesterday. The headline says: “Kuwait is buying military equipment from Israel.” rife in Gulf We expected a spokesman from the Ministry of Interior to come out and deny the news. By the end KUWAIT: Human rights abuses remained wide- of the day, however, there was no denial from any spread last year in the Gulf states, including discrimi- official. The news said that the arms were purchased nation against dissidents, migrant labourers, women through the United States Department of Defence’s and religious minorities, Amnesty International said logistics department which were then sold to Kuwait KUWAIT: Plainclothes policemen arrest illegal residents during a surprise raid in Jleeb Al-Shuyoukh yester- day. — Photo by Fouad Al-Shaikh in a report yesterday. In particular, authorities for a contract worth $31 million. The contract ends in severely restricted freedom of speech, association 2015, the story said. and assembly and clamped down on the dissent and Why military deals are increasingly an under- unrest that swept several countries during the so- ground affair? Whether the purchase is from Israel or Jleeb raid nets 555 called Arab Spring, the London-based group said. from the moon, I think these deals should pass Arbitrary arrests of critics and opposition members through a vote in parliament because they, accord- were commonplace in almost all the Gulf states and ing to my simple knowledge of rules and regula- KUWAIT: A flash inspection cam- IDs, deserting domestic employ- Sheikh Ahmed Al-Humoud to arrest accompanied with long periods of detention with- tions, concern national security. They are a red line. paign was launched yesterday in ment and dependant visa holders illegal residents and wanted people. out trial, it said. Why the silence then? Is the parliament existing Jleeb Al-Shuyoukh, resulting in the working in various places. The cam- The ministry’s security media In Saudi Arabia, “government critics and political only to grill ministers over trivial matters? If the news arrest of 480 male and 75 female paign is part of a massive drive car- department vowed more cam- activists were detained without trial or sentenced is published in the local mainstream press and if it is residents for various violations ried out by the Ministry of Interior paigns would follow and sudden after grossly unfair trials,” Amnesty said. true, then I blame parliament for the negligence over including working for others, on the instructions of First Deputy inspections would continue in vari- Continued on Page 15 this. This means MPs are not doing their job properly. expired residency visas, not carrying Prime Minister and Interior Minister ous areas. The honourable gentlemen are hyper-busy with the Dow deal and the fine of $2.2 billion paid by Kuwait. But actually the whole thing was caused by parliament when they rejected the Dow deal and Man killed in London ‘terror’ attack forced Sheikh Nasser to cancel it. This shows how short-sighted they are. It was better off to continue LONDON: A man believed to be a serv- pected attackers. have had to witness this today, but in our ference that the victim was a soldier, but with the deal rather than pay a penalty of over $2 bil- ing British soldier was brutally murdered One broadcaster showed footage of land our women have to see the same. You Cameron gave no confirmation. lion. Now they started blaming each other in parlia- yesterday near a London barracks in one of the men at the scene carrying a people will never be safe. Remove your A local member of parliament said he ment. what Prime Minister David Cameron said blood-covered knife and meat cleaver government, they don’t care about you.” believed the dead man was a soldier. I don’t know why in Kuwait we wake up to prob- appeared to be a terrorist attack. Media saying to the camera: “We swear by The government’s emergency Cameron said: “We’ve had this sort of lems after they occur and we never learn from our reports said the dead man was a British almighty Allah we will never stop fight- response committee was immediately attack before in our country and we nev- previous mistakes, as if the things in this country soldier who was hacked to death by the ing you.” convened. The attack took place in broad er buckle in the face of them.” Home happen without any future plans. Do you know why assailants. Some reports suggested his The black man, dressed in a grey hood- daylight around 200 m from the Royal Secretary Theresa May chaired a meeting we don’t learn? Because we are arrogant and we attackers tried to behead him while ed jacket and black woolly hat, made a Artillery Barracks in Woolwich, southeast of COBRA, the government’s emergency think we know more than anybody else. We think we shouting “God is greatest” in Arabic. number of political statements to London. Cameron, who was to return civil contingencies committee. “It has are a superior nation and we don’t need to learn any- Cameron called the attack “appalling” bystanders. “We must fight them as they early from talks with French President been confirmed to me that a man has more. Ignorance steps in when someone believes he and said: “There are strong indications fight us. An eye for an eye, a tooth for a Francois Hollande in Paris to deal with been brutally murdered this afternoon in knows everything. Where are the MPs now? You can’t that it is a terrorist incident.” Armed tooth,” he says in a London accent in the the aftermath, called the attack “truly southeast London,” she said. find them when you need them. police shot and wounded the two sus- video. He adds: “I apologise that women shocking”. Hollande said at a press con- Continued on Page 15 in the MP splurges news $21m on luxe Bahrain claims Iran drone found in sea London digs DUBAI: Bahrain yesterday said it has found an LONDON: A Kuwaiti MP has bought a luxurious Iranian drone in the kingdom’s north near Saudi property in the centre of London for the price tag of Arabia and called for increased cooperation $21 million. The news about the purchase circulated between regional security services to face “threats” yesterday across social networks. The name of the from Tehran. The unmanned aircraft “was found in MP was not disclosed. the sea in north Bahrain, mainly between Bahrain and Saudi Arabia, two weeks ago,” government spokeswoman Samira Rajab told AFP. “It has been New gen livens proved that this is a drone used by Iran and could be linked to the Iranian spy cells discovered in Saudi faded art scene Arabia and Bahrain,” said Rajab. It was unclear if the aircraft had crashed or was brought down in the KUWAIT: After two lacklustre decades, Kuwait is experi- area. Iran says it is developing drones to be used for encing a quiet revival of an arts scene once known as surveillance as well as for attacks. . the most avant garde in the Gulf, thanks to a new gener- ation eager to tackle sensitive issues using cutting-edge FBI kills man linked art forms. The artists have been exhibiting works in the to Boston suspect graphic arts, photography, animation and fashion in pri- vate galleries but also bypassing traditional venues and MIAMI: A man being questioned by the FBI over the arts groups - and possible censorship - by showing their Boston Marathon bombings was killed yesterday in work online to reach an audience beyond the 3.7 million an altercation after becoming violent, the FBI said. people in Kuwait. US media outlets said the man knew one of the “They are creating an excellent buzz,” said Lucy Boston bombers and was shot by an FBI agent in the Topalian, who runs the Dar Al Funoon gallery in Kuwait early morning incident in Orlando, Florida. The which showcases contemporary art from around the Federal Bureau of Investigation said the man initiat- world. Young people in tailored trousers and elegant ed a “violent confrontation” during the questioning jackets packed her small gallery earlier this month to and was killed and that an FBI agent suffered “non- view Abdullah Al-Saab’s dark dresses, shirts and capes life threatening injuries.” The FBI did not name the hanging from the ceiling in front of large black-and- killed man, but the Orlando Sentinel newspaper white photographs. identified him as Ibragim Todashev, 27. The man was The people in the photographs were blindfolded, being questioned by the FBI agent, two some with labels such as “wife”, “lover” or “friend”. One Massachusetts state troopers and other law enforce- depicted a man - the designer himself - bound with a ment personnel, the FBI said in a statement. thick rope, another a woman in a smart dress spilling Continued on Page 15 THURSDAY, MAY 23, 2013 LOCAL

KUWAIT: His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah received the visiting Premier of Saint Kitts and Nevis Denzil Douglas at Bayan Palace yesterday. (Right) Officials from Kuwait and St Kitts & Nevis hold high- level discussions yesterday. — KUNA Amir receives Saint Kitts & Nevis premier

KUWAIT: His Highness the Amir attended by His Highness the Deputy Minister of Amiri Yousef Al-Ghanim were present at tation of HH the premier. Khalid Al-Hamad Al-Sabah, head Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Crown Prince Sheikh Nawaf Al- Diwan Affair Sheikh Ali Jarrah Al- the meeting as well. A ceremonial reception was of the Honorary Mission and Al-Sabah received the visiting Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah and His Sabah, Head of the Honorary Prime Minister Denzil Douglas also held at Bayan Palace where Advisor at the Premier’s Diwan Premier of Saint Kitts and Nevis Highness the Prime Minister Mission and Advisor at the and his accompanying delega- the guest was received by Sheikh Faisal Mohammad Al-Hajji, a num- Denzil Douglas at Bayan Palace Sheikh Jaber Al-Mubarak Al- Premier’s Diwan Faisal tion, arrived in Kuwait yesterday Jaber, Deputy Premier and ber of ministers and senior state’s yesterday. The meeting was Hamad Al-Sabah. Mohammad Al-Hajji and Qutaiba for an official visit, upon the invi- Foreign Minister Sheikh Sabah officials. —KUNA

KUWAIT: Ilegals residents are rounded up during a flash raid in Jleeb Al-Shuyoukh yesterday. — Photo by Fouad Al-Shaikh

65 rounded up from Mubarakiya market KUWAIT: The Ministry of Interior carried out an inspection campaign against those violating residency permit norms. The campaign, that was launched yes- terday morning, covered Mubarakia markets and its surrounding areas. It was led by Lt. General Tareq Hamada. The police stations in the capital governorate par- ticipated in the campaign along with support patrols. The campaign resulted in the arrest of 65 persons found in violation of the law. Of these, 59 were found without identification and three with expired residen- cy permits. One person was earlier reported by an employer as absent, while two others were in violation KUWAIT: In the presence of General Director of Civil Defense Lt General Yousuf Al- of the residency law. All the arrested persons were Roudhan Civil Defense administration successfully carried out yesterday the trial of sent to the concerned authorities. siren system of high technical quality in all Kuwait governorates. THURSDAY, MAY 23, 2013 LOCAL Kuwaiti housewives to get KD559 monthly salary 7,000 women seek monthly payment By Nawara Fattahova

KUWAIT: Any Kuwaiti housewife who has attained the age of 55 years but does not enjoy any income will now be entitled to receive a monthly payment of KD559 starting last Monday, provided she met certain require- ments. According to the Ministry of Social Affairs, about 7,000 women applied for this salary, and 90 percent of them met the condi- tions and will receive this payment. Some women are receiving monthly income in the form of retirement allowance or social KUWAIT: His Highness Prime Minister and President of the Supreme Council for support such as allowances meant for mothers Planning and Development Sheikh Jaber Al-Mubarak Al-Sabah chairs yesterday of disabled citizens or others, running into at Bayan Palace the first meeting of the council after its recent re-structuring. amounts less than KD 559. In such cases, the — KUNA women will receive the amount after deducting from it the monthly income already being received. Those with private businesses running PM chairs restructured under commercial licenses in their names are not entitled to receive this salary. planning board meeting Lulwa Al-Mulla, Chairperson of the Kuwait Women Cultural and Social Society, criticized KUWAIT: His Highness Prime Minister by solutions arrived at by the Council. the new decision saying it was not in favor of and President of the Supreme Council Additionally, the prime minister pin- the women. “This payment aims to encourage for Planning and Development Sheikh pointed in his speech the problems and the Kuwaiti woman to retire or to stay at home rather than become a productive person in her Jaber Al-Mubarak Al-Sabah chaired yes- challenges facing the country at this work and career. It aims to further alienate her Lulwa Al-Mulla Hajaj Bukhadour terday at Bayan Palace the first meeting juncture in its history, which he enu- from the work place. Why did the woman learn of the council after its recent re-struc- merated as: preserving the national and educate herself if they are to end up sitting tional pressure on the national budget. “Our this decision, as they feel their work is not being turing. identity, protecting the national unity, at home and receive a social payment from the economy is based on oil which will not last for- appreciated properly despite their long years of ever. This amount will increase the public working, especially since in Kuwait women are He opened the meeting with a boosting national security, developing government? I think that the amount will act as an incentive for women to leave their work and expenditure, and this money could have been more productive than men,” he explained. speech in which he underscored the the skill of practicing democracy, stay at home,” she told the Kuwait Times yester- spent on more important concerns. In my view, “After 20 or more years spent at work, imperative to use methodologies of reforming the economy, improving day. this decision needs a review as it really is not women are being made to feel they are not planning, based on scientific para- health services and education, and Although the law was proposed by women such a bright idea as it seems from the outside,” important. They would not be interested in digms, to delineate existing problems ameliorating the performance of the MPs, it still came under criticism from the she pointed out. work anymore as they will not be receiving the On his part, Hajaj Bukhadour, an economic same benefits as given to men. It destroys any prior to seeking out resolutions for government. Though all these repre- Women’s Society. “It is not necessary that the women MPs are always right. In the end, their analyst, agreed with Al-Mulla that the law was woman’s personality. I think this law was not them that would benefit the society in sented top priorities for the prime min- aim is to promote themselves and garner more not in favor of women. “This decision was not in even discussed from this point of view,” he fur- the long run. ister, he nevertheless stressed the fact votes to win the elections. This law doesn’t want keeping with the idea of development and it ther said. He called on the government and the that the strategic goal for the govern- the women to play their due role as one half of only adds to the aberrations in the Kuwaiti He also said that this payment will increase private sector to tap new and creative ment was to help advance the poten- the society and does not want them to be part- economy. This is an irresponsible decision that the pressure on the Kuwaiti economy and will stops creativity and only encourages lack of cause more problems. “The MPs who proposed resources in dealing with finding solu- tialities of the Kuwaiti citizen to the fur- ners in work. The women will be isolated by making them give up their careers. The govern- responsibility in the community. There are more this law and passed it were mainly looking for tions for societal problems, affirming at thest limit and to enable him or her to ment should instead encourage women to work cons than pros, as it will result in loss of huge personal and electoral benefits to gain votes the same time the government’s com- succeed in creating a prosperous and and study to obtain degrees,” added Al-Mulla. manpower. Also, many women employees and not as a matter of development,” concluded mitment to adhering in letter and spirit rewarding life. — KUNA According to her, such allowances put addi- under the age of 55 will feel disappointed by Bukhadour. Former NA candidate rapes woman in office

By Hanna Al-Saadoun friend went inside the office of the suspect while she waited outside. Minutes later, she KUWAIT: A Kuwaiti girl complained that a heard her shouting and calls for help. She man who had fought elections in the last rushed into the office and found her friend National Assembly Council raped her in his lying on the floor and the man in a com- office in Hawally, security sources said. A pletely naked state. friend of hers, also a Kuwaiti girl, backed While she rescued her friend, she also her claim and said she saw the former can- said that the man was drunk. The victim didate in the NA Council elections in a said that she was brutally beaten when she naked state when she intervened to rescue called for help from the employees and her her friend. The security men responded friend. A case of rape was filed and the man swiftly to the report and rushed to the was detained. place of incident, where they found a girl The same suspect is also facing a trial in with a head injury and torn clothes. She a court in another case in which he stands was administered necessary medical care. accused of beating his divorced wife and The girl who reported the crime, a friend assaulting her after invited her to his yacht of the victim, said that she and her friend on the pretext that he wanted to discuss went to an office in Hawally where her matters related to divorce. Govt yet to okay company to recruit domestic labor Residency stamps run out KUWAIT: National Assembly Secretary MP Kamel Massoums Al-Mubarak submitted a proposed law Al-Awadhi has stated that the government is yet to to establish a shareholding company to bring in approve the setting up of a company to bring in and employ domestic help, which was sent to the domestic help despite the fact that the cabinet legislative committee for discussion,” Al-Awadhi had approved the establishment of such a compa- explained. ny last year and had asked the investment public While the Interior Ministry is intensifying its authority to prepare an economic feasibility report campaigns to arrest those violating Iqama norms, on it. it is facing hurdles as it ran out of Iqama stickers. He pointed out that the government, for undis- Business owners said the immigration depart- closed reasons, stalled the project without consid- ments in Shuwaikh and Farwaniya did not have ering the negative impact of rising domestic help the required stamps and were asking mandoubs problems facing the country. “Because the govern- of companies to return after two weeks, a develop- ment ignored this issue, I, along with MPs Safaa Al- ment that will leave vulnerable those whose Hashim, Khalil Abdallah, Yacoub Al-Sane and Iqamas have expired. Egyptian waylaid and robbed at knifepoint

By Hanan Al-Saadoun number 104/2013 and criminal investigators were asked to check the trailer. KUWAIT: An Egyptian expat driving his trailer was waylaid by a number of people in a Land Iranian arrested Cruiser vehicle in the Al-Naseem area near the Security men arrested an Iranian expat found Rhayya roundabout, and robbed at gunpoint, under the influence of drugs in Qurtuba and security sources said. The Egyptian man told the recovered from his person an envelope contain- Jahra police that when he was driving the trailer ing a substance suspected to be heroin. The man near the said roundabout, four persons in a white was sent to the drug enforcement agents. colored Land Cruiser car flagged him down. The Farwaniya police, in cooperation with the While the expat was not able to note down Ministry of Communication, carried out an the number of the car, he described one of his inspection campaign at ten places to catch those tormentors as national dress wearing man who responsible for theft of international calling facili- was driving the vehicle. He said this man came ty at Al-Farwaniya, Khaitan and Jleeb Al- out brandishing a pistol that he flaunted in his Shoyoukh. About 22 expats availing of these face. Another occupant of the Land Cruiser who stolen services at shops specifically dealing in the was carrying a stick and dressed in sports gear nefarious activity were caught, along with tools pinned him against the trailer and asked him to used in stealing the signals. keep his hands up. Two more men stood at the back watching the road. He claimed he was beat- Insulted en and the men even threatened to kill him. They An officer of the rank of First Lieutenant com- snatched away KD107 or 105 from him, taking plained to officers at a police station at Hawally, the money from his valet left in the trailer’s cabin. accusing a girl of having insulted him and anoth- The pistol-carrying man came out of the trail- er citizen of intervening in his work and stopping er after searching it and proceeded to frisk the him from performing his duty. Egyptian along with his friend. They took away The officer said that he stopped a girl oppo- his cell phones but when they saw a car site a cafe, and asked for her identification docu- approaching, they returned the phones and left ments, but the girl ignored him and went into the the spot. A young man stopped by and bought cafÈ after telling him to go away. The officer said something from a mobile grocery. Later, they left he followed her into the cafe and asked the girl to in their Land Cruiser car. accompany him to the patrol officers in order to A case of armed robbery was filed under the take her to the police station but she refused. THURSDAY, MAY 23, 2013 LOCAL

kuwait digest kuwait digest

Oppositionists Single vote are also Kuwaitis system better for Kuwait By Abdullatif Al-Duaij By Mustafa Al-Sarraf P Safa Al-Hashim issued statements a few weeks ago demanding that the Ministry uwait is distinct in the Gulf region for being a Mof Education should take action against constitutional state and having one of the an activist linked with political groups opposing Kworld’s best constitutions which protects the the single-vote decree. I wrote in a column at that rights of individuals and groups. Kuwait’s political time defending every citizen’s right to express his system is based on public participation through or her own opinion, and argued that just because three authorities, but it is different from other dem- someone struck a stance in support or against any ocratic systems in the fact that it lacks political par- action of the government must not affect a per- ties. son’s job or how his or her performance is When the parliamentary system was ushered in assessed. Kuwait, having political parties was not desirable, Every human being has the right to express an given the way this system had failed in various Arab opinion or take a certain stand. Holding people countries at that time, including Iraq, Egypt and accountable on the basis of opinions they have or Lebanon. However, the gap left in the political sys- the way they express these can only be done as tem by the absence of political parties led to cre- per the law. If a person violates the constitutional ation of groups based on family, tribal and sectari- regulations, he can be punished in accordance an basis. with the kind of violation he has committed. But The fact that the electoral system began by when someone practices his or her constitutional allowing voters to elect five candidates in ten con- right to freely express an opinion, then no one has kuwait digest stituencies helped the emergence of these blocs. A any right to act against them or use it as an excuse political party system would have contained certain to intervene in their work. checks and balances on the basis of which political A local newspaper recently went too far in per- Kuwait is Street 101 parties would then have had to formulate and secuting the oppositionists, or more precisely to tweak their activities at the national level. The ‘criminalize’ their actions, and pave the way to absence of such conditions and a system of con- make the ‘government veto’ their future activities By Dr Sajed Al-Abdali trols has paved the way for elections happening apart from spoiling their relationship with the along tribal and sectarian lines, something that has state. The state is for everyone, and Kuwait is for ccording to a rather interesting anecdote, there was a abouts, closing some turns and widening its lanes. The funny become the main approach which most voters opt every Kuwaiti. It is as much the country of those in pothole in the middle of one of the busiest roads in a thing is that all these changes will not solve the problem that, for. Ultimately, it hurts the integration of the small town, where passerby used to repeatedly trip basically is on account of the presence of several schools, a the opposition as of the pro-government parties. It A Kuwaiti society and the constitutional system. remains their country who voted in the polls, just and fall, hurting themselves. The ambulances rushed to their coop society, several grocery stores, a water pumping station help would often get delayed, thanks to the condition of the and the fire brigade being on the same street. Article 108 of the Kuwaiti constitution states that as it is of those who chose to boycott the elections. “a member of the National Assembly represents the Therefore, a newspaper has no right to incite the road, thus adding to their woes in ferrying them to nearest Such facilities, in addition to the slow moving traffic com- hospitals that were at far flung places. An urgent city hall prising water tanker trucks, are the real problem. The funny whole nation. He safeguards the public interest and government against an oppositionist and demand is not subject to any authority in the discharge of that they are thrown out of a state department - meeting was convened to dis- and at the same time saddening cuss the problem. thing is that a huge mosque is his duties in the National Assembly or in its com- the Supreme Petroleum Council in this case - just The council extensively Street 101’s problem is not its being built currently along the mittees.” This means that a lawmaker’s loyalty must because they exercised their constitutional right to debated the issue with some size or layout. The right solution same street, which will surely be to the entire Kuwaiti people regardless of any express their opposition to the single-vote decree. members suggesting to build a complicate the problem further one religion or race. However, it becomes hard to I am often described as being among the most new hospital near the pothole. lies in relocating at least the because many people are always apply that concept when the electoral law is based resentful to those who oppose the decree ostensi- Others suggested that to cut water station and the fire brigade keen on parking their vehicles just on election along sectarian or tribal lines. Therefore, bly meant to correct the electoral mechanism, but down the expenses, there should since the schools cannot be outside the doors of the mosques, the single-vote decree came in accordance with the this does not give me or anyone else any right to be a dedicated ambulance readi- blocking both sides of the street constitution, and to fill the gap left by the lack of goad the government into acting against them, or ly available by the side of the pot- removed. This will ease the entry while going inside to pray. Who political parties. Had political parties been there, asking that the oppositionists be punished. hole while yet others suggested and exit of fire engines when would dare question, stop, or they would have worked as per legal controls. The position that MP Al-Hashim took a few that some warning signs be put needed. The movement of trucks issue a traffic ticket to them, then? The Kuwaiti society has suffered enough disinte- weeks ago, along with that which the local news- around the pothole. Finally, the Street 101’s problem is not its gration as a result of having tribal and sectarian paper expressed most recently, are considered a wise men gathered at the town must be monitored and it should size or layout. The right solution blocs. Therefore, a step was needed to force people clear threat to the security and interests of every- hall meeting decided to plug the be banned during rush hours. lies in relocating at least the water to elect candidates on the basis of competency and one who opposes the government or expresses pothole and instead dig an alter- station and the fire brigade since patriotism; something the single-vote system the schools cannot be removed. an opinion that conflicts with that of the govern- native one near the hospital. achieved. I urge groups calling that we revert to the This bitterly funny but tragically near the truth anecdote This will ease the entry and exit of fire engines when needed. ment. It is a clear action of encouraging the gov- four votes per voter system to reconsider their posi- ernment to adopt a policy of persecution and came to my mind as it has been the goings on at Street 101 in The movement of trucks must be monitored and it should be Mangaf for a long time. It mirrors what has been happening in banned during rush hours. Traffic police officers should also tion and put the general good ahead of their own elimination. Faced with this situation, I believe personal interests. — Al-Qabas that the opposition should consider taking legal Kuwait for decades. be stationed there all the time to organize the traffic flow and action to help protect every Kuwaiti citizen’s right Street 101 is the main street in the area which is always issue tickets to those causing inconvenience to others. This is busy and remains congested during the morning and after- the right solution if any official actually wants to solve the to express an oppositionist opinion, and stem the noon rush hours, and then again from evening till night. problem. Unfortunately, I don’t think they do. Gentlemen, kuwait digest trend that is taking our polity down the road of Months ago, the Ministry of Public Works launched a major Street 101 is Kuwait, and, with all its mess and waste of effort, persecution and elimination of political oppo- project to change the street’s layout by building many round- resources and powers, Kuwait is Street 101.—Aljarida nents.— Al-Qabas Politics without kuwait digest principles

Clear the By Saad Al-Rushaidi

omething suddenly occurred to me while ambiguity following the heated debate between the SMPs and the Cabinet over the fine paid for over Dow the cancelation of the K-Dow contract. The dam- age resulting from the cancelation decision exceeds the US$2.2 billion in fine paid to Dow By Hamad Al-Sarie Chemical. I believe it would not be unfair to say that the biggest problem in Kuwait is that there is hings have got mixed up between the gov- no learning from mistakes and the consequent ernment, some of whose ministers have uproar mostly focuses on criticism rather than Tmade mistakes and should be held account- attempts to diagnose the problem.Signing a mega able, and the N A Council which feels that its consti- deal such as the one with K-Dow leaves the door tutional position is not secure. open for suspicion, while paying a hefty fine con- The ministers have tendered their resignation to firms the fact that the government committed a the Prime Minister, in support of their beleaguered double mistake, which is too grave to be ignored colleagues - the minister of interior and the oil min- and requires parliament and government officials ister - who are facing questioning over various to jointly investigate the deal before pointing fin- issues. The ministers’ move should not be held gers of blame. against them, because their standing together on The government has taken some unusual steps the issue does not mean that they support their while signing the K-Dow deal, but we have to colleagues’ alleged mistakes. The grilling of the interior minister is neither due agree that there are other parties responsible for nor is a priority now; the important thing to do the cancelation decision-including the parliament, would be to focus on those who lost public money which put pressure on the government to termi- and had to pay a financial penalty, without the N A nate the contract without considering the conse- Council being consulted. quences of that step. The council of ministers was vague and ambigu- In politics, numbers are more than just figures ous when it declared its intention to hold those used in mathematical equations. Their implica- accountable who caused this catastrophe. Does the tions are particularly significant when personal council mean to hold responsible the ones who interests are involved. While the government paid the fines or the ones who approved the study should be questioned over its decision, the posi- for which $200 million was paid? tion of lawmakers who kept attacking the deal The council has three choices, picked up from must also not be ignored. Questioning the govern- previous members who used to compete during ment politically - and even criminally if necessary - grilling sessions in order to appear before their vot- is important, but so is the need to question the ers as being keen to protect public funds and fight lawmakers who put pressure on the government corruption. to cancel the deal. The first choice: The constitutional court issues The government is required to provide clear its verdict on June 16, declaring the decree for one- answers for a number of pressing questions, such man vote unconstitutional - which would mean as: Why did it sign the K-Dow contract despite the that the N A Council will be called off and its mem- prevailing global economic situation? And what bers will get no privileges. was the reason behind accepting an unusual The second choice: Speed up the questioning process and do so before the constitutional court’s clause involving a penalty that is estimated at 30 decision so that the government can send a no- percent of the deal’s value? Furthermore, the gov- cooperation letter to His Highness the Amir, after ernment should also be questioned about the rea- which the council will be dissolved and the current son behind its failure to consult local experts and members will become former members if they fail instead depend solely on JP Morgan’s recommen- to participate in the next sessions. dation while signing the deal. In the meantime, The third choice: The government and council the position of lawmakers who demanded the should work together to resolve the crisis in the cancelation of the deal without considering the government through grilling sessions or by making consequential losses must be reviewed. minor ministerial amendments. The Dow Chemical Dear MPs, while it is your right to protect public case should be sent to the public prosecutor and oil funds and utilize all constitutional tools to achieve officials should be stopped from working until the that goal, keep in mind one thing that was identi- case is over, which will be after the constitutional fied by Mahatma Gandhi as one of the seven court passes it verdict in favor of or against the “roots of violence”, which is “politics without prin- decree. — Al-Anbaa ciples”. —Al-Rai THURSDAY, MAY 23, 2013 LOCAL Jahra robbery gang in police custody Man storms girls school, beauty salon KUWAIT: Jahra police arrested five people, who Drunk officer held knife. They succeeded in negotiating with the admitted responsibility for the multiple home Three people, including a police officer, were woman and talked her out of her suicide plans, robberies and thefts reported at police stations arrested recently for intoxication and possession after which she was taken to the area’s police around the governorates. Police obtained surveil- of what was suspected to be an illegal drug. The station where a case was filed for further investi- lance tapes from a company that had reported arrest took place in Al-Khairan, where the special gation. the theft of a safe containing KD500. Through task force officers and two others were reported- KUWAIT: Minister of Information and Minister of State for Youth Affairs those tapes, the officers were able to identify the ly found by the patrol police to be under the Man storms school Sheikh Salman Sabah Al-Salem Al-Sabah with KRCS Chairman Barjas main suspect. The man was arrested in an influence of alcohol. A substance found in their A man was arrested for breaking into a Hamoud Al-Barjas. —KUNA ambush in Riggai being identified as a Syrian possession was sent for testing, according to the beauty salon and a girls school on Tuesday. fugitive who had received a five-year jail sen- police report. The detainees were referred to the The stateless person was reportedly arrested tence for previous crimes. After the arrest, he Drug Control General Department for further at the Jahra salon, where he caused panic Sheikh Salman lauds revealed the identity of his accomplices - two action. after forcing himself inside with a dog in hand. Syrian nationals and two stateless residents - Police later revealed that the same man was who were then arrested in separate operations in Suicide averted reported to have entered a girls school in the KRCS relief initiatives Jahra and Salmiya. Investigations revealed that Hawally police managed to talk a domestic area earlier on the same day. The school’s prin- all the gang members had criminal records and worker out of her suicide plans, in a recently cipal had opted not to press charges against KUWAIT: Humanitarian relief efforts by the Kuwait with KRCS chief Al-Barjas, both sides discussed were wanted in connection with various cases. reported case in the area. Officers rushed to a the man after he claimed that he was seeking Red Crescent Society (KRCS) are distinguished at cooperation in the field of media and youth, amid The group led the police to a location in Salmi house whose residents reported that their protection against a person who was follow- the global level, Kuwait’s Minister of Information KRCS’ successful role in harboring Kuwaiti volun- desert where they had kept the items they had housemaid was suffering a nervous breakdown ing him. The man remains in custody for fur- and Minister of State for Youth Affairs Sheikh teers in their programs. stolen from companies, houses and pedestrians. and threatening to kill herself with a kitchen ther investigations. Salman Sabah Al-Salem Al-Sabah said yesterday. Sheikh Salman went on to praise the role of HH He made the remarks on the sidelines of his the Amir, and honorary KRCS President, Sheikh visit to the association’s headquarters, where he Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah for his support met with Chairman of the Board of Directors Barjas of global humanitarian initiatives. HH the Amir’s KUNA chief meets Al-Jazeera official Hamoud Al-Barjas and inspected humanitarian decision to host a recently-concluded internation- and relief activities by the body aimed at support- al conference in support of the humanitarian situa- KUWAIT: Chairman and Director ing relief work around the world, said a ministry tion in Syria is clear evidence of this, he said. For his General of Kuwait News Agency Sheikh statement. part, Al-Barjas said he was delighted at the visit of Mubarak Al-Duaj Al-Ibrahim Al-Sabah He added that KRCS’ operations room, which is Sheikh Salman Al-Hamoud and his accompanying received yesterday Director of Al-Jazeera the first of its kind in the Middle East, “is of high delegation, describing the visit as “crucial.” Media Training and Development international standards,” and that it “carries out its “This visit has nothing to do with political mat- Centre Munir Daeimi. work in collaboration with several specialized ters, but is related to assisting human beings wher- KUNA Chairman also received the international humanitarian organizations.” “These ever they may be - this is what the people of Head of marketing and administrative efforts are commended, and add to the many Kuwait are known for, even before the society’s affairs department at the center, Talal accomplishments of Kuwait on the scale of (KRCS) founding,” he said. Kuwait’s Red Crescent Abdulkareem, and representative of humanitarian work” he said. During his meeting was established in 1966. —KUNA the center in Kuwait, Ali Abdullah Shadaad. Sheikh Mubarak Al-Duaij, during the meeting, stressed on importance of the role training centers play in qualifying distinguished media cadres, capable of improving the Arab media at all levels. “Media openness” the Arab world is witnessing requires further care in training the workers in this vital field, which greatly contributes to affecting the public opinion, he affirmed. He emphasized importance of coopera- tion between various Arab media insti- tutions to tackle all aspects of weak- ness in the Arab media, and working to solve “such shortcomings” through exchange of expertise. The meeting was attended by Vice Chairman of KUNA for administrative KUWAIT: Chairman and Director General of KUNA Sheikh Mubarak Al-Duaj Al-Ibrahim Al- financial and communications affairs, Sabah yesterday with Director of Al-Jazeera Media Training and Development Centre Munir Abdulhameed Malak. —KUNA Daeimi. —KUNA British Islamic Centre lauds Kuwait’s support OXFORD: The Director of the Oxford Centre for Islamic Studies (OCIS), Dr Farhan Ahmad Nizami hailed yester- day the importance of the generous donation and support of His Highness the Amir of Kuwait Sheikh Sabah Al- Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, the govern- ment and the people of Kuwait to OCIS. In an interview, Dr Nizami said this donation of 10 million pounds and the continued encouragement of Kuwait “has always been very crucial for the life of the Centre from the very beginning of its creation in 1985.” HH the Amir made this great gesture of financial support to the Centre three years ago to help its valuable work in encouraging the study of Islam and providing “a meeting point between the Islamic world and the West,” he recalled. The Heir to the British throne, Prince Charles, is the Patron of the Centre. The Prince of Wales has high- lighted on several occasions that “the mission of OCIS is of great importance in our increasingly interdependent world.” Former Kuwaiti Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign minister Sheikh Dr Mohammad Sabah Al-Salem Al- Sabah is a member of OCIS Board of Trustees. This year’s annual Board of Trustees meeting will be held later in the summer to review its activities and future plans. But the Board held a meeting recently in Turkey hosted by the Turkish President Abdullah Gul. Sheikh Dr Mohammad Al-Sabah was present at that meeting. Dr Nizami was speak- ing to KUNA as the process of finishing the new building of the Centre was progressing apace. “The new building is situated at the heart of the city of Oxford, and at its heart there is the library, known as the Kuwait library, which has been supported by Kuwait,” he remarked. For any academic institution, the library is at the heart of its work, and that has been made possible by the generosity of Kuwait, the OCIS Director noted. “As we are near the completion of the new building in the next seven to eight months time, we hope there will be greater exchange of scholars, and also that the teaching at the Centre will enhance the life of Oxford University in general,” he said. —KUNA THURSDAY, MAY 23, 2013 LOCAL Companies law amendments bolster foreign investments Establishing a company made faster, easier

By Ben Garcia that this is a notable step forward for businesses in investors, there may be some changes and relax- level with leading several commercial projects, cor- Kuwait as the new law is set to significantly improve ation for foreign ownership of companies but we porate, banking, finance, and mergers and acquisi- KUWAIT: The amendments to the new companies’ the way companies are structured and how they don’t know as yet. Under the old law, the joint stock tions transactions ranging from typical transactions law provide a friendlier and more relaxed environ- operate, ultimately creating a stronger sense of con- company’s ratio of Kuwait to foreign ownership was to highly complex ones. He admits that establishing ment for foreign investors. As per the new law, it will fidence to invest in Kuwait as a solid growth market,” 51-49, but under the new law, this aspect is silent a business in Kuwait is really quite difficult compared be now possible to establish a public company with- added Little. and the law doesn’t say as yet what the percentage to other countries because of red tape (bureaucracy) in a month’s time. Little expressed his concern that some of the new will be,” he explained. which, he says, hampers growth. “With the new According to Rob Little, Partner with ASAR - Al- amendments in the law are too vague. “The new law Little who moved from Canada to join ASAR in amended version, they are promising much quicker Ruwayeh & Partners law firm, it will now take a says that there must be speedier action, especially in 1997, said it will be more favorable environment for establishment times, no matter who the owners of month to obtain approval to establish a public com- terms of corporation process. It must be quicker. foreign investors in Kuwait if the foreign ownership the companies are,” he said. pany compared to four to six months that investors That is why they proposed a single window system, stake is increased to at least 51 percent, because it He further explained that the amendments will had to spend previously. “Perhaps many things are but we need to wait to see how the bylaws workout,” will be easier for investors to consolidate financial provide for a one stop shop for all required docu- going to be very quick, fast and easy,” he said, stress- Little said. statements. “If you have 51 percent, it is clear that ments to be processed. “It is one way of streamlining ing that under the older law, it took months to you have the power to consolidate and the power the process and we have to wait and see how suc- obtain an approval to establish a public company. to elect a majority in the board of directors,” said cessful the streamlining will be,” he said, explaining The amendments to the companies’ law include Little. that in Bahrain, for example, it only takes only a few doing away with the six months’ deadline to comply Little who specializes primarily in banking and days to process papers, but in Kuwait it takes with the new companies law; revising the manner in finance, general corporate commercial, capital mar- months to finish paperwork and licenses. “The new which a manager of a WLL may be appointed or ter- kets, project work and financial transactions, amended version of the corporate law is a huge leap minated; permitting a chief executive officer to be a believes that in order to encourage more foreign toward positive change,” he quipped, adding that in board member; enabling the issuance of shares investors to Kuwait, the corporate law must some- the past, public joint stock companies required an below 100fils; and clarifying that a holding company how be pro-investor. “We believe that it will be obligatory approval through HH the Amir. Now, it may be a public joint stock company. good for Kuwait to relax the laws for foreign can be done through ministries. He said that the Little explained, “The recent changes made to the investors and allow a higher ownership stake, which business in Kuwait will be the beneficiary of the new new companies’ law reflect the country’s keenness is provided in other GCC countries. We hope that law. “The new changes will be very beneficial to to further align its business environment with best Kuwait will take steps to relax the foreign ownership Kuwait,” he told Kuwait Times. international practices. The fact that amendments to rules here as well,” he wished. the new company law were introduced merely four Little noted that in the new law, there will be no Taxation months after the new companies’ law was passed is more managing directors in joint stock companies. Another major change in Kuwait is related to tax- a step forward that underscores the synergy This position will be replaced by the CEO and the ation. Little explained that in the past, taxation was between the legislative and executive authorities. CEO can be a board member too. “What the new about 55 percent but about five years ago, it was The amendments to the new law should have the law is doing is changing the corporate governance brought down to 15 percent. “A 15 percent tax is not effect of encouraging investment in Kuwait, facilitat- structure. The concept of the CEO was not there in very high, internationally. However, in some coun- ing expansion of existing businesses, and providing the old law, but now, it is gaining foothold in tries in the GCC, no taxes are applied; Dubai is the flexibility in the corporate law regime which will, in Kuwait. There will be larger separation between the best example where no taxes are applied. If you ask turn, assist businesses in finding concrete solutions board and management than before,” he noted. me whether Kuwait will follow with no taxes, I don’t Rob Little appropriate to their circumstances.” In taking the point further, he stressed that the think so. I think the 15 percent bar will remain but In Little’s words, the law was implemented in two Little, educated at the University of Saskatchewan board will also have six meetings a year instead of who knows (whether changes in this area will be stages; the new law was first passed in November in Canada, said Kuwait is expecting bylaws to be four. “The board members will be able to pass writ- implemented too),” he said. 2012 and later the amendments to the new law were issued latest by September or possibly even earlier ten resolutions. They don’t even have to meet as There are other laws such as the Foreign Direct passed last month. “The amendments were needed as there are rumors that the same will be issued by they can pass a resolution as long as all the board Investment Law that can be used to help foreign to fine tune the new law but the bylaws need to be month end. members sign it.” investors. He said if foreign companies were able to passed before the new law can be fully implement- satisfy the applicable requirements, they could be ed,” said Little, who is also a company consultant. The 51/49 issue: Online shift granted tax exemptions under this law. With regards to the foreign ownership percent- Little explained that one of the other amend- Since 2000, when a foreign company applies for Regulation age law as per which any Kuwaiti ownership has to ments to the old law is the acceptance of telecon- tax exemptions, under the Foreign Direct Investment “The regulatory system in Kuwait is becoming be 51 percent and the remainder a foreign investor, ferencing. “If the system is implemented, it will be Law, it must first convince the Foreign Investment more dynamic and, as such, businesses need to con- Little explained: “The stock exchange-listed compa- very helpful since it is always a problem to convene Bureau that their business plan will drastically benefit stantly monitor developments. Commercial entities nies can be owned to the extent of more than 49 a board members’ meeting because some board Kuwait in general. In that case, it may attract zero tax. will need to review their structures taking into percent by foreigners but private non-listed compa- members are at different locations. Finally, Little “The process is longer than in other countries and account the introduction of the new company’s law nies appear to be limited to 51 percent Kuwaiti also mentioned that shareholder agreements are there is no specific investment amount stated in this and assess whether changes are required. holding. For instance, in the new company law, for- now expressly allowed under the new law. law. However, banks and other lending institutions Alternatively, these can be recommended to make eign ownership rules for WLL will be determined by With a total of 22 years of legal experience are very successful in getting tax exemptions under business run effectively and profitably. We believe the bylaws. As Kuwait appears to be wooing foreign behind him, Little has been involved at a very senior the Foreign Direct Investment Law,” he said.

KUWAIT: Minister of Information and Minister of State for Youth Affairs Sheikh Salman Sabah Al-Salem Al-Humoud Al-Sabah visits areqT Rajab Museum on SHARJAH: Minister Thekra Al-Rashidi talks to Tuesday. —KUNA media yesterday in Sharjah. —KUNA Tareq Rajab Museum a treasure Develop GCC workforce: trove of Kuwait heritage Al-Rashidi

KUWAIT: The Tareq Rajab Museum is an important Kuwaiti mon- guide Ali Dashti for his informative tour of the museum, stressing The Museum has two other major exhibitions abroad. Some ument that documents and preserves Islamic history and cul- that the NCCAL was keen on including the facility as part of three three hundred objects, each with beautifully rendered inscrip- SHARJAH: Minister of Social Affairs and Labor Thekra Al- ture, Minister of Information and Minister of State for Youth cultural centers to be opened here soon. tions, were loaned to the newly built Asian Civilizations Museum Rashidi asserted here yesterday the importance of devel- Affairs Sheikh Salman Sabah Al-Salem Al-Humoud Al-Sabah said Sheikh Salman was accompanied during his visit by in Singapore in 1997. A catalogue under the title of Harmony of oping the workforce in the GCC through strengthening the late on Tuesday. Secretary General of the NCCAL Ali Al-Yuha. The Tareq Rajab Letters was published for the occasion. The second exhibition partnership between the public and private sectors. Speaking on the sideline of his visit to the museum, Sheikh Museum houses a collection of over thirty thousand items col- was opened in the Helikon Castle Museum, Keszthely, at Lake This came during her participation in the third forum for Salman said that he was very glad to have seen the rare items lected over the last fifty years, of which approximately ten thou- Balaton in Hungary, under the title of The World of Islam. The Arts officials of human resources and the labor market in the and documents preserved at the Museum, stressing that Tareq sand are on permanent display. The Museum was opened to of the Islamic World in the 18th-20th centuries, which was GCC, which started today under the patronage of the Rajab and his family did a tremendous work in housing such cul- the public in 1980. opened in 2002. Crown Prince and Deputy Ruler of Sharjah, Sheikh Sultan tural heritage that made all Kuwaitis very proud. The Museum is divided into two parts: in Area A, calligraphy, On March 14th, 2007, The Tareq Rajab Museum of Islamic bin Mohammed Al-Qasimi, ministers and officials of labor Sheikh Salman, who is also chairman of the National Council manuscripts, miniatures, ceramics, metalwork, glass, jade-, Calligraphy opened its doors to the general public. Its aim is to ministries in the six states. The minister said that the forum for Culture, Arts, and Letters (NCCAL), affirmed that he would be wood- and stone-carvings are exhibited. Area B contains objects trace the development of the Arabic script. The earliest script is a rich opportunity for the exchange of ideas and visions working with the museum’s administration to provide more which were produced in the Islamic world during the last ca. 250 in the museum dates back to the 7th century up to the pres- exposure. He thanked the museum’s manager and head tour years, i.e. costumes, textiles, jewelry and musical instruments. ent day. —KUNA between GCC officials on human resources in order to come out with recommendations to support those resources particularly in the private sector. She said that Gulf countries have challenges represent- ed in the large number of expatriate labor as well as the reluctance of a significant portion of their citizens to work in the private sector. Al-Rashidi pointed out that the most effective solutions to indulge the GCC national employment into the labor market is to support small and medium-sized enterprises. She emphasized that the initiative of HH the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah in the first eco- nomic summit held in Kuwait in 2009 to finance small and medium-sized enterprises is one of the best initiatives at the Arab League level. She explained that some 15 Arab countries have pitched in such initiatives, which have been activated through the creation of an account managed by the Arab Fund for Economic and Social Development, Kuwait’s con- tribution to which amounts to $500 million in addition to the allocation of KD2 billion for the establishment of the National Fund, which is the umbrella that embraces small projects in Kuwait. —KUNA THURSDAY, MAY 23, 2013

Afghan interpreters 7 Egyptian security men kidnapped in Sinai freed to get British visas

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MOORE: Amber Johnson (R) a fifth grade teacher at Briarwood Elementary School salvages items from her car which was parked at the school when a powerful tornado ripped through the area on Tuesday in Moore, Oklahoma. Johnson is being helped by her daughters Natalie (L) and Nicole. The town reported a tornado of at least EF4 strength and two miles wide that touched down yesterday killing at least 24 people and leveling everything in its path. —AFP Rescuers comb Oklahoma rubble for survivors Attention focus on huge cleanup job

MOORE: Rescue workers with sniffer dogs and search- members of the National Guard were changing shifts to but on Tuesday officials said 24 bodies had been recov- lights combed through the wreckage of a massive tornado work through the night. ered, down from a previous tally of 51. “There was a lot of to ensure no survivors remained buried in the rubble of The death toll of 24 was lower than initially feared, but chaos,” said Amy Elliott, chief administrative officer for the primary schools, homes and buildings in an Oklahoma City nine children were among the dead, including seven who medical examiner. Some ascribe the relatively low number suburb. The massive tornado on Monday afternoon flat- died at Plaza Towers Elementary School which took a of dead residents discovered in Moore, home to 55,000 tened blocks of the town, killed at least 24 people and direct hit by the deadliest tornado to strike the United people, to the fact many locals have small “storm safe” shel- injured about 240 in Moore, just outside Oklahoma City. States in two years. Emergency workers pulled more than ters, basically a concrete hole in the garage floor with a But as dawn approached on Monday, officials were 100 survivors from the debris of homes, schools and a hos- sliding roof that locks. Billy McElrath, 50, of Oklahoma City, increasingly confident that everyone caught in the disaster pital after the tornado ripped through the Oklahoma City said his wife hid in a storm safe in their garage when the had been accounted for, despite initial fears that the region with winds exceeding 200 miles per hour (320 kph), tornado hit. She emerged unhurt even though the storm twister had claimed the lives of more than 90 people. leaving a trail of destruction 17 miles (23 km) long and 1.3 destroyed the 1968 Corvette convertible she had bought Jerry Lojka, spokesman for Oklahoma Emergency miles (2 km) wide. him as a birthday present, and crushed a motorcycle. Management, said search-and-rescue dog teams would Plaza Towers Elementary was one of five schools in its “Everything else is just trashed,” he said as he loaded a pick- search yesterday for anybody trapped under the rubble, path. “They (rescuers) literally were lifting walls up and up with salvaged goods. but that attention would also be focused on a huge kids were coming out,” Oklahoma State Police Sergeant Kraig Boozier, 47, took to his own small shelter in the cleanup job. Jeremy Lewis said. “They pulled kids out from under cin- Westmoor subdivision of Oklahoma City and watched in “They will continue the searches of areas to be sure der blocks without a scratch on them.” The last time a giant shock as a fan in the wall was ripped out. nothing is overlooked,” he said, adding: “There’s going to twister tore through the area, on May 3, 1999, it killed “I looked up and saw the tornado above me,” he said. be more of a transition to recovery.” More than 1,000 peo- more than 40 people and destroyed thousands of homes. When he came out after the storm, he helped a neighbor ple had already registered for assistance from the Federal That tornado also ranked as an EF5. who had emerged from her own shelter move a car that Emergency Management Agency, which sent hundreds of While Oklahoma Emergency Management’s Lojka said was blocking the entrance to another neighbor’s shelter. workers to Oklahoma to help with the recovery, a White a flyover of the affected area on Tuesday showed 2,400 Officials said another factor behind the surprisingly House official said yesterday. homes damaged or obliterated, with an estimated 10,000 low death toll was the early warning, with meteorologists After a long day of searching through shattered homes people affected, the death toll was lower than might have saying days in advance that a storm system was forming. that was slowed by rainy weather, Oklahoma County com- been expected. The toll was also a fraction of that of the Once a tornado was forming, people had 15 to 20 min- missioner Brian Maughan said it seemed no one was miss- 2011 twister in Joplin, Missouri, which killed 161 people. utes of warning, which meant they could take shelter or ing. “As far as I know, of the list of people that we have had In the hours following the storm, many more people flee the projected path. The weather service also has new, that they are all accounted for in one way or another,” he were feared dead. At one point, the Oklahoma state med- sterner warnings about deadly tornadoes to get people’s said. As he spoke on Tuesday evening, dog teams and ical examiner’s office said the toll could rise as high as 91, attention. —Reuters Mugabe signs new constitution HARARE: President Robert Mugabe signed Zimbabwe’s new constitu- tion into law yesterday, clearing the path to crucial elections later this year. The 89-year-old, who has ruled Zimbabwe since independence from Britain in 1980, signed the document two months after it was over- whelmingly approved by Zimbabweans at a referendum. “This is a happening of joy, great joy indeed,” Mugabe said at the signing ceremony, held in a marquee erected on the lush green lawns of the State House. Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai also welcomed the constitution’s passage into law: “As Zimbabweans we are proud that we are setting on a journey that is based on a new governance system.” After Mugabe signed the text he shook hands with Tsvangirai, to loud applause from assembled ministers and lawmakers. Despite the show of solidarity, the handshake effectively signals the start of an election cam- paign that will once again see the rivals pitted against each other. Tsvangirai has challenged Mugabe for the presidency twice before, with often bloody results. International observers described Mugabe’s victory in 2002 as deeply flawed, and in 2008 the vote was plagued by violence and irregularities. After the latest poll both men were forced into a shaky power-sharing government that has largely succeeded in preventing further unrest, but which has been hobbled by infighting. As part of a broader deal the pair were also pressed to adopt a new constitution that, now passed, significantly trims the president’s powers and paves the way for fair elections. Presidents will now be limited to two five-year terms and the post of prime minister will be scrapped when a new government is voted in. But there are doubts that reforms can be implemented quickly enough to ensure a fair election. Mugabe’s 33-year-rule, at first lauded as enlightened, has in recent decades been tainted by rights abuses against his opponents and critics. The arrest and persecution of opposition and rights activists has continued apace as election day approaches. The polls should be held this year, but the date is yet to be set. Mugabe and his allies want the polls as soon as possible while Tsvangirai insists on the application of key reforms first to ensure a free and fair vote. The polls however face funding uncertainty in the cash-strapped country, with Finance Minister Tendai Biti saying it cannot afford the estimated $132 million price tag. The government had initially approached the United Nations for financial help, but withdrew the request when it was made clear the cash was conditional on the deployment of international observers. As the United Nations prepared to send a team to appraise the situa- tion on the ground, a key Mugabe ally-Justice Minister Patrick Chinamasa-declared that the team had overstepped its mandate by planning to meet civil society groups. Zimbabwe has also approached South Africa for money to help organise the elections, while the govern- ment is also try to raise funds on the domestic front. —AFP INTERNATIONAL THURSDAY, MAY 23, 2013 Ahmadinejad to contest ally’s ‘unjust’ vote ban

TEHRAN: Iran’s President Mahmoud he said in remarks published on the pres- before announcing the approved candi- ple and political circles as he is one of the ex-foreign minister Ali Akbar Velayati, ex- Ahmadinejad said yesterday he will ask idency’s website. Mashaie had been “a dates) but my father said he will not pillars of the Islamic revolution,” he told commander of the Revolutionary Guards supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei victim of injustice,” added Ahmadinejad, withdraw since ‘I cannot betray people AFP. Only eight candidates won approval Mohsen Rezai and former parliament to reverse what he branded the unjust who himself cannot stand for re-election who urged me to come forward’,” she to stand-five conservatives close to speaker Gholam Ali Haddad Adel. disqualification of a close aide from next after serving two consecutive terms. said without elaborating. Khamenei, two moderates and a Two figures seen as moderate conser- month’s presidential election. Khamenei has the power to ask the “There are many people of advanced reformist. The council’s decision was wel- vatives are also on the list of approved The conservative-dominated council to review Mashaie’s case, as he aged who hold high-ranking posts in the comed by some 150 deputies in the 290- candidates: former nuclear negotiator, Guardians Council on Tuesday eliminated once did in 2005. That intervention country and also are ill. Therefore it is seat Iranian parliament. The disqualifica- Hassan Rowhani, and Mohammad both the aide, Esfandiar Rahim Mashaie, resulted in the reinstatement of two utterly evident that age is a pretext.” tions appeared to put Saeed Jalili, a fig- Gharazi, a former minister who served and ex-president Akbar Hashemi reformist candidates. Rafsanjani, who turns 79 in August, cur- ure close to Khamenei known for his under Rafsanjani and under opposition Rafsanjani from a list of eight candidates However, Rafsanjani’s campaign man- rently chairs the Expediency Council, tough negotiation stance in Iran’s atomic leader Mir Hossein Mousavi, who is cur- for the June 14 election. ager Eshagh Jahangiri told ISNA news Iran’s highest political arbitration body. talks with world powers, in the front seat rently under house arrest. It gave no explanation, and those agency the moderate former president Guardians Council spokesman for the election. The reformists will have only one can- ruled out have no right to appeal the “will not protest regarding his disqualifi- Abbasali Kadkhodai, without naming “In the conservative camp, the tide is didate in the election in Mohammad decision by the vetting body whose cation”. “Mr Hashemi has always been Rafsanjani, said frailty and old age had turning in favour of Jalili,” said Amir Reza Aref, who served as first vice presi- members are directly or indirectly among the pillars of the regime and will been factors in the eliminations. Mohebian, a conservative political ana- dent under president Mohammad appointed by Khamenei. But remain so, God willing,” he added. “Barring Mashaie was a natural move lyst. Other analysts agreed. “The compass Khatami. The Iranian press plastered the Ahmadinejad said he would still take up Rafsanjani’s eldest daughter Fatemeh, since Ayatollah Khamenei refused among the conservatives points towards pictures of the approved candidates on the matter with the supreme leader, who cited by the opposition site Kaleme.com, Ahmadinejad appointing him as first vice Jalili... because he is deemed to be adher- their front pages, but offered no com- has the final say in the Islamic republic’s said the disqualification of her father on president” in 2009, said Mohammad ing more to the revolutionary values and ment on them. political affairs. the basis of his advanced age was “a pre- Saleh Sedghian, analyst at the Arab he is better linked to the regime’s power- The reformist Bahar daily’s main head- “I will pursue this case through the text”. Centre of Iranian Studies in Tehran. ful decision-makers.” line: “Hashemi is not on the list,” while the supreme leader until the last moment “They called my father and told him “Rafsanjani’s refusal will lead to divi- Jalili’s conservative rivals include governmental Iran newspaper did not and I hope this problem will be solved,” to withdraw from the race (the morning sion among the clerics, among the peo- Tehran mayor Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, cover the list on its front page. —AFP 7 Egyptian security men kidnapped in Sinai freed Morsi thanks armed forces, tribal chiefs CAIRO: Six Egyptian policemen and a border guard kidnapped by suspect- ed militants in the volatile Sinai Peninsula last week were freed by their captors yesterday after success- ful mediation, the country’s military spokesman said. The release, which followed a security buildup and a massive show AMMAN: US Secretary of State John Kerry meets with Jordan’s King Abdullah in of force by the military in northern Amman, yesterday. Jordan is hosting 10 other nations for a “Friends of Syria” confer- Sinai, brought an end to a crisis that ence in Amman. Kerry is taking part, along with officials from Turkey, Saudi Arabia, had stirred anger with the public and the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Egypt, Britain, France, Germany and Italy. — AP within the security forces and held the potential to embarrass both the military and Islamist President America, Oman talk Mohammed Morsi had it dragged on. The captors freed the seven men early yesterday in the middle of the $2.1b defense deal desert, and some were able later to speak to their families by telephone, MUSCAT: US Secretary of State John Kerry Muscat on Wednesday for talks also attended according to officials and state TV. yesterday discussed a $2.1 billion deal with by Raytheon senior director Ken Gordon. Military spokesman Col Ahmed Omani leaders to supply an American-made The Omanis believed it was “the best and Mohammed Ali said on the army’s air-defence system to the Arab state facing most effective system that is out there,” official Facebook page that the Iran in the Gulf. Kerry told Oman’s Defence Busaidi said “Talks are underway at this point, release came about as a “result of Minister Sayyid Badr al-Busaidi that the and we are at the technical stages but we are efforts by military intelligence, in United States was “excited” about the deal hoping to move to the final discussion and cooperation with the honorable trib- and “very grateful for your confidence in sign a contract,” he added. al leaders and Sinai residents.” Raytheon,” manufacturers of the defence sys- “We are in need of this defence system, Morsi, however, trumpeted their tem. which also pertains to the defence strategy of crisis’ end as the outcome of an “oper- CAIRO: A handout picture released by the Egyptian Army shows Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi (L) The details of the contract are still being the other countries of the Gulf Cooperation ation” that showcased “perfect” coor- greeting one of the policemen who was seized in Sinai by kidnappers, at Almaza military Airbase in Cairo, worked through, and a letter of intent is to be Council.” US officials had earlier said that it dination between the armed forces, yesterday, following his release. — AFP signed “soon, but they are still finalising tech- was expected that the letter of intent would the police and security agencies. He nical details,” a State Department spokes- be signed in Muscat yesterday. also called for unity in a nation with the kidnappers. But several offi- captors there. The official spoke on shook state sovereignty and national woman said, asking not to be named. Kerry also met with Oman’s ruler Sultan deeply divided, with the president cials said mediators were in contact condition of anonymity because he security, and where grievances have US officials said earlier that Oman had Qaboos on Tueday and told US embassy and his Islamist backers in one camp with the kidnappers to secure their wasn’t authorized to brief the media. accumulated and development decided in January to buy a ground-based air staffers at a meeting the next day that he had and moderate Muslims, liberals, left- release. It was not immediately clear lacked,” Hamzawy wrote on his defence system produced by US giant appreciated his insight into moves to bring ists and Christians in the other. It was not immediately clear whether the army and police will Twitter account. Raytheon, which is based in Kerry’s home Israel and the Palestinians back to the negoti- After their release, the men were whether yesterday’s release was a continue to hunt down the captors or Morsi faced his first Sinai chal- state of Massachusetts. The new top US diplo- ating table. After his brief visit to Oman, Kerry flown in a military helicopter to an air sign that the captors’ demands would whether a major security operation lenge in August last year, just over a mat had strongly backed the proposed deal was leaving to attend a key meeting of the force base in a Cairo suburb, where be met or whether the release was would be launched to rid the mostly month after taking office, when mili- before he took office in February. “Friends of Syria” group in Amman later yester- Morsi greeted them on the tarmac the outcome of a deal forced on the desert peninsula of militants and tants carried out the most brazen “Part of the goal of this is to push US com- day. He was expected to meet with Jordan’s with a kiss on each cheek as they dis- captors by the military’s show of criminal gangs. attack ever on military troops, killing mercial interests, to demonstrate to Oman King Abdullah as well as ministers from the embarked. Prime Minister Hesham force. During the sweep, troops and 16 Egyptian soldiers along the border that these are important to this administra- core 11 nations of the Friends of Syria as they Kandil and Defense Minister Abdel- Interior Minister Mohammed police mistakenly fired on a Bedouin with Gaza and Israel. tion,” another US official had said before Kerry seek to finalise plans for a peace conference to Fatah el-Sissi were also on hand to Ibrahim said Tuesday the kidnappers funeral in Sinai on Tuesday. No one At the time, Morsi vowed to arrived in Oman on Tuesday. “We have initiat- end the conflict now in its third year. He will receive the men. were demanding the release of 24 was injured, and a military official restore stability, launching a brief mil- ed the talks” about the system, Busaidi said as travel to Israel for talks Thursday and Friday Morsi later thanked the armed convicted militants, some imprisoned offered an apology, but the incident itary operation that resulted in the he met Kerry in the defence ministry in with Israeli and Palestinian leaders. —AFP forces, security agencies as well as since 2005. He called the demands highlighted the risks of a heavy hand- closures of some smuggling tunnels the people of Sinai and their tribal “unacceptable.” ed attempt to free the captives. between Sinai and Gaza and the chiefs for their efforts to resolve the A senior security official told the The kidnapping last Thursday also arrest of the man believed to be at standoff. He also vowed to hunt state news agency that the release highlighted the growing instability in the heart of the current kidnapping, down the kidnappers, saying “there was a coordinated effort between Sinai. Criminal gangs, militants and Ahmed Abu Shita. will be no going back on bringing the security agencies. He said plans local tribesmen disgruntled with Abu Shita was sentenced to death criminals to account.” involved “closing in on the kidnap- what they say is state discrimination in absentia in September for involve- “This event will be a departure pers, security sweeps, and intensive and heavy-handed security crack- ment in a major attack on a northern point for all of us to solve the prob- deployment.” The unnamed official downs have exploited the security Sinai police station in 2011 that left lems of Sinai, its people and to devel- said security agencies as well as fami- vacuum brought by Egypt’s 2011 three policemen dead. Thirteen oth- op Sinai,” he said. Over the past week, lies and tribes in Sinai were in contact uprising. Armed groups smuggle ers, including seven others in absen- the kidnapping and the expectations with the kidnappers. weapons, attack security forces and tia, were also given death sentences of a massive military operation to The official did not elaborate, but kidnap tourists to trade for relatives in the case. free the hostages took center stage in in the past, tribal leaders in Sinai have held in Egyptian jails. Ibrahim said the kidnappers were Egyptian politics but also risked trig- been known to mediate between Essam el-Erian, a leading member too well-armed to be confronted by gering a backlash in Sinai, where authorities and Bedouin tribesmen of the Muslim Brotherhood, from the police force alone. He said the resentment among the local popula- behind kidnappings of foreign which Morsi hails, welcomed the kidnappers had planned the opera- tion against past security crackdowns tourists. On Monday, military and release of the seven men and lauded tion for two months in advance and has fueled the rise of militancy. police reinforcements backed by both the security agencies and the were armed with anti-aircraft and Calls for a tough response were armored vehicles and helicopters Sinai tribes. He appealed for future anti-tank missiles, surface-to-air mis- fueled by a video released last week moved into northern Sinai in a show cooperation, saying on his Facebook siles and other heavy weaponry on YouTube showing the captives of strength, deploying heavily around page: “Regards to all and our families smuggled from Libya. SIDON: A Lebanese army soldier, background, sits on the top of his armored person- blindfolded and pleading for Morsi to the provincial capital, el-Arish. A joint in Sinai who will seriously assist in Disgruntled policemen in north- nel carrier in front of a burning tire laid by supporters of hardline Sunni Muslim cler- meet the kidnappers’ demands and military and police force carried out a cleansing Sinai from all the criminal ern Sinai have protested their col- ic Ahmad al-Assir, in the southern port city of Sidon, Lebanon, yesterday. —AP release of scores of prisoners from sweep backed by helicopter cover on spots.” leagues’ kidnapping, closing the only Sinai, including convicted militants. Tuesday in several villages along the Liberal politician and former law- passenger crossing between Gaza Faced with anger among the pub- border with Israel. maker Amr Hamzawy also lauded the and Egypt in Rafah, and briefly forc- Friends of Syria meet lic and within the security forces over A security official told The release, calling it a “successful crisis ing shut a commercial terminal with the kidnappings, Morsi had said that Associated Press yesterday that the management.” “Now this success Israel. Palestinian Gaza border official as conflict escalates all options were on the table and that men were believed to have been held must be invested to deal comprehen- Maher Abu Sabha said the Rafah ter- the presidency would not negotiate in that area, and were let go by their sively with the Sinai issues, which minal re-opened yesterday. — AP AMMAN: Backers of the Syrian uprising were Syria’s opposition National Coalition is to to meet in Amman with the opposition yes- attend the Amman meeting and will be rep- terday to discuss a US-Russian proposal for resented by its interim president George Turkey shuts Syria border peace talks, as the two-year conflict escalated Sabra, coalition spokesman Soner Ahmed close to the border with Lebanon. told AFP. “The Coalition received a late invita- “Today’s effort ... is part of a political path tion and has confirmed its participation,” he aimed at ending the violence and bloodshed,” said. Meanwhile, Russian Foreign Minister crossing after bombings Jordanian Foreign Minister Nasser Judeh told Sergei Lavrov, whose country does not take a joint news conference with British Foreign part in Friends of Syria meetings, was to host ANKARA: Turkey has shut its side of the last would be allowed to cross. Turkey says it has detained 18 Turks in con- Secretary William Hague before the meeting Syrian Deputy Foreign Minister Faisal border crossing with Syria still controlled by Nobody would be allowed to cross from nection with the car bombings, 12 of whom are of the so-called Friends of Syria group. Muqdad for talks yesterday on the planned President Bashar al-Assad’s government, step- Turkey into Syria. The gate was initially shut the facing formal charges, and that among them Judeh said the US-Russian proposal was a conference, Russia’s RIA Novosti state news ping up security following two deadly bomb- day after the bombings to prevent the attackers were some of the main perpetrators, including “turning point.” Earlier this month, the United agency said. On the arms embargo on Syria, ings this month. from fleeing to Syria. A Turkish official in the the owner of the vehicles used in the attacks. States and Russia, which back opposite sides Hague said: “The decision we need to take in Fifty-one people were killed when twin car region said there would now be time to station Officials said some of the perpetrators had in the Syrian conflict, proposed a peace con- Europe in the next days is about the rules of bombs ripped through the Turkish border town bomb-detecting equipment at the crossing. travelled close to Yayladagi after the bombings ference dubbed Geneva 2 to bring together this embargo. Decisions about sending lethal of Reyhanli in the southern province of Hatay The Yayladagi gate is the only crossing along to try and slip into Syria. The bombings were rebels and representatives of President equipment (to the rebels) is a different mat- on May 11, heightening fears that Syria’s civil the 900 km shared border whose Syrian side is some of the deadliest in Turkey’s modern histo- Bashar al-Assad’s regime. ter.” He said the issue would be discussed with war was dragging in neighbouring states. still controlled by Assad’s government. All other ry, although violence from Syria’s civil war, now “The humanitarian crisis underlines the the opposition later yesterday. Ahead of Turkey has accused Syria of involvement in crossings have fallen into the hands of rebels in its third year, had spilled over the border urgency of reaching a political solution and a Amman’s meeting, US Secretary of State John the attacks. Damascus has denied any role. fighting to overthrow him. before. diplomatic breakthrough,” Hague said. Eleven Kerry was also to hold a news conference. Customs Minister Hayat Yazici said the The Yayladagi crossing serves as the main At least 14 people were killed in a bombing top diplomats from Britain, Egypt, France, “One of the things we’ll be talking about here Yayladagi gate, some 90 km (55 miles) from route to Syria’s northwestern coastal area at the Cilvegozu border gate near Reyhanli in Germany, Italy, Jordan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, in Amman... is what else needs to be done Reyhanli, would remain closed for a month, around Latakia, which has a large Alawite popu- February. In October, a mortar fired from Syria Turkey, the United Arab Emirates and the with respect to the military balance on the during which only Turkish citizens arriving from lation. Assad is also Alawite, a minority sect that killed five Turkish civilians in the frontier town United States are attending the meeting. ground,” a top US official said, urging the Syria or non-Syrians transiting through Turkey has dominated Syria for decades. of Akcakale further to the east. — Reuters After initial uncertainty, the acting head of Syrian opposition to unify ranks.— AFP THURS DAY, MAY 23, 2013 INTERNATIONAL Germany backs call to put Hezbollah on EU terror list Fears growing over group’s role in Syrian war BRUSSELS: Germany will throw its If backed unanimously by the wanted to see stronger evidence Israel is waging a smear campaign weight behind a British drive to put European Union, the listing would that Hezbollah was involved in the against it. the armed wing of Hezbollah on force European governments and bombing in Bulgaria. Britain’s request will be dis- the European Union’s list of terrorist companies to cease any financial “In the light of discussions we cussed on June 4 by a special EU organisations, German diplomats dealings with the armed wing of have had with our partners follow- working group and London hopes said yesterday. the Lebanese movement. ing the terrorist attack in Burgas, for final agreement at an EU foreign Britain said on Tuesday it want- The call for EU action on Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle ministers’ meeting on June 24, an ed the EU to add Hezbollah’s mili- Hezbollah comes at a time of grow- supports listing at least the military EU diplomat said. The EU has resis- tary wing to its terror list because ing Western anxiety about the wing of Hezbollah as a terrorist ted pressure from the United States of evidence that the Iranian-backed group’s involvement in the Syrian organisation in the EU,” a German and Israel to blacklist Hezbollah, militant group was behind a bus conflict, although British sources diplomatic source said. arguing this could destabilise bombing in Bulgaria in July that said this was not the reason behind “The German position is based Lebanon’s fragile government and killed five Israelis and their driver. its request. on an increasingly clear picture of contribute to instability in the London also cited a four-year jail Yesterday, British Foreign the facts and on the progress Middle East. In Europe, only the sentence handed down by a Secretary William Hague accused achieved by Cypriot authorities in Netherlands lists Hezbollah as a ter- Cypriot court in March to a Hezbollah and Iran of propping up analysing terrorist activities,” the rorist group, while Britain blacklists Hezbollah member accused of plot- Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. source said. Hezbollah has dis- its military wing. France has yet to ting to attack Israeli interests on the Germany, one of the most powerful missed Bulgaria’s accusations that it take a public stance on Britain’s island. EU countries, had previously said it was involved in the attack and said proposal. —Reuters Afghan interpreters to get British visas

LONDON: About 600 Afghan inter- Afghans say they have been threat- offer-they will be paid their salary lenge at the High Court in London KIROV: Russian protest leader Alexei Navalny (front L) gestures while addressing preters who served with British ened by the Taleban because of for five years if they train or study, or earlier this month, said she was Kirov regional governor Nikita Belykh (back R) as they attend the hearing of forces fighting the Taleban in their work with British forces, who be paid for 18 months if they do “delighted” at the government’s Navalny’s case in a court in the provincial northern city of Kirov yesterday. A Russian Afghanistan will be offered the are due to withdraw at the end of not. “These proposals give them a offer, although she admitted she court in Kirov continued yesterday the trial of Navalny on fraud charges that could chance to live in Britain after a gov- 2014 along with other NATO-led for- choice: the opportunity to go on had not seen the details yet. land President Vladimir Putin’s most outspoken foe behind bars for 10 years. ernment U-turn, it was revealed yes- eign troops. working in Afghanistan, learning “These are men who have been Navalny acted as an unpaid advisor to Belykh, a former opposition politician, at the terday. Under the new plans, inter- new skills and to go on rebuilding on the front line with our troops, time of the alleged embezzlement in 2009. — AFP Prime Minister David Cameron preters who served on the frontline their country or to come and make risking their lives, involved in front- had initially sought to discourage for at least one year will be allowed a new start in Britain,” a source in line battle,” she told BBC radio. “So the interpreters from settling in to move to Britain with close family Cameron’s Downing Street office we’re delighted that the govern- Russian governor backs Britain for fear of the message it members on a five-year visa. Those said. ment has finally seen sense and would send out about the stability who wish to remain in Afghanistan The decision came after three decided to provide them with the ex-advisor Navalny in court of Afghanistan. Many of the will receive an improved financial interpreters launched a legal chal- assistance that they provided to the MOSCOW: Russian opposition leader did not perjure themselves,” Navalny said in lenge to press for the same treat- Iraqi interpreters.” Alexei Navalny yesterday received a boost a break in the trial, Novaya Gazeta opposi- ment afforded to their counterparts She added that, for her clients, in his controversial trial for embezzlement tion newspaper reported. who worked with British forces dur- “the death threats continue, so when a witness for the prosecution testi- But he cynically questioned whether ing the Iraq war. One of the inter- resettling in Afghanistan does seem fied in support of the Kremlin critic. this would make any difference, implying preters, an Afghan who wished to to be very difficult-the Taleban are The testimony by Kirov region governor that the Kremlin had already ordered a con- be known only as Mohammad, said very effective at following them”. Nikita Belykh was the latest to undermine viction. “I am not sure that the verdict will the government had made “the The Downing Street source said the prosecution case, which the opposition be written by the remarkable judge right decision”. Cameron “has been very clear that has denounced as a set-up ordered by the (Sergei) Blinov and that this will be taken “Saving those people who have we should not turn our backs on Kremlin to end Navalny’s political career. into account.” helped the British government is those who have trod the same path A charismatic speaker at mass rallies Belykh is a liberal politician who was giving a message to the Taliban that as our soldiers in Helmand, consis- against President Vladimir Putin and appointed by then president Dmitry the Afghan interpreters will not be tently putting their lives at risk to whistleblower on corruption, Navalny faces Medvedv, in a highly unusual move, to left behind for them to be persecut- help our troops achieve their mis- up to a decade in prison if he is convicted head the region in 2008. Navalny worked as ed and hunted down by the terror- sion”. “We should recognise the of causing a 16 million ruble (385,000 euro, Belykh’s unpaid advisor in 2009. ists,” he told AFP. service given by those who have $500,000) loss to Kirov budget in a timber Russian media reported that Belykh had Mohammad was forced to leave regularly put themselves in real deal. But in dramatic testimony, Belykh repeatedly postponed his court appear- his wife and three children behind danger while working for us,” the denied that the opposition leader’s activi- ance and was widely expected to give writ- in Afghanistan after receiving death source said. Cameron had earlier ties could have been harmful to the Kirov ten evidence only. Navalny, himself a lawyer, threats from the Taliban for his five said that Afghan interpreters should region. “I have no basis to draw such con- grilled Belykh for close to an hour on what LONDON: A picture dated May 3, 2013 shows former British service- years’ work with British troops. “I only be allowed to stay in Britain “in clusions,” Belykh said during cross-exami- exactly his job description was. Belykh said men Patrick Hemessey (L) and Jake Wood (R) posing with an inter- hope that with this decision now, I extremis”. “I do think that when we nation by Navalny’s lawyer Olga he had not read all the court papers but preter named only as Mohammed (C) at the Foreign and would be able to reunite with my think of all that we have spent and Mikhailova, cited by the RAPSI legal news damningly said he had not seen evidence of Commonwealth Office in central London before delivering a petition family here in the UK and the other all the cost in money and human agency. the alleged crime. The governor said he signed by over 70,000 people calling for asylum for Aghan inter- interpreters would be able to come lives we have put into Afghanistan, He was the latest in a series of prosecu- gave Navalny verbal permission to work on preters who served the British army. Around 600 Afghan interpreters here in the UK to live in peace with we should do everything we can to tion witnesses who have ended up backing a strategy to improve sales from the debt- who served with British forces fighting the Taleban in southern their family,” he said. encourage talented Afghans to stay Navalny’s case or have said they have for- ridden forestry company Kirovles, alleged to Afghanistan will be allowed to stay in Britain, the government His lawyer Rosa Curling, who in their country and contribute to it,” gotten events. “All 35 witnesses for the have entered into an unprofitable deal in a revealed. — AFP lodged the interpreters’ legal chal- he added. —AFP prosecution have spoken on my side (and) plot involving Navalny. —AFP Irishman charged with 1982 Hyde Park bombing

DUBLIN: A 61-year-old Irishman was charged in Britain The first bomb in Hyde Park was planted in a parked yesterday with the Irish Republican Army bombing of the car and detonated by remote control as the mounted queen’s ceremonial cavalry in Hyde Park in 1982, a strike troops trotted toward Buckingham Palace, a daily tourist at a top London tourist attraction that killed four soldiers event. Two hours later, a time bomb that had been hidden and seven horses. The Crown Prosecution Service said inside a bandstand in nearby Regent’s Park killed seven John Downey was arrested Sunday at Gatwick Airport army musicians during a performance. Both bombs com- south of London and would be arraigned yesterday on bined mining explosives and nails. Twenty-two people, four counts of murder and one count of causing an explo- including a policeman and three civilians, were wounded. sion. Downey would be the third man to face trial for the In 1987 a Northern Ireland man, Danny McNamee, was July 20, 1982, twin bomb attacks on ceremonial troops convicted of conspiring to cause both blasts and received performing in London, one of the most audacious opera- a 25-year sentence based on fingerprint evidence collect- tions ever mounted by the Provisional IRA. ed from remnants of a bomb. But judges in 1998 quashed the conviction, noting that prosecutors had withheld forensic evidence of fingerprints implicating a senior IRA bomb-maker, Dessie Ellis. Ellis today is a lawmaker in Ireland’s parliament in Dublin representing the Irish nationalist Sinn Fein party. He was extradited to Britain in 1990 to face charges of building both bombs, but he was acquitted on the grounds that he had already served eight years in prison for related charges in Ireland. Ellis had been convicted of possessing multiple power-timer units for IRA bombs, including those suspected of being used in the Hyde Park and Regent’s Park blasts. The double bombing represented one of the IRA’s biggest killings of British troops, though much public attention focused instead on the fate of the horses. One died in the explosion and six badly maimed animals had to be shot at the scene. One horse that survived, Sefton, became a nationally popular symbol of British defiance to the IRA. The prime minister of the day, Margaret Thatcher, vowed that the twin bombings were “committed by evil, VATICAN: Pope Francis (L) salutes the crowd as he brutal men who know nothing of democracy. We shall not arrives for his general audience in St Peter’s square at rest until they are brought to justice.” the Vatican on Tuesday. — AFP Prosecutors offered no explain why Downey, a native of County Donegal in northwest Ireland, was charged in connection with the Hyde Park bomb but not the Regent’s Park one. If convicted, Downey would face accelerated parole under terms of Northern Ireland’s Good Friday peace accord. That landmark 1998 pact paved the way for hundreds of Provisional IRA convicts to be freed from prison within two years. The Provisional IRA killed nearly 1,800 people during a failed 1970-1997 campaign to force Northern Ireland out of the United Kingdom. The Provisionals officially dis- armed and renounced vio- lence in 2005, but IRA splinter groups still mount occasional bomb and gun attacks. —AP THURSDAY, MAY 23, 2013 INTERNATIONAL Officials say Benghazi suspects under surveillance

WASHINGTON: Five men are under enforcement and intelligence agencies, her public appearances to explain the Benghazi because of security problems, so cialist, or firing the mortars hours later at round-the-clock US surveillance in Libya, which are still in their infancy since the attack and suggesting the White House Libyan officials had to get the cameras and the CIA base where the surviving diplo- wanted for questioning in the attack last overthrow of dictator Moammar Gaddafi. tried to play down the incident to mini- send them to US officials in Tripoli, the mats took shelter - or a Libyan witness will- year on the diplomatic mission in A senior administration official said the mize its impact on the president’s cam- capital. ing to testify against the suspects in a US Benghazi, Libya. The White House believes FBI has identified individuals it believes paign. The FBI and other US intelligence agen- courtroom. there is enough proof for a military force to have information or may have been Republican lawmakers continue to call cies identified the men through contacts But Rep. Howard P. “Buck” McKeon, the seize them as terrorist suspects, officials involved in the Benghazi attack and is con- for the Obama administration to provide in Libya and by monitoring their further Republican chairman of the House Armed say, but prefers to wait until investigators sidering options to bring those responsi- more information about the attack. The communications. They are thought to be Services Committee, said he is concerned have enough evidence to try them in a US ble to justice. But taking action in remote White House released 99 pages of emails members of Ansar al-Shariah, the Libyan the Obama administration is treating ter- civilian courtroom. eastern Libya would be difficult. America’s about the talking points drafted by the militia group whose fighters were seen rorism as criminal actions instead of acts of The decision not to seize the men mili- relationship with Libya would be weighed intelligence community that Rice used to near the US diplomatic facility prior to the war that would elicit a much harsher tarily underscores the White House aim to as part of those options, the official said. describe the attack. The talking points ini- violence. The US has kept them under sur- response from the United States. move away from hunting terrorists as ene- The official and others familiar with the tially suggested the attacks were part of a veillance, mostly by electronic means. “The war on terror, I think, is a war and my combatants and toward a process in operation spoke only on condition of series of regional protests about an anti- There was a worry that the men could get at times I get the feeling that the adminis- which most are apprehended and tried by anonymity because they were not author- Islamic film. In those emails, administration spooked and hide, but so far, not even the tration wants to treat it as a crime,” he said the countries where they are living, or ized to discuss the effort on the record. officials agreed to remove from the talking FBI’s release of surveillance video stills has Tuesday. Administration officials have indi- arrested by the US with the host country’s The Libyan Embassy did not respond to points all mentions of terror groups such done that. cated recently that the FBI is zeroing in. cooperation and tried in the US criminal multiple requests for comment. Waiting to as Ansar al-Shariah or al-Qaeda, because US officials say the FBI has proof that “Regardless of what happened previously, justice system. Using military force to prosecute suspects instead of grabbing the intelligence pointing to those groups’ the five men were either at the scene of we have made very, very, very substantial detain the men might also harm fledgling them now could add to the political involvement was still unclear and because the first attack or somehow involved progress in that investigation,” Attorney relations with Libya and other post-Arab weight the Benghazi case already carries. some officials didn’t want to give Congress because of intercepts of at least one of General Eric Holder told lawmakers last Spring governments with which the US is The attack on the US diplomatic mission ammunition to criticize the administration. them bragging about taking part. Some of week. That echoed comments made by trying to build partnerships to hunt al- killed Ambassador Chris Stevens and three The FBI released photos of three of the the men have also been in contact with a Secretary of State John Kerry to lawmakers Qaeda as the organization expands other Americans weeks before President five suspects earlier this month and asked network of well-known regional Jihadists, last month. throughout the region. Barack Obama’s re-election. Since then, the public to provide more information on including al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb. “They do have people ID’d,” Kerry said The investigation has been slowed by Republicans in Congress have condemned the men pictured. The images were cap- FBI investigators are hoping for more of the FBI-led investigation. “They have the reduced US intelligence presence in the administration’s response to the attack tured by security cameras at the US diplo- evidence, such as other video of the attack made some progress. They have a number the region since the Sept. 11, 2012, attacks and its aftermath, criticizing the level of matic post during the attack, but it took that might show the suspects in the act of of suspects who are persons of interest in Benghazi and by the limited ability to security, questioning the talking points weeks for the FBI to see and study them. It setting the fires that ultimately killed the that they are pursuing in this and building assist by Libya’s post-revolutionary law provided to UN Ambassador Susan Rice for took the bureau three weeks to get to ambassador and his communications spe- cases on.”—Reuters Mexico launches military operation in troubled state 4,000 soldiers, marines and 1,000 federal police deployed COALCOMAN: Mexico’s government pledged to keep thousands of troops in the western state of Michoacan until peace is restored in this region tor- mented by violent drug cartels. Interior Minister Miguel Angel Osorio Chong held a meeting of the national security team in the state capital Morelia with local officials to discuss a crime wave that led some towns to create vigilante groups. Officials said some 4,000 army soldiers and LOS ANGELES: Los Angeles mayoral candidate Wendy Greuel talks to reporters marines and 1,000 federal police officers were before an election night party in Los Angeles, Tuesday. A scant turnout is expected deployed on Monday. Osorio Chong said the forces Tuesday when voters choose between two City Hall regulars to succeed Mayor would leave once security conditions have Antonio Villaraigosa. —AP improved and the state government can hold its own. “We are here with the goal of bringing peace back to Michoacan, but also with the commitment to help out and support public policies for the Maduro warns of development of Michoacan,” he told a news confer- ence. Michoacan was the first state to see troops when former president Felipe Calderon decided to ‘psychological war’ deploy tens of thousands of soldiers across the CARACAS: President Nicolas Maduro on psychological war to try to destroy the country to crack down on drug cartels in 2006. Tuesday denounced as “psychological Bolivarian revolution, and to divide it,” he But gang violence surged throughout Mexico, war” a leaked audio recording that pur- said in a speech to employees of the leaving 70,000 people in its wake when Calderon ports to show a power struggle among state telephone company. left office in December, and a powerful new cartel, key followers of the late Hugo Chavez. The recording purports to capture a the Knights Templar, emerged in Michoacan. MICHOACAN: An armed resident - a member of a vigilante group - is seen at a check point at In the recording, which has set off a conversation between Silva and Aramis Osorio Chong insisted that the strategy ordered the entrance of Buenavista Tomatlan, during an operation to search for criminals in the area by President Enrique Pena Nieto will be different sensation since it was made public Palacios, a Cuban intelligence chief, that called “Tierra Caliente” (Hot Land) in Michoacan State, Mexico on Tuesday. Vigilante groups, than his predecessor’s, with a single command, Monday by an opposition lawmaker, a according to Garcia was held days after calling themselves “community police”, have sprung up this year in western and southern close coordination between various authorities, well-known government newscaster is Mexican towns, in an effort to combat drug-related violence. — AFP Venezuela’s April 14 presidential election. the use of intelligence, and a development pro- heard accusing National Assembly Maduro was declared the winner by a gram. ry weapons. The cartel cut off food deliveries to punish com- speaker Diosdado Cabello of conspiring narrow margin, but the results are being Pena Nieto took office in December vowing to The minister said the troops did not encounter munities that created self-defense groups. “Things against Maduro. contested by opposition candidate switch the focus toward reducing the levels of vio- any vigilante groups, which he said may have left are calm now because the military forces are here,” The newscaster, Mario Silva, dismissed Henrique Capriles, who says the election lence. He has since launched a crime prevention the area or kept their weapons at home. “This is a Rafael Garcia, the mayor of the Tierra Caliente vil- the recording as a montage pieced was stolen. program but he says troops will stay on the ground complex problem because there are those who are lage of Coalcoman, told AFP. “But this doesn’t guar- together from his television show. He lat- Maduro was hand-picked by Chavez until the murder rate goes down. making an effort to protect the community and antee anything, because opeations come and go.” er announced he was suspending the to succeed him before his death in March Fed up with crime, vigilante groups have others who are backed, financed by other groups,” Garcia said more than 200 residents of the farm- show indefinitely for undisclosed health of cancer, and Cabello has assumed the appeared in recent months and clashed with the Cienfuegos said. ing community took up arms last week to fight of reasons. role of the loyal number two in Chavez’s Knights Templar cartel, notably in the Tierra AFP journalists encountered several military extorsion. He insisted that vigilantes had the total Cabello insisted there was “monolithic leftist movement. Caliente region known as a hot spot of gang vio- checkpoints during a drive across Michoacan. But support of most of the 9,500 inhabitants and that unity” among Chavez’s followers, and on On the recording, however, Silva is lence in the state of 4.3 million people. there were still road blocks manned by vigilante they won’t put down their weapons unless the Tuesday he called a vote in the National heard warning Palacios that Cabello, a The violence and checkpoints manned by gun- groups, with some members wearing blue shirts authorities provide proper security. Assembly to squelch an opposition call former military officer who took part in a men scared off companies from delivering basic with the words “community police.” A number of Drug gangs have existed for decades in this for an investigation into charges made in failed coup attempt that Chavez led in goods to some communities, but Defense Minister them wore masks and most were armed with rifles western state, where they grow marijuana and opi- the recording. 1992, controlled several intelligence Salvador Cienfuegos said troops were freeing up or handguns. um poppies and produce synthetic drugs in In his first public response to the agencies and “what he is interested in is roads to allow people, merchandise and vehicles to The Knights Templar say the self-defense makeshift labs before shipping them to the United recording, Maduro attacked the opposi- money and power.” He said Maduro was get through. “To guarantee citizens’ safety, we must groups are working for and getting weapons from States. tion deputy who made it public, Ismael caught in a bind, and ran the risk that have a presence and free them of this cancer, a rival cartel, Jalisco Nueva Generacion, which is “We have lived through 12 years of extortion, Garcia. “We have to keep our defenses up Cabello’s followers will “take the armed which is the criminal organizations that have believed to be allied with the Sinaloa syndicate led kidnappings, abuse against our women,” Garcia high and on alert because behind this forces and force Maduro to do their bid- gained strength in the region,” General Cienfuegos by Mexico’s most wanted man, Joaquin “El Chapo” said. “The people want those responsible to be garbage called Ismael Garcia there is a ding or launch a coup.” —AFP said, adding that civilians would be allowed to car- Guzman.” arrested.” — AFP

Protesters rally over Man charged in death of IRS’ tea party scrutiny missing Maine teenager BANGOR: When 16-year-old Nichole Cable she went through a lot of hard stuff in her CINCINNATI: Tea party activists Spangled Banner,” “God Bless left home May 12, she told her family she life. She always knew how to see the bright waving flags and signs, singing America,” and other songs. was heading out to see someone she’d met side of things,” Harris said, dabbing her eyes patriotic songs and chanting anti- A handful of activists gave a on Facebook. The high school sophomore with a tissue. “She didn’t always get along IRS slogans held rallies outside fed- Federal Protective Service officer a never came back. Now, a 20-year-old man with people, and she had an attitude. But eral buildings across the country to petition calling for the IRS to “cease faces charges in her death after a body that’s a teenage girl. And she was just happy protest the agency’s extra scrutiny and desist” and asked him to deliv- believed to be the missing teen’s was found all the time.” of conservative groups. er it to the IRS. The officer later in a wooded area north of Bangor. Dube’s parents live in a tidy brick and A crowd Tuesday packed the handed it to a man in street clothes Kyle Dube, of Orono, was charged with white-sided house in Orono. A young man sidewalks in front of and across the farther inside the building. murder Tuesday, a day after the remains who answered the door said the family street from a Cincinnati federal “I don’t know if we made a dif- WASHINGTON: Internal Revenue Service Director of Exempt were found in Old Town, Maine State Police didn’t want to talk and closed the door firm- building housing the Internal ference, but I’m sure proud that we Organizations Lois Lerner leaves a hearing of the House Oversight Revenue Service offices that han- all came out,” the Cincinnati tea Lt. Christopher Coleman said at a news con- ly in a reporter’s face. and Government Reform Committee after refusing to testify yester- dled tax-exempt status applica- party president, Ann Becker, told ference. Police declined to reveal the circum- Dube’s attorney, Stephen Smith, did not day in Washington, DC. The committee is investigating allegations tions. “It’s going to be up to the fellow demonstrators. There were stances of her death, describe her relation- immediately return a call for comment. that the IRS targeted conservative non-profit organizations with the grass-roots movement to do some- also activists from other local tea ship with Dube or discuss the evidence they Dube had worked for The Getchell Agency, words “tea party” and “constitution” in their names for additional thing,” said Paul Wheeler, dressed in party groups from northern have against him. Nor was it clear whether an organization that cares for people with scrutiny. Lerner, who headed the division that oversees exempt Colonial-era attire with tri-cornered Kentucky and Cincinnati suburbs in her Facebook relationship had anything to disabilities in Bangor, since June until he organizations, exercised her constitutional right not to answer ques- hat and holding a sign saying: the hundreds-strong crowd, among do with her disappearance and homicide. quit last week. The agency’s CEO, Rena tions. — AFP “Internal ‘Revenge’ Service Stop.” He the largest of the protests Tuesday. More details were expected to emerge Getchell, said in an email to The Associated said he came from Indianapolis, Several IRS employees in worry about on the state level.” political agenda,” said Esrig, who once police submit an affidavit of probable Press that his background check and some 100 miles way, because Cincinnati declined to comment or Debbie Dooley of Tea Party Patriots retired from the Cincinnati office in cause, which could happen as early as employee reviews were satisfactory. Cincinnati is “the epicenter of some didn’t return phone messages. In said in Atlanta her group spent January after 38 years to go into Wednesday, when Dube is due to make his “He gave us no reason to believe that he of the complaints.” Washington, a few dozen people some $250,000 on legal fees in bat- consulting. She and others are first court appearance in the case. might be capable of this crime,” she said. IRS officials have acknowledged congregated outside the IRS head- tling with the IRS, which she said skeptical about initial IRS sugges- Dube was already in jail serving a sen- “This is devastating news to us as we truly that some conservative groups quarters, listening to speeches and wanted donor and volunteer tions that a handful of low-level tence for fleeing police on a motorcycle at are a family.” The body believed to be received inappropriate attention. carrying signs reading “Audit the names and copies of Facebook employees were responsible for the more than 100 mph, according to state Nichole’s was found about 9:30 pm Monday There were also rallies outside IRS IRS” and “Don’t audit me, Bro.” comments. Some former IRS practice, saying it’s unlikely workers police. Stephen McCausland, a state police by a warden who was searching the woods offices in Atlanta; Louisville; “I just think what they did was staffers say Cincinnati employees would have developed and fol- spokesman, said investigators believe Dube with a dog, officials said. The medical exam- Chicago; Cherry Hill, N.J.; Denver; inappropriate and if they were shouldn’t be vilified. Former senior lowed procedures that focused on is “solely responsible for her death.” iner took possession to make a positive Kansas City, Mo.; Helena, Mont.; doing this to liberals, I would be out manager Bonnie Esrig said the conservative groups without any Tyler-Ann Harris, 16, who described her- identification and issue a ruling on how she Philadelphia; Phoenix, and here, too,” said Shoshana office was a nonpolitical environ- supervisors being aware. self as Nichole’s best friend, said Tuesday died. Providence, R.I., among others. Weissmann, a Republican and 20- ment, and tax-exempt status work- Republicans in Congress are that Dube and Nichole had met a couple of Nichole’s mother, Kristine Wiley, said after After a short march, activists here year-old George Washington loads had soared because of court pressing investigations exploring months earlier and planned to see each oth- she disappeared that Nichole had said she filled sidewalks in front of the feder- University student who said she is decisions and rules changes. Esrig, their suspicions that the targeting er the weekend she vanished, before he had was going out to meet someone she knew al building for about 30 minutes. not affiliated with the tea party. “It’s who said she wasn’t involved in was politically motivated and to report to jail. from Facebook. But Wiley said she didn’t Some had Revolutionary War-style scary to think the IRS is capable of handling the conservative group involved higher-ups. President Harris, who attended Old Town High know the identity of the person. “Don’t Tread on Me” and 13-star US this.” applications, said she believed the Barack Obama’s administration has School with Nichole, said she had never met Dozens of law enforcement officers, flags, as they chanted “IRS has got In the Atlanta rally, speakers workers were trying to streamline said no senior officials were Dube and wasn’t sure of his relationship using aircraft and dogs, and hundreds of to go!” and “Stop the IRS!” included Gov. Nathan Deal, who the research and avoid repetition. involved in targeting conservative with her friend. But she said Nichole didn’t civilian volunteers spent days searching for Demonstrators also sang “The Star said “you don’t have anything to “I don’t believe anybody had a groups.— AP fear him. “She was really happy even though the teen, who lived in Glenburn.—AP

THURSDAY, MAY 23, 2013 INTERNATIONAL China PM pledges stronger partnership with Pakistan ‘Friendship with China is a cornerstone of our foreign policy’ ISLAMABAD: China’s premier began a two-day visit to Pakistan yesterday by praising the relation- ship between the two Asian powers in glowing terms. Premier Li Keqiang said “the tree of China- Pakistan friendship” was planted decades ago, nurtured by succes- sive leaders and “is now exuberant with abundant fruits.” Both sides are typically effusive in describing their alliance, underly- ing the mutual benefits to each side. Pakistani leaders have on pre- vious visits described the relation- ship as “higher than mountains, deeper than oceans, stronger than steel and sweeter than honey.” China provides Pakistan with aid and foreign investment, while Islamabad offers Beijing important diplomatic backing in the face of Muslim-majority nations who might otherwise criticize China’s NEW DELHI: An Indian boy sits atop a government water supply truck as residents fill handling of its minority Muslim water containers in New Delhi yesterday. With summer temperatures hovering Uighur population. Pakistan has around 45 degrees, residents are struggling with water shortages as Delhi has been viewed China as an important going through a severe water shortage for the past few days after the upper Ganga counterweight to the United States, RAWALPINDI: Chinese Premier Li Keqiang (C), flanked by Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari (L) and care- Canal was shut for repairs. — AFP which provides valuable aid but taker premier Mir Hazar Khan Khoso (centre R) is welcomed by hostesses bearing Chinese flags upon his often pressures Islamabad to do arrival at Pakistan’s Nur Khan air base in Rawalpindi yesterday. Chinese Premier Li Keqiang vowed to more to crack down on Islamic mili- strengthen his country’s partnership with Pakistan as he arrived yesterday for a visit less than two weeks Karzai gives India tants. Pakistan and China have also after the country’s general election. — AFP been close because of their mutual distrust of India, which borders reach $15 billion within three years, Sharif’s main focus is on turning cerns about energy security as it equipment ‘wish list’ both countries. according to a statement by around Pakistan’s stuttering econo- seeks to fuel its booming economy. Li arrived in Islamabad on the Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry. The two my, and its relationship with China It wants a place to anchor pipelines NEW DELHI: Afghan President Hamid openly about a weapons request. heels of a visit to Pakistan’s rival countries are expected to sign is an important factor in the coun- to secure oil and gas supplies from Karzai said yesterday he had given a “wish India is not a major weapons exporter, India, his first trip abroad since agreements related to energy, tech- try’s growth. the Gulf. Beijing also believes that list” of military equipment to India during a and suffers chronic shortages of defence becoming premier in March. Li and nology and space during Li’s visit. China took over operational helping develop Pakistan will boost visit this week, presenting a conundrum for equipment itself, including artillery. Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Pakistan suffers from severe control of a strategic deep-water economic activity in its far western New Delhi as it weighs whether arming the Afghanistan’s request for military equip- Singh sought to downplay a recent energy shortages. “Friendship with seaport on Pakistan’s southwest province of Xinjiang and dampen a Afghan army is in its interests. ment comes as its relations with Pakistan, border dispute and stressed the China is a cornerstone of our for- coast earlier this year that could simmering, low-intensity rebellion India wants to stabilise Afghanistan and which have been difficult for decades, are aim of forging deeper cooperation. eign policy,” Pakistani President Asif serve as a vital economic hub for there. is concerned about the resurgence of mili- again at a low. They expressed hope they could Ali Zardari said in a speech yester- Beijing and perhaps a key military China has expressed concerned tant groups after foreign combat troops This month, Pakistan border guards and increase trade from $61.5 billion day before a lunch hosted in Li’s outpost. Gwadar port on the that Uighur militants are living in leave in 2014. But arming Afghanistan Afghan police clashed over a contested last year to $100 billion by 2015. honor. Arabian Sea occupies a strategic northwest Pakistan alongside al- would alarm Pakistan. It takes issue with border area. The Afghan police complained Pakistan would also like to The lunch was attended by for- location between South Asia, Qaeda-linked extremists. Pakistan the influence of its old rival in Afghanistan. they had been out-gunned and said they increase trade with China, although mer Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, Central Asia and the Middle East. It says it has killed or extradited sev- India does not want to get drawn into a wanted heavy artillery and tanks. the numbers are much smaller. whose Pakistan Muslim League-N lies near the Strait of Hormuz, gate- eral of those militants over the proxy war with Pakistan, which has ties to Afghan security forces have also made Trade between the two countries party won a resounding victory in way for about 20 percent of the past few years, but acknowledges the Taleban. no secret of their desire for an air force. The exceeded $12 billion for the first national elections on May 11 and is world’s oil. that some remain at-large in the India and Afghanistan signed a strategic clash over their border, which Afghanistan time in 2012, and they hope to set to form the next government. China’s interest is driven by con- area. — AP partnership agreement in 2011 under has never officially recognised, raised new which New Delhi agreed to assist in the tension between Afghanistan and Pakistan. training and equipping of Afghan security Afghanistan and its Western allies have forces. or years complained that Pakistan has Grim poll ratings India has trained Afghan security force failed to act against militants taking refuge personnel in its military academies, but it in Pakistan and launching attacks into mar Congress has provided little military equipment, Afghanistan from Pakistani refuges. according to Indian officials. India’s Afghan Pakistan denies helping the Taliban and anniversary strategy has centred on boosting its influ- complains of militants fighting the ence through economic reconstruction Pakistani state taking refuge in NEW DELHI: India’s scandal-rocked Congress party projects. Afghanistan. But Karzai did not directly crit- marked its last anniversary in power yesterday “We have a wish list that we have put icise Pakistan yesterday. before facing voters in 2014, amid dismal poll rat- before the government of India,” Karzai told He said no peace deal was possible in ings and a growing clamour for Premier Manmohan reporters, adding that it was up to India to Afghanistan without Pakistan’s involve- Singh to quit. decide how much help it was prepared to ment because of its influence over the An opinion poll by the CNN-IBN television net- give Afghanistan. Taleban, who are fighting to expel Western work made grim reading for the government, with Karzai would not say what was on the forces, topple Karzai’s government and 67 percent of respondents saying it has lost its cred- list, but India’s firstpost.com website said it establish Islamist rule. ibility due to multiple graft scandals and 61 percent included 105 mm artillery, medium-lift air- “Pakistan cooperation is key to a politi- saying Singh should exit. craft, bridge-laying equipment and trucks. cally successful peace process and key to The Indian government had no immediate the end of violence in Afghanistan,” he said. Analysts described the ratings as further evi- comment on Karzai’s statement. Karzai’s He said that at a meeting with Pakistan dence of a government in terminal decline, with spokesman said both countries had agreed Prime Minister-elect Nawaz Sharif last year Rajeev Malik, economist at investment house CLSA, not to discuss the contents of the shopping the latter had acknowledged the danger saying the poll read almost like an “obituary”. list. that “terrorism and radicalism” posed to Opposition calls have mounted for the resigna- An Indian government official said earli- Pakistan. tion of Singh, splashed on a recent magazine cover er that India had already provided some “I hope the new prime minister will be under the headline “Dr Dolittle” for overseeing a military equipment to Afghanistan but he able to deliver what he so much wishes to sharp economic slowdown and turning an apparent declined to give details. He said he was sur- achieve,” Karzai said. Sharif has said he aims blind eye to years of corruption. KABUL: Afghans chant slogans during a demonstration in Kabul, Afghanistan, yes- prised that Afghanistan was speaking to boost ties with India. — Reuters “Congress should apologise for its years of mis- terday. More than 200 male students protested in front of Kabul University yester- rule,” Sushma Swaraj, leader of the Hindu nationalist day against a decree, which includes a ban on child marriage and forced marriage, opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), told a news making domestic violence a crime and saying that rape victims cannot be prosecut- Bangladeshi volunteers conference, adding Singh may be “prime minister ed for adultery. — AP but he is no leader”. haunted by rescue trauma Congress was shaken this month by the resigna- Afghan students protest tion of two ministers related to new scandals-one SAVAR: Mamun was hailed a hero for Trainee doctor Sushmita Nargis said she over government interference in a police corruption pulling survivors from the ruins of has been taking anti-anxiety tablets as she probe and another over a bribe allegation. women’s rights decree Bangladesh’s Rana Plaza factory complex tries to cope with the memories. “At one The latest controversies paralysed parliament KABUL: Hard-line Islamist students ed to pass it in parliament to prevent any but now he struggles to sleep, haunted by stage it felt as if the only sound I could hear and derailed government measures to further open protested yesterday in the Afghan capital future president from reversing it. the memory of sawing off a young in my head was of ambulance sirens. They up the heavily state-controlled economy. They woman’s hand. just wouldn’t stop,” said Nargis. demanding the repeal of a presidential The brief parliamentary debate came as the government is still reeling from 2010 decree for women’s rights that they say is Saturday was ended by the speaker after “I had never even touched the hand of a “And then there were those heart- charges that cut-rate allocation of telecoms spec- woman before but it was the only way to wrenching cries of the amputees and their un-Islamic. It was the latest sign of a fierce opposition from conservative law- trum may have cost the exchequer $31 billion, and save her and the others,” said the 22-year- relatives... How are you meant to feel when backlash against the legal protections makers who said several provisions - old in an interview ahead of the one- hundreds of patients lie all around you, cry- heightened speculation about how long the minori- passed in the 12 years since the toppling including the ban on child marriage and month anniversary of the disaster. ing and writhing in pain?” ty administration can stagger on. of the Taleban regime known for its jail time for domestic abuse - violated “My hand was soaked in blood by the The volunteers included students, street The mandate of Congress, re-elected for a sec- harsh treatment of women. Islamic law. The decree remains in force, end and I still can’t get that image out of hawkers and housewives as well as gar- ond five-year term in 2009 under the leadership of The protest came days after conserva- but the debate appears to have galva- populist party president Sonia Gandhi, expires next my head.” A total of 1,127 people died ment workers who were the first on the tive lawmakers’ vehement opposition nized opposition to it. May. when the nine-storey building collapsed scene. Sometimes armed with little more blocked an attempt to cement the The United Nations’ mission in Gandhi is widely regarded as calling the shots in on the morning of April 24 in Savar, a sub- than hammers or shovels, they proceeded decree’s provisions in legislation. Most of Afghanistan this week urged the govern- urb of the capital Dhaka, making it one of to pull out hundreds of survivors whom the government and her son Rahul is being lined up international force that ousted the ment to do more to enforce the women’s the deadliest industrial disasters of all time. they could see or hear crying out for help. by the party to take power. But Subhash Agrawal, Taleban is now preparing to withdraw by rights decree, saying it is only sporadical- But the tragedy took its toll on others, Others clubbed together to buy special- head of think-tank India Focus, said Congress would the end of next year, and activists fear an ly applied when women report abuse. including an army of volunteers who res- ist drilling equipment. The Bangladeshi have its work cut out to stay in office. “The govern- cued hundreds but also encountered government shunned offers from the ment is in a precarious situation,” he told AFP. erosion of the women’s rights will follow “It is imperative for the development unimaginable horrors such as bodies United Nations and elsewhere for specialist Congress is clinging to power with the support if hard-liners pressure the elected gov- of Afghanistan that women are able to decayed beyond identity. help, leaving the army to coordinate the of two regional parties but “there may be a time ernment. More than 200 male students exercise their rights and be free from vio- Many of the hundreds of volunteers rescue effort. when they decide supporting the government is a protested in front of Kabul University lence in their homes and workplaces,” UN who spent nearly three weeks sifting As the days went by, the numbers of liability and they pull the plug”, said political analyst yesterday against the decree on Special Representative Jan Kubis said in a through the ruins have reported similar survivors fell away and the overwhelming Parsa Venkateshwar Rao. Elimination of Violence Against Women, Monday statement. signs of trauma as that experienced by memories that linger for the volunteers are which includes a ban on child marriage In another worrisome sign for Mamun, who like many Bangladeshis only the sights and smells of rotting corpses. “No one expects this government to go its full term. The betting is it will call polls between and forced marriage, makes domestic activists, the international group Human uses one name. Even when the volunteers did manage violence a crime and says rape victims Rights Watch said Tuesday that the num- Mamun, a part-time tailor, risked his life to locate survivors, they were sometimes October and February,” Rao said. cannot be prosecuted for adultery. It ber of women and girls jailed for alleged to crawl through a hole to reach three unable to bring them to safety as they were The mild-mannered Singh, pioneer of India’s women on the second day of the rescue trapped by the debris. landmark economic reforms in the 1990s, was due also outlaws “ba’ad,” a traditional practice loose morals is the highest since the effort, only to find that a hand of one of Asma Akter Liza, who donated money to to host a dinner late Wednesday to mark the left- of exchanging women or girls to settle ouster of the Taleban, even though most them was encased in concrete and she was buy a drill after selling some of her books leaning party’s anniversary. He was to issue a disputes or debts. of those detained are victims of abuse blocking access to the others. and clothes, fought back tears as she report card listing achievements that include a drop Protester Fazel Hadi, 25, said the and have committed no crime under “She was pleading to me: ‘Please cut my recalled the death of one young woman. in those living below the poverty line to 350 million decree was “imposed by foreigners” and Afghan civil law. hand’. There was no anaesthetic so I bor- “I came across a girl called Bakul and she from 400 million. violates Islamic Shariah law. Mawladad The Taleban imposed their strict inter- rowed a hacksaw from the army,” he said. held out her hand to me from a tiny hole in Congress spokeswoman Renuka Chowdhury Jalali, the mullah of the university pretation of Islamic law during their five- The army says at least 2,438 people-mostly the rubble,” said the 28-year-old housewife. fired back at the opposition, calling it “pathetic and mosque and one of the organizers of the year reign, ordering beatings for women female garment workers-were rescued, “I held her hand for hours and we talked bankrupt” and asserting that the government protest, led chants decrying democracy failing to wear the full-body burqa gar- including 968 people who were seriously about everything. She called me sister. would “pull off a hat-trick” with a third straight poll in general and the women’s law specifi- ment in public, closing girls’ schools and injured. Many of them had limbs amputat- “But in the end we could not save her. victory. cally. banning women from leaving their ed either at the site or in hospital. She was stuck in such a tiny pocket that it The CNN-IBN poll showed 56 percent of respon- “Our main demand is that this law homes without a male relative. They The scale of the disaster meant students was impossible. “These days her eyes, her at a medical college next to the local Enam cries for help haunt me all the time. dents oppose Congress winning another term. should be repealed in the parliament,” he were toppled in a US-led invasion for Hospital had to carry out some of the Sometimes I can’t control my tears.” Some 38 percent wanted Narendra Modi, the com- said before leading a brief march while sheltering the al-Qaeda’s terrorist leader- amputations. Sometimes the operations The trauma has prompted many volun- munally divisive chief minister of thriving Gujarat police who cordoned off the area looked ship and now wage an insurgency. were done without anaesthetic and howls teers to seek counselling or medication as state, to run for the BJP as prime minister. on. Afghan President Hamid Karzai Human Rights Watch’s Afghanistan of agony echoed around the hospital. The they seek to blot out the memories. “Every Rahul Gandhi, who is a lacklustre performer and issued the decree on women’s rights researcher Heather Barr said that hospital says it has treated around 60 vol- time I go to bed, it feels like I’m in a dark has shown reluctance to take the post, was support- three years ago as part of a raft of com- Afghanistan risks losing international aid unteers for trauma, including several med- place from where I can’t escape,” said ed by just 14 percent of voters. —AFP mitments to international donors, but if it does not meet commitments to ical students. Mamun.—AFP lawmaker and activist Fawzia Kofi want- uphold women’s freedoms. — AP THURSDAY, MAY 23, 2013 INTERNATIONAL N Korean leader sends special envoy to China Pyongyang giving diplomacy a chance

PYONGYANG: After months of ignoring China’s warnings to give up its nuclear program, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un sent a high-level confidant to Beijing yesterday, in a possible effort to mend strained ties with its most important ally and the latest sign that Pyongyang may be giving diplomacy a chance. The trip by Vice Marshal Choe Ryong Hae, a senior Workers’ Party official and the FRANKLIN: This June 2009 photo provided by Christopher Savoie shows him, center, military’s top political officer, is tak- with his son, Isaac, and daughter, Rebecca, at a park near their home in Franklin, ing place as tensions ease somewhat Tenn. The children were later taken to Japan by their mother, in violation of a US on the Korean Peninsula after near- court custody decision, and Christopher Savoie was arrested in Japan in September daily vows from Pyongyang to attack 2009 during an unsuccessful attempt to regain custody. Japan’s parliament yester- Washington and Seoul in March and day, approved joining the 1980 Hague Convention on international child abduction April. The United States, Japan, South amid foreign pressure for Tokyo to address concerns that Japanese mothers can take Korea, China and Russia have been children away from foreign fathers without recourse. —AP busy discussing how best to engage with the North Koreans. Japan sent an envoy to North Korea last week to Japan parliament approves discuss decades-old abductions of its citizens, a move that has drawn con- child abduction treaty cern among allies of Tokyo who want denuclearization to be the focus of TOKYO: Japan’s parliament yesterday It will also allow for parents who separated talks. approved an international treaty on child before its enactment to apply to get a child Choe’s visit is the first this year by abductions after decades of pressure from returned. But it contains a provision stating a top North Korean official to China, the United States and other Western nations. that the application can be refused if a child which is under pressure from the US BEIJING: In this photo provided by China’s official Xinhua News Agency, Wang Jiarui, right, the head of the Japan is the only member of the Group of has been resident in the country for a year or and others to rein in its belligerent Chinese leadership’s international affairs office, meets with North Korea’s Vice Marshal Choe Ryong Hae, a Eight major industrialised nations that has more and is happily settled. neighbor. It’s also the first since a senior Workers’ Party official and the military’s top political officer, left, in Beijing, yesterday. — AP not ratified the 1980 Hague Convention, Few foreign parents have much faith in change of leadership in Beijing, which requires nations to return snatched the Japanese justice system as a means of whose new leaders have demon- Xiaojun, a North Korea watcher at seeing North Korea denuclearize expert on North Korea with the children to the countries where they usually getting back their children once they have strated a willingness to work with the Central Party School, a think tank while maintaining regional stability - International Crisis Group think tank reside. Hundreds of parents, mostly men from been brought to Japan. Thierry Consigny, Washington to harry Pyongyang for the leadership in Beijing. a catchphrase for continued Chinese who is based in Seoul, South Korea. North America, Europe and elsewhere, have who represents expatriate French people in over its nuclear weapons programs “Our policies and stance have support for Pyongyang. Because Choe has high-level mili- been left without any recourse after their northeast Asia and has worked with parents even as stability in North Korea tended to be tougher and more Last week, a Japanese envoy trav- tary and ruling party positions, he estranged partners took their half-Japanese trying to get their children back from Japan, remains the Chinese government’s clearly express our unhappiness and eled to Pyongyang for ongoing dis- can cover a variety of topics and like- children back to the country. said the legislation would contain loopholes priority. displeasure,” said Ma. He added, cussions about the decades-old ly will discuss security, normalization Unlike Western nations, Japan does not that could be exploited by the Japanese par- North Korea also revealed yester- quoting President Xi, “causing trou- abductions of its citizens by North of economic ties and possible recognise joint custody and courts almost ent. “We detected in this draft law a lot of day that a former defense minister, ble on China’s doorstep is not right, Korea. After the envoy’s return, Prime requests for aid when he meets with always order that children of divorcees live exceptions which are worrying,” he said. Kim Kyok Sik, was promoted to chief and China will not tolerate it.” Minister Shinzo Abe said he would Chinese officials, Pinkston said. with their mothers. US lawmakers have long “Everything will be about the application of of the Korean People’s Army in the Choe’s priority is to mend ties, Ma be open to holding a summit with Choe is a longtime Kim family demanded Japan fall into line on the issue, the law, and we will be very careful about latest in a series of high-level military said. Immediately upon landing in Kim Jong Un if it would lead to a friend who often is pictured standing one of the few open disputes between the how it will be enforced in accordance with reshuffles as Kim Jong Un elevates a Beijing, Choe went to see Wang breakthrough. The issue is of great next to the leader, along with Jang close allies. In February Prime Minister Shinzo the spirit of the Hague Treaty.” new generation of military leaders. Jiarui, head of the Chinese leader- importance to Japanese, though Song Thaek, Kim Jong Un’s uncle. Abe promised action after White House talks Yumiko Suto, co-founder of a women’s Foreign analysts see Choe’s trip as ship’s international affairs office and when it returned five abduction vic- Jang, a top official now in charge of with US President Barack Obama. rights group, took issue with the convention part fence-mending mission, part long the point man for China’s deal- tims in 2002, North Korea said there overseeing the push to expand The upper house of parliament yesterday on the grounds it would leave youngsters appeal for aid. The last high-level ings with Pyongyang. were no more living abductees. North Korea’s sports industry, visited voted unanimously for Japan to join the open to violence. “What’s worrying about the North Korea-China meeting took China is impoverished North Other countries are worried China in August last year but was not treaty, following a similar move by the more Hague Convention is that it won’t protect vic- place when Chinese Communist Korea’s economic and diplomatic about focusing on Japanese abduc- in yesterday’s delegation. powerful lower house last month. tims of domestic violence, mothers and chil- Party chief Xi Jinping sent a Politburo lifeline, providing nearly all of its fuel tions. Glyn Davies, the US special Choe may also try to explain But Japan must still clear various govern- dren who barely escaped alive from their vio- member to Pyongyang in November. and most of its trade. China account- representative for North Korea poli- North Korea’s recent military moves, mental and legislative hurdles before the lent husbands,” she said. Weeks later, North Korea launched a ed for 89 percent of North Korea’s cy, warned North Korea might be try- including short-range projectile Hague Convention can take full effect. The “It is very difficult for women and children long-range rocket, followed by an exports and imports in 2011, accord- ing to use talks with Japan to drive a launches off the east coast, said Lee government has said it aims for final ratifica- in shelters to hide their whereabouts for a underground nuclear test in ing to the most recent figures avail- wedge between the policies of Ji-sue, a North Korea specialist and tion by the end of this fiscal year-March 2014. year... so the provision is not very helpful to February. That test, the country’s able from Korea Trade-Investment Tokyo, Washington and Seoul. professor at Myongji University in A central authority will be set up in the for- them,” she said, adding that providing evi- third, drew tightened sanctions by Promotion Agency in Seoul, South During a summit with US Seoul. He may also be paving the eign ministry to take charge of locating chil- dence of domestic violence in a foreign coun- the UN and United States. Korea, which collects North Korean President Barack Obama this month, way for a visit by Kim Jong Un, who dren who have been removed by one parent try is also difficult. Showing its displeasure with trade data. South Korean President Park Geun- has not been to Beijing since taking following the collapse of an international Kimio Ito, professor of sociology at Kyoto North Korea, China has tightened China and North Korea are jointly hye laid out her policy of building power following the December 2011 marriage, and to encourage parents to settle University, said he hopes Japanese domestic inspections on cross-border trade developing two special economic trust with North Korea while remain- death of his father, Kim Jong Il. The disputes voluntarily. If consultations fail, fami- laws “will remove worries over domestic vio- and its state banks have halted busi- zones: Rason on the Korean ing firm against provocations. Her elder Kim visited China in August ly courts in Tokyo and Osaka will issue rulings. lence that the convention doesn’t fully ness with North Korea’s Foreign Peninsula’s northeastern tip and office said she may travel to China 2011. Meanwhile, among the North The law will, however, allow a parent to address”. Under growing pressure from Trade Bank - signs that Beijing is get- Hwanggumphyong, an island in the next month. Korean officials who went to the tar- refuse to return a child if abuse or domestic Washington and other Western capitals, ting serious about enforcing sanc- Yalu River on North Korea’s western China wants security assurances mac yesterday to see Choe off was violence is feared, a provision which cam- Japan has repeatedly pledged to sign the tions. border. Chinese Foreign Ministry that North Korea will act with less Gen. Kim Kyok Sik, North Korea’s paigners say is vital, but which some say risks treaty into domestic law, but it has until now “The North Korean side has been spokesman Hong Lei reiterated yes- belligerence and make efforts to newly named chief of the armed being exploited. never made it through parliament. —AFP feeling China’s pressure,” said Ma terday that Beijing is committed to ease tension, said Daniel Pinkston, an forces.—AP US experts reject murder All bodies recovered from Indonesia mine tunnel

theory in scientist’s death TIMIKA: Rescuers have recovered sev- of Indonesian and international en more bodies from a collapsed mine experts was being assembled to inves- SINGAPORE: Two US pathologists Asked by a Singapore state coun- altered. Police experts had testified claims by the family that they were tunnel in eastern Indonesia, its US tigate the accident. Freeport has as yet yesterday supported Singapore sel to give her opinion on the means that Todd repeatedly searched sui- working on a secret project involving operator said yesterday, taking the given no indication why the tunnel police findings that an American sci- of death, Rao replied: “Suicide”. cide and depression websites before Todd that could compromise US accident’s final toll to 28. caved in. Operations have been halted entist found hanged last year in the Fowler and Rao based their findings his death. security. But they confirmed holding The rescue team “recovered and at the mine for a week partly to help city-state committed suicide and was on the Singapore autopsy report, A coroner’s inquest is a routine preliminary talks on a potential identified the last of the remains of the with rescue efforts and also as a mark not murdered as his family claims. while Adelstein relied on funeral pic- procedure for suspected suicides in research venture. Todd was part of an buried workers early this morning”, the of respect for those affected by the Medical examiners David Fowler of tures of the body and second-hand Singapore. But the case has taken on IME research team working on galli- Indonesian subsidiary of Freeport- accident. The head of Freeport’s local Maryland and Valerie Rao of Florida information. a high profile because of the conspir- um nitride, a semiconductor that can testified as independent experts a Singapore police investigators acy theory and strong political lobby- be used in radar and satellite com- McMoRan said in a statement. subsidiary, Rozik Soetjipto, said day after the family of the late earlier testified that the 31-year-old ing by the Todds in Washington. munications. Thirty-eight workers were initially Wednesday it was not clear when they researcher Shane Todd walked out of Todd, who had a history of depres- Shane Todd’s former employer, Witnesses have described Todd as trapped on May 14 when part of the would resume. Freeport has stockpiles a coroner’s inquest in Singapore. sion, hanged himself in his apart- Singapore’s state-linked Institute of under severe stress in the weeks tunnel caved in at Freeport’s Grasberg, of gold and copper at the mine that it Fowler rejected a theory put for- ment and left suicide notes to his Microelectronics (IME), and China’s before his girlfriend found his body one of the world’s biggest gold and is using to meet existing orders. ward by the family’s star witness, family and friends on his laptop com- Huawei Technologies have denied on June 24, 2012. —AFP copper mines high in the mountains of Soetjipto said that safety was being Missouri deputy medical examiner puter. Foreign Minister K. remote Papua province. reviewed at all of Freeport’s operations Edward Adelstein, who said Todd Shanmugam, who is also the law Ten people were recovered alive in Indonesia. Energy Minister Jero may have been killed by assassins minister, said the Todd family’s deci- soon afterwards but rescue efforts Wacik added the government will carry working for two Asian high-tech sion to walk out was “regrettable”. were hampered by the narrow tunnel out its own probe into the Grasberg firms involved in a secret project. “The police officers went on the Fowler, chief medical examiner of stand, they were questioned, they and the unstable conditions, with rocks accident and that mines across the Maryland, said marks on Todd’s gave their evidence, they gave their continuing to fall from the roof. country will undergo safety checks. hands cited by Adelstein on Tuesday testimony. Their processes were sub- Freeport declared yesterday a day of Workers at the site who have been as proof of a fight with killers in his ject to total scrutiny,” he said. mourning, and said that memorial protesting at the mine for the past apartment were “the most classical In a statement yesterday, the Todd services would be held in its Jakarta week demanding safer conditions were example of post-mortem lividities” in family said it would “now turn to the office and in Papua. “This is a heart- still blocking a road on Wednesday hanging cases. court of public opinion with all the wrenching thing for Freeport,” said the with trucks and heavy machinery. The There was also nothing suspicious concrete evidence that our son was company’s president and chief execu- tunnel was part of an underground about a bruise on Todd’s forehead, he murdered”. tive Richard Adkerson, who flew from training facility, not one of the mining said, declaring that “the cause of But Todd’s three bothers reap- an industry event in Spain at the week- areas. Those trapped inside at the time death was asphyxia due to hanging”. peared in court, saying they were Rao, chief medical examiner of there to show support for Ashraf end to Papua to meet families of the were attending a safety training SINGAPORE: Singapore minister for foreign affairs K. Shanmugam deceased. course. Grasberg has a troubled histo- two districts in Jacksonville, also cited Massoud, a computer analyst speaks to reporters over the coroner’s enquiry of US scientist Shane “We will not rest until we are “asphyxia due to hanging” as the engaged by the family. Massoud tes- Todd in Singapore yesterday. Two US pathologists yesterday support- ry. A three-month strike in 2011 crip- cause of death and agreed that there tified that any computer can be ed Singapore police findings that an American scientist found hanged assured that we understand the rea- pled production, and around the same were no injury marks indicating a accessed remotely and its contents, last year in the city-state committed suicide and was not murdered as sons for this tragic event.” He said that time there was a spate of deadly shoot- struggle. including the Internet history, his family claims. —AFP an outside investigation team made up ings at the mine. — AFP Thai army chief urges self-imposed curfew for teachers

BANGKOK: Thailand’s army chief on the violence, leaving teachers fearful collaboration with the Thai state. security,” he added. dom,” he said, adding there are around yesterday urged teachers in the coun- that they remain in the firing line as A leader of a southern teachers’ Thailand held its first official peace 140 so-called ‘red zone’ villages in the try’s insurgency-racked south to stay at they return to school. union recognised the “goodwill” behind talks with representatives of the Barisan south responsible for the majority of home after 6pm to avoid falling victim “I ask for your cooperation not to the general’s remarks but rejected the Revolusi Nasional (BRN) in Malaysia in the violence. to militants as the new school year gets leave your houses after 6pm-it will help suggestion of a self-imposed curfew. March and another round in April, but More than 5,500 people have been under way. reduce violence (against teachers),” “Teachers know they are a target... deadly attacks have continued, embar- killed in near-daily bombings and Nearly 160 teachers and other General Prayut Chan-O-Cha said in the they know they have to take care of rassing Thai security forces. shootings in three Muslim-majority school staff have been killed during a southern city of Yala, in reply to a themselves, but to suggest they should In April rebels involved in the talks provinces near Thailand’s southern bor- nine-year-old insurgency that has teacher who asked if the army could not leave their homes after 6pm seems said they wanted “liberation” from der with Malaysia since 2004. gripped Thailand’s Muslim-majority curb attacks on his profession. like an attack on our freedom,” said Thailand, something General Prayut Buddhist and Muslims alike fall vic- deep south, bordering Malaysia. Thousands of schools closed tem- Boonsom Thongsriplai. appeared to reject on yesterday. tim to the shadowy militants, who tar- Recent rounds of peace talks porarily in December in protest at a lack “The attacks can happen anytime “Violence must be solved swiftly... get security forces, civilians and per- between representatives of the rebels of security for teachers, who are target- during the day or night, we think it is (but) I want to reassure (people) that ceived representatives of state authori- and Thai authorities have failed to stem ed by the militants for their perceived better to focus on how to take care of Thailand is inseparable-it’s one king- ty. —AFP THURSDAY, MAY 23, 2013 ANALYSIS14

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Issues

More English at French varsities? The debate begins

By Marianne Barriaux

rance’s lower house began debating a proposal yesterday to introduce more courses in English Fat universities, amid a storm of controversy in a nation fiercely protective of its identity. The measure, which would also introduce lessons in other lan- guages as part of a wider bill on higher education reform, aims to increase the number of foreign stu- dents at universities from 12 percent of the total to 15 percent by 2020. Critics say it will harm decades- long, zealous efforts to protect the French language, Turkey presents hadiths for the 21st Century while supporters argue it will better young locals’ grasp of English as France slides into recession and By Tom Heneghan Diyanet, Turkey’s top Islamic authority, called this and other Sunnis who have been attacking Shiites and Sufis and trying many look to work abroad. reports “entirely wrong” and based on Christian misreading of to impose sharia law in several Muslim countries. “Teaching in English - Let’s do it” read a front- cholars around the Muslim world were alarmed five years Islamic practice. Media interest dropped off and the project The first edition of “Islam with the Hadiths of the Prophet,” page headline in English in France’s leading leftwing ago by news reports that Turkey planned a new, possibly went ahead, leaving scholars abroad wondering what to as the collection is called, has started rolling off the printing daily Liberation yesterday, which argued the French Sheretical compilation of Prophet Muhammad’s (PBUH) expect. What has emerged is a seven-volume encyclopaedia presses in Turkish. It will be officially released during sayings that might scrap those it thought were out of date. of what its authors considered the most important hadiths. Ramadan, which is due to start in early July. Displaying the must stop acting as “the last representatives of an Turkish religious leaders and theologians received anxious Grouped according to subjects, they are followed by short first green-bound volumes, the officials said the essays dealt under-siege Gaulish village”. Even foreign newspa- calls asking about Western media reports they would edit a essays that explain the sayings in their historical context and with modern issues such as women’s rights, but were not pre- pers have waded into the debate, with a slight dash “radical” new set of hadiths, scriptures that are second only to what they mean today. sented as a compendium of official positions that imams must of irony. “If Anglais est allowe dans les rooms de the Holy Quran in Islam. “Will you write a new Quran next?” The collection is the first by Turkey’s “Ankara School” of the- preach or Islamic judges must implement. “The aim was not to classe, Francais will becomez une ‘dead language’, one irate Arab scholar asked a baffled Turkish academic. The ologians who in recent decades have reread Islamic scriptures produce an answer to today’s agenda topics like gender pensent les grandes fromages. Sacre bleu!” the Daily new work, finally ready after six years in the making, is noth- to extract their timeless religious message from the context of issues, punishment and jihad,” Pacaci said. Telegraph said in an editorial yesterday. ing like the 95 Theses in which Martin Luther condemned 7th-century Arab culture in which they arose. Unlike many tra- For example, the question of schooling for girls comes up practices in the Roman Catholic Church and launched the ditional Muslim scholars, these theologians work in modern in the section about education, which starts with the hadith Genevieve Fioraso, the higher education minister, Protestant Reformation. university faculties and many have studied abroad to learn “Seeking knowledge is obligatory for every Muslim” in Arabic has lashed out at the “astounding hypocrisy” of the Instead, its 100 authors have selected a few hundred of the how Christians analyse the Bible critically. They subscribe to and a few supporting hadiths and Turkish translations under- debate, pointing out that English and other lan- about 17,000 reported quotes from Prophet Muhammad what they call “conservative modernity”, a Sunni Islam true to neath. Several pages of commentary in Turkish follow and guages are already used widely in France’s elite (PBUH) to examine Islamic views on God, faith and life in the faith’s core doctrines but without the strictly literal views explain that since the hadiths say education is obligatory for “grandes ecoles”. She said that the so-called 1994 terms that the average modern Turk can understand. “We that ultraorthodox Muslims have been promoting in other all Muslims, it is a right for girls and women as well. Another “Toubon Law” -which stipulates that the language of don’t live in the 20th century anymore,” said Mehmet Ozafsar, parts of the Islamic world. essay on women stresses that they attended mosques and ran education in France must be French, bar some director of the project and vice-president of Ankara’s Religious “There are different perspectives in the Islamic world and businesses when Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) governed the Affairs Directorate, or Diyanet, a state agency. “We needed a some are closed-minded. Turks have a different idea of Islamic city of Madinah. “They were active in every part of social life,” exceptions - had routinely been flouted in the new work with Islamic beliefs in the perspective of today’s cul- culture,” project director Ozafsar said. That includes a strong Pacaci said. “grandes ecoles” without any objections raised. ture.” The hadiths record Muhammad’s (PBUH) words and acts secular tradition allowing alcohol consumption and Western Hadiths calling for harsh punishments such as severing Fioraso opened yesterday’s debate by saying the during his life. Preachers and jurists use them to understand dress for women, although Turkish society has turned more thieves’ hands were put into historical perspective so they are measure “will in no way compromise the primacy of the Quran and support Muslim teachings and fatwas (religious conservative and religious in the past decade under the con- not taken as models for modern times, Ozafsar said. “You can French as a medium of instruction or the defence of edicts) on all aspects of life, from prayer to education for servative AKP government. Turkey also has women preachers find these punishments in the Prophet’s time because society francophonie. “Investing in knowledge and research, women. Digests of selected hadiths are nothing new in Islam. in mosques and female deputy muftis in several large cities. needed these rules for social peace,” he said. “Today, we have this is our best weapon to fight the economic crisis,” Scholars have produced them for centuries to help Muslims Mehmet Pacaci, Diyanet’s general director for foreign affairs, different social systems. We can say these rules and punish- learn about the Prophet’s (PBUH) sayings without having to said Muslims shouldn’t simply “open the Quran or a hadith ments are historical.” she said. navigate through the long and sometimes confusing classical compilation, find a verse or saying of the Prophet (PBUH) and Saban Ali Duzgun, a professor in Ankara University’s theol- But several leading unions in the education sector compilations. say, ‘Aha! This is the judgment of this action’. “If we do that, it’s ogy faculty, said imams liked to pepper their preaching with have said the proposal is unacceptable. Hundreds of What makes this one different is that it selects and explains literalism and ignorance,” he told Reuters. “Unfortunately, we hadiths because they dealt with so many aspects of everyday teachers took to the streets near parliament yester- the hadiths from the perspective of today’s Turkey, whose mix have such ignorance in the Muslim world.” life. But if they consult the original source books, they might day to show their opposition. “It is cultural heritage of a secular state, dynamic economy and Muslim society has Although neither this collection nor much other recent pick hadiths that don’t suit life in modern Turkey, he said. “We which is at stake,” Claudine Kahane, a senior official aroused considerable interest in the Middle East since the Turkish theology has been translated into Arabic, these views object to preachers using so many hadiths,” said Duzgun. With of Snesup-FSU, one of the main unions in the sector, Arab Spring revolts two years ago. A senior religious official in have stirred interest among Arab thinkers struggling to recon- this new reference work from Diyanet, which employs the Egypt, where traditional Islamic scholars, the ruling Muslim cile their more traditional Islam with modern democracy. imams, most Turkish preachers would only use hadiths and said earlier this month. The influential Academie Brotherhood and radical Salafis differ over key issues in the Negm said Turkish religious delegations now regularly visit Al- interpretations they find in it, he said. Francaise, set up in 1635 and the official authority on faith, said the hadith collection could bring a new perspective Azhar in Cairo, the leading seat of Sunni learning, and Arabic While the collection is mainly for domestic use, Diyanet has the language, has also joined the chorus of disap- to the debate. “Among intellectuals in Egypt, there is a wel- translations of the late Turkish theologian Said Nursi have begun preparing a translation into Bosnian, the language of proval. And journalist Bernard Pivot, a respected fig- come for this new interpretation which they think is very begun appearing in bookshops in the Egyptian capital. Muslims in former Yugoslavia who were once under Ottoman ure in French cultural circles, has argued that the important for the Arab world to be exposed to,” said Ibrahim “Egyptian intellectuals are very impressed with the Turkish rule. It is also considering bilingual Turkish-German edition for measure could sound the death knell for what locals Negm, advisor to Egypt’s grand mufti, the highest Islamic legal model, not only in the economic and political realm but also the large Turkish minority in Germany, Diyanet officials said. fondly call “the language of Moliere”. “If we allow authority there. in its moderate religious orientation,” he said, adding Turkey Editions in languages such as Arabic or English were not The hadith project first attracted attention in 2008 when was seen as “the antithesis of the Wahhabi-Salafi model”. planned right away, they added, but publishers in Egypt and English to be introduced into our universities and for the BBC called it “a revolutionary reinterpretation of Islam and Wahhabism is the stern official school of Islam in Saudi Arabia Britain have recently expressed interest in translating the col- teaching science and the modern world, French will a controversial and radical modernisation of the religion”. and one of the inspirations for militant Salafis, the literalist lection to make it widely available soon.— Reuters be vandalised and become poorer,” he said. “It will turn into a commonplace language, or worse, a dead language.” Sudan dreams of becoming global sugar player France has for decades zealously propagated the use of French both at home and abroad through cul- By Ulf Laessing the real figure is much higher. Thanks to a of southern oil but the economic situation for even to reach half of this goal.” tural institutions and the French-speaking capital injection of $500 million from its is expected to improve soon after South The expansion plans also come at a time Francophonie bloc of nations. But despite this, the n a hangar-shaped factory hall in central main Gulf owners Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, Sudan resumes exporting crude through of an economic downturn coupled with use of English has made rapid inroads in France. Sudan a dozen workers rush to pack Kenana wants to more than double its out- northern facilities. The International global excess supplies. Raw sugar bench- Many youths now respond to telephone calls with Irefined white sugar gushing from a fun- put to 1 million tonnes in 2015. Its affiliated Monetary Fund (IMF) has urged Sudan to mark futures trade about 16.80 cents per an energetic “Yes?” in place of the traditional “allo” or nel into paper bags to be loaded on three White Nile Sugar Co eyes a production of use the $2 billion Khartoum expects to lb, less than half their peak price reached “oui”. English is seen more and more in graffiti in trucks parked outside. Next year, the man- 250,000 tonnes from next year. That would make from pipeline fees from South Sudan two years ago. Harry Verhoeven, an expert agement at Kenana Sugar Company hopes help cover domestic demand of 1.2 million until 2015 to reform the agriculture sector on Sudanese economy at Oxford Paris and “franglais” - the use of English words when the plant will be even busier as it plans to tonnes and leave room for more exports. to boost non-oil exports. Unlike other Arab University, said Kenana was posting a profit speaking French - is also gaining ground. A survey boost its output as the African country Currently, all local plants produce between countries made up mostly of desert, Sudan and was one of the most sophisticated released yesterday revealed that a large majority of seeks to increase sugar exports. Faced with at least 600,000 and 700,000 tonnes in total is a prime location for food production due firms in Sudan but remained a long way French scientists currently conduct their research the loss of most oil production after South annually, analysts estimate. By next year, to its vast fertile scrubland and easy access from becoming a global player like sugar and teach in English. “The current debate does not Sudan seceded in 2011, Sudan has been the output could reach between 900,000 to the River Nile water. firms in Brazil and Turkey. “Kenana has take into account the reality at all,” said Francois scrambling to find new sources for state and one million tonnes. “Sudan has everything needed for suc- received billions in subsidies but is not Heran, who conducted the research between 2007 revenues and dollars to pay for imports. Sudan, one of the biggest African sugar cess, the water, land, human resources,” there where it should be. It’s not a big play- and 2009, questioning nearly 2,000 laboratory direc- Developing its sugar industry is a priority producers after Egypt and South Africa, Sheikh Ibrahim Ben Khalifah, head of the er, a giant,” he said. He said the government tors and almost 9,000 researchers. “The reality is that as is searching for gold. hopes to become a global player by 2020 Arab regional center for Entrepreneurship was undermining the sector’s efficiency by there are whole areas of international science where “There is plenty of land suitable for sug- competing with world leaders such as and Investment Training, told a Khartoum controlling the main sugar firms, shielding French is already marginalised.” — AFP ar cultivation and also the water is plenty,” Brazil. In all the African country wants to food investment forum it co-sponsors on them from competition and pampering says El Zein Mohammed Doush, head of produce 10 million tonnes by 2020 as more Monday. But analysts say the sector has them with subsidies. the sugar business unit at Kenana’s main plants will go online by then, said Doush. been badly managed like the rest of the Analysts say the market gets distorted plant located 270 km south of the capital Kenana alone plans two more factories, country, which is widely associated with because the government is guaranteeing All articles appearing on these Khartoum. Boosting sugar production also while the government has now put up for ethnic wars, corruption and coups. The the firms a sugar price almost double their pages are the personal opinion of has political undertones. The sweetener is sale four state-owned plants which need Gezira scheme, one of the world’s biggest production costs, which opens the door for the writers. Kuwait Times takes no the most important food ingredient in a modernisation. Under a deal with Kenana’s irrigation projects built by British colonial corruption. Critics also say the sugar indus- country where it is normal to put three Gulf investors, the company is allowed to rulers 100 years ago is a shadow of its for- try makes big profits while the mostly poor responsibility for views expressed spoonfuls in a small glass of tea or orange export up to half of its output, which goes mer self. Sudanese benefit little from it. Kenana, therein. Kuwait Times invites read- juice. The price of sugar is so sensitive in to African neighbours, the Gulf and Europe. The sugar industry, on the other hand, is which has a top-notch canteen and guest- ers to voice their opinions. Please the vast African country it can spark revolu- To diversify its products, Kenana also plans in a better shape as it enjoys various subsi- house, says it has hired 4,000 unskilled send submissions via email to: opin- tions. A huge spike was one reason for to more than triple the output of biofuels, a dies and the main plants are run by workers who get free medical care. But [email protected] or via snail street protests which led to the toppling of by-product of sugar production, to 200 mil- Kenana, which is kept flush with Gulf mon- with their mud-brick houses and unpaved late President Jaafar Nimeiri in 1985. lion liters by 2015. “Ninety percent of our ey. But Mohammed Al-Jak, economics pro- roads, the villages neighbouring the plant mail to PO Box 1301 Safat, Kuwait. President Omar Hassan Al-Bashir has ethanol goes to the European Union, fessor at the University of Khartoum, said look as poor as the rest of Sudan. They lack The editor reserves the right to edit been facing for over a year small protests France, Holland,” Ahmed Rabih, head of the the 2020 target of 10 million tonnes of out- running water and families can be seen fill- any submission as necessary. over a rise in food prices. Annual inflation ethanol business unit said. put was unrealistic. “I think a lack of fund- ing pots from a small lake near the road hit 41.4 percent in April though critics say Sudan has been in turmoil since the loss ing and infrastructure will be big obstacles from the plant to Khartoum.— Reuters NEWS THURSDAY, MAY 23, 2013

An airplane passes in front of the moon on Tuesday over Philadelphia. — AP

New gen livens faded art scene Man killed in London ‘terror’ attack

Continued from Page 1 cited the opening of the Contemporary Art Platform Continued from Page 1 forensic suits were also seen. Eyewitness pictures gallery and annual auctions organised by her daughter showed an air ambulance landing in the road and three coffee from a paper cup as a foreign maid kneeled on Lulu as evidence of a new phase in Kuwait’s cultural life. “Two other men were shot by armed police and they bodies lying on the ground with dozens of onlookers the floor to clear up the mess. “I thought that some peo- “It is a moment whose time has come,” the former New are currently receiving treatment for their injuries. This is observing the scene after the police arrived. Nick ple would take it a little bit sensitively. The amazing Yorker said. “These young collectors now are in their late thing is that they actually have an open mind and they 20s and 30s. So this is a whole new energy. This is a a sickening and barbaric attack.” Raynsford, the member of parliament for Woolwich and can relate to it,” said Saab, 27, on the opening night of whole new way of looking at art.” Police were called at 2:20 pm (1320 GMT) to reports Greenwich, said his understanding after speaking to the show, “Boundaries”. That energy comes from challenging traditional ideas, of one man being assaulted by two others. “A number of police and army officers was that dead man was a sol- Art aficionados and experts say those like Saab in said Wafaa Al-Husaini, a 23-year-old design student at weapons were reportedly being used in the attack, and dier. “We think a serving soldier was the victim,” he said. their 20s and 30s are helping to revive a cultural life the American University of Kuwait who uses 3D anima- this included reports of a firearm,” said police command- “A number of weapons have been seized. They include a damaged by indifference, religious conservatism and, tion and graphics to explore issues such as sectarianism er Simon Letchford. Local police officers, then firearms gun, various knives, and a machete, apparently. The possibly most importantly, the Iraqi invasion in 1990. and feminism. She set up a feminist group called Neda, officers arrived on the scene where they found a man police clearly had to take action in order to try and arrest Kuwait has since rebuilt its badly damaged oil infrastruc- which is organised online and distributes posters of who was later pronounced dead. “Two men, who we these individuals.” ture and in recent years private companies have poured women doing things normally seen as culturally unac- believe from early reports to have been carrying A Buckingham Palace spokesman said Queen money into building skyscrapers, shopping malls and ceptable for them such as riding a motorbike, fixing a car weapons, were shot by police. They were taken to sepa- Elizabeth II - who is due to visit the barracks later this restaurants. But many believe the arts have been neg- or smoking. “I think it is the younger generation that is rate London hospitals, they are receiving treatment for month - was being kept updated. “The queen is of lected in a country where state spending on basic public rebelling against the norms and boundaries,” she said, their injuries,” Letchford said. He said there would be a course concerned by the report of an attack in infrastructure has slowed in recent years due to bureau- dressed in a T-shirt she designed with the slogan “I am a heightened police presence in the area and urged locals Woolwich,” he said. “Her Majesty is being kept informed.” cracy and political infighting, despite huge oil revenues. man” in decorated Arabic script. to remain calm. The spokesman confirmed the monarch would carry out They point out that elsewhere in the Gulf, governments Kuwait enjoys greater political freedom and debate A white and blue police evidence tent was visible in a planned visit to the King’s Troop Royal Horse Artillery have not only spent heavily on transport and transform- than the other countries in the six-nation Gulf the street and police tape sealed off the scene. People in at the barracks on May 31. — AFP ing public spaces, but also invested in museums and art Cooperation Council and this feeds into an environment projects. where artists can afford to take bigger risks, artists and When Sheikha Paula Al-Sabah came home after US- art lovers said. Limits remain, however. Graphic designer led troops expelled Saddam Hussein’s forces in 1991, she Mohammad Sharaf described his bemusement on read- rights abuses rife in Gulf found her house had been wrecked and the walls ing news reports from neighbouring Saudi Arabia, Continued from Page 1 Foreign workers and their families are estimated to stripped of Middle Eastern and Western art collected where women are not allowed to drive, that women be around 17 million out of a native population of over decades. It took her several years before she could would no longer be stopped from bicycling in parks as bear to collect again. “We have to catch up on a lot of long as they were accompanied by a male guardian. “It Saudi authorities continued to clamp down on peo- around 40 million, according to unofficial estimates. things, but obviously there were so many other things was so silly, I did not expect it was true actually, when I ple calling for political and other reform as well as Hundreds of people were on death row at the end of that were a priority when your whole infrastructure was saw (the news) the first time,” Sharaf, 31, said in his office human rights defenders and activists. Some were last year with many executions reported. Most were in destroyed,” Sheika Paula, an American who married a scattered with posters and art books in a shopping mall. detained without charge or trial, and others faced pros- Saudi Arabia, where 79 people were beheaded in 2012, member of Kuwait’s royal family, told Reuters. “I illustrated the real scene according to what they ecution on vague charges such as “disobeying the ruler”. the report said. The Amnesty report spoke of discrimi- Other Gulf cities like Dubai and Doha pulled ahead in described.” The Saudi authorities continued to hold incommunica- nation against Shiites who form a minority in Saudi the international arts world in the period, but some con- “Allowed” shows a Saudi woman on a bicycle with do thousands of suspected members and supporters of Arabia and majority in the Sunni-ruled Bahrain, and noisseurs say Kuwait still holds the edge thanks to its her guardian in a small basket behind her, staring out Al-Qaeda and other Islamist groups. And a number of which have been witnessing violent protests by Shiites rich cultural history and relative openness. “The rest of over the top of her head. The simple black, white and their relatives were detained when they staged a for more than two years. the Gulf hasn’t caught up with where Kuwait was 50 red image was used widely in Arab and Western media protest to call for their release. Security forces in the two nations were alleged to years ago, not only politically but also culturally,” said and reposted on hundreds of blogs and other websites. Women were discriminated against in the Gulf states have used excessive force at times against the protest- Sultan Sooud Al-Qassemi, an influential UAE collector Sharaf has also produced work about his native Kuwait, in law and practise and inadequately protected against ers. At least 10 people were shot dead during protests and commentator and founder of the Sharjah-based such as a poster showing the parliament building made domestic and other violence, it said. In Saudi Arabia, in the Saudi oil-rich Eastern Province where the majority Barjeel Art Foundation. He cited Kuwaiti theatre, art of bones or pieces about free speech, inspired in part by women continued to be denied the right to drive of Shiites live. In neighbouring Bahrain, dozens of pro- exhibitions, commissions and patronage, television and the explosion of democratic debate in North Africa and despite several campaigns by activists. Amnesty said testers and policemen were reported killed and many radio drama as examples of creative innovation. the Middle East sparked by the Arab Spring uprisings. migrant workers in the Gulf states were inadequately wounded during protests. In the United Arab Emirates, “However, today the art scene is in need of a long-over- He says he has not faced any restrictions in Kuwait, but protected by labour laws and vulnerable to exploitation Kuwait and Oman hundreds were arrested and put on due revival,” he said, calling for national museums to be adds he keeps his works subtle and any criticism indi- and abuse by employers. Women domestic workers in trial for protesting and some sentenced to prison terms. renovated and reopened. rect. “I don’t assign names, or something very certain; particular were at risk of sexual violence and other In Qatar, a poet was handed a lengthy jail term for Sheikha Paula agreed it was time for the country to it’s always vague. Actually it protects me, and from abuses. allegedly insulting the ruler. — AFP improve its exhibition spaces, renovate museums and another aspect, each viewer can absorb it differently,” celebrate its comprehensive Islamic art collection. She he said. — Reuters

Speaker insists no political crisis; tweeters... Continued from Page 1 Hawally was contaminated with 51 percent potassium bromate (used to purify water), while the maximum rate May 14 and 15 apparently over the filing of the two is 10 percent as per WHO,” he said, noting that specimens grillings which the government considered as failing to taken from 10 bottled water companies were contami- fulfill a promise that no grillings will be submitted before nated. Otaibi added that he intends grilling the health the next Assembly term starting in October. Reports have minister and he would call to hold a special session to indicated that the government will demand that the two discuss the issue. “We are looking forward to the May 28 grillings be postponed for at least one month until after session when the government will have to either attend the June 16 crucial ruling by the constitutional court on or resign,” he said, promising to grill the health minister the single-vote law which could lead to dissolving the before the current parliamentary term ends. Also, MP Assembly. Other sources said the government may Yacoub Al-Sane yesterday proposed a one-off payment demand that the two grillings, and particularly the one of KD 250 for Kuwaitis in the government and private against the interior minister, be referred to the sector. Assembly’s legal and legislative committee to study if it is In another development, the court of appeals yester- in breach of the constitution. day acquitted tweeter Hamed Al-Khaledi who was sen- In a related development, executives from the oil sec- tenced to two years in jail for allegedly insulting the Amir. tor yesterday did not attend a meeting of the Assembly’s And in a key move, the same court postponed a ruling on public funds protection committee which is investigating another tweeter, Ayyad Al-Harbi, after it decided to refer the scrapped deal with Dow Chemical of the United his case to the constitutional court to rule if article 25 of States. Rapporteur of the committee MP Saud Al-Huraiji the penal code is in line with the constitution. The ruling said the executives apologized for not attending yester- is decisive because almost all opposition tweeters and day’s session because of the new sweeping appointments former MPs have been referred to court on the basis of in the oil sector and promised to attend later. A number of this article. MPs however criticized the executives and considered Former opposition MP Mussallam Al-Barrak expect- their move as an indication of non-cooperation. ed that Harbi, who is serving a two-year term issued by Meanwhile, MP Saadoun Hammad claimed that the lower court for insulting the Amir, will be freed according to the responses he received from the health until the constitutional court rules on the case. Former minister to his inquiries about drinking water, contamina- speaker Ahmad Al-Saadoun welcomed the move, say- In this May 20, 2013 photo, South Korean Army's first produced military helicopters, the Surion, fire flare tion levels have reached 51 percent in various areas ing that many Kuwaiti activists have been referred to shells during the rehearsal for the ceremony to celebrate their deployment at the Army Aviation School in around Kuwait. “The minister also said that even bottled court on the basis of this article although they did not Nonsan, South Korea. South Korea will deploy 200 military Surion helicopters by 2020 to replace its aging water was contaminated and that drinking water in commit any crime. fleet of choppers, the Army said yesterday. — AP THURSDAY, MAY 23, 2013 SPORTS

Del Potro out of French Open Sri Lanka loses Welegedara Cole to leave West Ham

PARIS: World number seven Juan Martin Del Potro of Argentina has pulled out LONDON: Former England striker Carlton Cole is leaving West Ham United after COLOMBO: Sri Lanka left-arm fast bowler Chanaka of next week’s French Open tennis after failing to recover from a virus, organis- seven seasons at the club. Cole, 29, played 237 times and scored 57 goals for the ers said yesterday. Welegedara has been ruled out of the Champions Hammers but netted only two goals in 29 appearances in the 2012-13 season. Del Potro, who reached the quarter-finals at the claycourt grand-slam event Trophy starting in England and Wales next month with He was overshadowed by on-loan striker Andy Carroll who West Ham are hop- last year, flew home after losing to Frenchman Benoit an ankle injury. ing to sign from Liverpool on a permanent basis for a club Paire in the Rome Masters last 16 last week. Welegedara will be replaced by all-rounder Dilhara record fee of around 15 million pounds ($22.71 mil- “He has withdrawn,” a French Federation Lokuhettige who has been recalled to the national team lion). spokesman told Reuters, confirming Argentine after five years. West Ham manager Sam Allardyce told the club’s media reports. “I am sad to miss such an important tournament, one that you always The 32-year-old Lokuhettige, a hard-hitting, fast- website (www.whufc.co.uk): “Carlton’s need at his dream of winning,” Del Potro was quoted as say- bowling all-rounder, last played for Sri Lanka in a age is to be playing football as often as he can. We ing by the daily Ultima Hora’s website Twenty20 international against Canada in 2008 but he felt it better he found pastures new.” (www.ultimahora.com). has been a consistent performer in domestic cricket. Cole played seven times for England, all as a Del Potro is the second top-10 player to “The first scan didn’t reveal anything but as substitute, between 2009 and 2010 but failed to withdraw from the French Open, which starts Welegedara was still in pain we went for a second scan score a goal. He scored the opening goal in West on Sunday at Roland Garros, after Briton Andy which showed a fracture at the back of his right ankle,” Ham’s 2-1 Championship playoff final victory over Murray announced he would miss the Sri Lanka manager Michael de Zoysa said in a media Blackpool last year. “Life is filled with ups and downs - today is a down but I’ll be back! Carlton Cole tournament because of a back injury. release. Former world number seven Mardy Fish, has left the building,” Cole tweeted. West The Champions Trophy starts on June 6 and Sri Lanka Ham’s joint chairman David Gold tweeted 41st in the ATP rankings, and his fellow have their first group match three days later, against American Brian Baker, 71st, have also back: “Good luck @CarltonCole1 - one of the pulled out.—Reuters New Zealand in Cardiff.—Reuters nicest men I’ve ever met in football.”—Reuters

MLB results/standings Phillies pound Marlins Baltimore 3, NY Yankees 2 (10 innings); Detroit 5, Cleveland 1; Pittsburgh 5, Chicago Cubs 4; Tampa Bay 4, Toronto 3; Atlanta 5, Minnesota 4 (10 innings); Cincinnati 4, NY Mets 0; Philadelphia MIAMI: Delmon Young homered and Ryan last 19 games by allowing a total of just four sin- career grand slam and had a career-high five RBIs, 7, Miami 3; Oakland 1, Texas 0; Chicago White Sox 3, Boston 1; Milwaukee 5, LA Dodgers 2; Howard added three hits and three RBIs to help gles. Henderson threw the ninth for his ninth and Adam Wainwright won for the first time at Kansas City 7, Houston 3; Colorado 5, Arizona 4 (10 Innings); LA Angels 12, Seattle 0; St. Louis 10, carry the Philadelphia Phillies to a 7-3 win over save, striking out pinch-hitter Scott Van Slyke with Petco Park as the Cardinals beat the Padres. San Diego 2; San Francisco 4, Washington 2 (10 innings). the Miami Marlins on Tuesday night. runners on first and second. Descalso lined a 1-2 pitch from Anthony Bass Tyler Cloyd (1-0) allowed two runs and eight Zach Greinke (2-1), making his second start into the Jack Daniel’s Old No. 7 Deck in right-cen- American League National League hits in seven innings after being recalled from since returning from a broken left collarbone, ter with one out in the eighth, his second homer Eastern Division Eastern Division Triple-A Lehigh Valley earlier in the day. gave up nine hits and five earned runs in four-plus of the season. Jon Jay was intentionally walked W L PCT GB Atlanta 27 18 .600 - Miami’s Jose Fernandez went five innings, innings against his former team en route to his ahead of him. NY Yankees 28 17 .622 - Washington 23 23 .500 4.5 allowing one run and five hits. He walked one and first careere loss at Miller Park. The right-hander, Wainwright (6-3) held San Diego to one run Boston 27 19 .587 1.5 Philadelphia 22 24 .478 5.5 struck out two. Philadelphia went ahead 2-1 in the traded by the Brewers to the Los Angeles Angels and four hits in 7 1-3 innings, struck out six and Baltimore 24 21 .533 4 NY Mets 17 26 .395 9 sixth when Domonic Brown’s ground out scored last July 27, had won his first 15 decisions in walked one. The 6-foot-7 right-hander had been Tampa Bay 24 21 .533 4 Miami 13 33 .283 14.5 Howard from third. Howard led off with a single Toronto 18 27 .400 10 Central Division and took third on Young’s double to deep center Central Division St. Louis 29 16 .644 - off Duane Below (0-1). Howard’s single with the Cleveland 26 18 .591 - Cincinnati 28 18 .609 1.5 bases loaded scored two runs and highlighted a Detroit 24 19 .558 1.5 four-run seventh that gave the Phillies a 6-1 lead. Kansas City 21 21 .500 4 Pittsburgh 27 18 .600 2 Howard returned to the lineup after missing two Chicago W Sox 21 23 .477 5 Chicago Cubs 18 26 .409 10.5 games with a sore left knee. He received a corti- Minnesota 18 24 .429 7 Milwaukee 18 26 .409 10.5 Western Division Western Division sone shot Sunday. Texas 29 17 .630 - Arizona 26 20 .565 - Oakland 25 22 .532 4.5 San Francisco 26 20 .565 - REDS 4, METS 0 Seattle 20 26 .435 9 Colorado 25 21 .543 1 In New York, Mike Leake pitched three-hit ball LA Angels 18 27 .400 10.5 San Diego 21 24 .467 4.5 for seven sharp innings and Cincinnati took Houston 13 33 .283 16 LA Dodgers 18 26 .409 7 advantage of Mets third baseman David Wright’s early error. Devin Mesoraco homered as the Reds won for the ninth time in 11 games. They scored three Orioles see off Yankees times in the first inning after Wright let a bases- loaded, two-out grounder skip through his legs. BALTIMORE: Nate McLouth homered leading in the first before shutting down baseball’s Leake (4-2) struck out four, walked two and off the bottom of the 10th inning, Chris hottest team for eight innings. The right-hander became the latest pitcher to shut down the Mets Dickerson hit a pair of solo shots and the walked just one and struck out seven, including at Citi Field. New York has lost 10 of 12 at home, Baltimore Orioles beat the New York Yankees 3-2 the final four he faced. Scherzer’s 118th and last rarely scoring many runs. Leake escaped his Tuesday night to snap a six-game losing streak. pitch was his fastest - a 98 mph heater to fan biggest jam by retiring slumping Ike Davis on a McLouth hit a 1-1 pitch from Vidal Nuno (1-1) Drew Stubbs. grounder with runners on second and third to into the bleachers in right-center to give the Andy Dirks hit a solo homer in the sixth and end the fourth. New York starter Jonathon Niese Orioles their first win since May 12. Jim Johnson had two RBIs as Detroit won the first game of (3-5) wasn’t charged with an earned run. (2-4), who blew three save opportunities during the short, showdown series. the six-game skid, got three straight outs in the PIRATES 5, CUBS 4 10th. His performance capped an exceptional RAYS 4, BLUE JAYS 3 In Pittsburgh, Travis Snider hit a pinch-hit effort by Orioles pitchers, who retired 21 of the In Toronto, Kelly Johnson and Desmond grand slam during a five-run sixth and Pittsburgh MIAMI: Juan Pierre No. 9 of the Miami Marlins slides into second as Freddy Galvis last 22 New York batters. Travis Hafner drove in Jennings homered, Alex Cobb won for the first spoiled Matt Garza’s strong return to the mound No. 13 of the Philadelphia Phillies turns a double play during a game at Marlins both runs for the Yankees, who fell to 19-1 when time in three starts to lead Tampa Bay past for the Cubs. Garza allowed one hit over five Park.—AFP scoring first. Toronto. Cobb (5-2) allowed one run and three shutout innings in his first outing in 10 months, hits in 6 1-3 innings for his first victory since win- but the Pirates pounced on a Chicago bullpen Milwaukee. 0-2 with a 2.57 ERA in his previous three appear- ANGELS 12, MARINERS 0 ning at Colorado on May 5. The right-hander that is 10th in the National League in ERA by ances at the spacious downtown ballpark, includ- In Anaheim, Mike Trout hit for the cycle and walked two and struck out two. Thirteen of his sending 11 men to the plate in the sixth. Snider’s ROCKIES 5, DIAMONDBACKS 4 ing two starts. drove in five runs, Josh Hamilton celebrated his 19 outs came on groundballs. 32nd birthday with a homer and a triple, and Jake McGee got two outs in the seventh first career home run with the bases loaded was In Denver, Wilin Rosario drove in Carlos San Diego’s Edinson Volquez (3-5) allowed five Howie Kendrick also went deep in the Angels’ before the Blue Jays rallied against Joel Peralta the first Pirates pinch-hit grand slam in five years. Gonzalez with a one-out single in the 10th inning runs and eight hits in six innings, struck out five rout of the Mariners. Trout, last season’s AL rook- in the eighth. Munenori Kawasaki singled, Melky Garza had been sidelined since July 21 to lift Colorado after squandering a late four-run and walked one. He allowed four runs on six hits ie of the year and MVP runner-up, became the Cabrera walked and Jose Bautista hit an RBI sin- because of a stress reaction in his right elbow and, lead. Gonzalez hit a double and reliever Matt in the fifth. sixth player in Angels history to complete the gle. Edwin Encarnacion struck out before Adam later, a strained upper back.. Reynolds (0-2) intentionally walked Troy cycle and the first to do it since Chone Figgins Lind reach on a fielding error by second base- Wandy Rodriguez (5-2) allowed three runs on Tulowitzki to get to Rosario, who came through GIANTS 4, NATIONALS 2 on Sept. 16, 2006, at Texas. Jerome Williams (3-1) man Ryan Roberts. six hits over six innings for the Pirates, who have with a liner to right on the first pitch. In San Francisco, Pablo Sandoval hit a two-run scattered six hits over eight innings, struck out Roberts redeemed himself when Fernando won nine of 11. The Cubs scored once in the Rosario lifted his hands in the air after touch- home run in the bottom of the 10th inning after six and walked two while helping send the Rodney came on and got J.P. Arencibia to ninth, but Jason Grilli got Anthony Rizzo to strike ing first base and was soon mobbed by team- Gregor Blanco’s tying triple in the ninth, and the Mariners to their season-high fifth straight loss. ground into an inning-ending double play on out swinging with two on to end the game and mates. Tulowitzki hit a solo homer and had a dou- Giants rallied past the Nationals. Aaron Harang (1-5) lasted only 3 1-2 innings the first pitch, with Roberts and shortstop Yunel earn his major league-leading 18th save. ble to raise his average to .406 at Coors Field this Sandoval flipped his bat and shifted into a in his first outing since May 7, giving up seven Escobar combining. season. The Rockies brought closer Rafael slow trot as soon as he sent the ball off Yunesky runs and nine hits - seven of them for extra BREWERS 5, DODGERS 2 Betancourt to start the 10th, but he was in some Maya (0-1) over the right-center field wall for his bases. ROYALS 7, ASTROS 3 In Milwaukee, Carlos Gomez hit a go-ahead discomfort after throwing a second straight pitch eighth homer this season. In Houston, Mike Moustakas tied it with an two-run double, Jonathan Lucroy had three hits into the dirt. After a few warm-up tosses, Blanco had three hits, including his RBI triple ATHLETICS 1, RANGERS 0 RBI single before George Kottaras scored the go- and an RBI and five Milwaukee relievers com- Betancourt left with a tight groin and Wilton off closer Rafael Soriano with two outs in the In Arlington, rookie right-hander Dan Straily ahead run on a bases-loaded walk in a four-run bined for five scoreless innings to beat Los Lopez was brought in. Lopez (1-1) threw a perfect ninth. The Giants’ comeback upstaged a superb eighth inning, helping Kansas City end a four- Angeles. inning to earn the win. outing by Stephen Strasburg, who outdueled game skid. Mike Fiers (1-2), Michael Gonzalez, John Matt Cain in seven innings in a matchup of NL The Royals trailed 3-0 and couldn’t get much going offensively until the seventh when they Axford, Brandon Kintzler and Jim Henderson CARDINALS 10, PADRES 2 aces. Jeremy Affelft (1-0) pitched a scoreless cut the lead to one on RBI singles by Alcides pitched Milwaukee to only its fourth victory in its In San Diego, Daniel Descalso hit his first inning for the win.—AP Escobar and David Lough. Eric Hosmer chased Wesley Wright in the eighth when he singled to load the bases. He was replaced by Jose Cisnero, who gave up the Police tennis team leaves for Romania one-out RBI single by Moustakas, which snapped a 0-for-18 slump. Cisnero then walked KUWAIT: The delegation of the police tennis team left Kottaras on four pitches to put the Royals on for Romania for a training camp ahead of the World top. Police Tennis Tournament to be held in Bucharest. They added two more runs when Escobar The delegation is headed by Member of Police grounded into a force out to score Hosmer Sports Association Board of Directors, Manager of before an error by Marwin Gonzalez allowed Moustakas to go home. Tennis Sport Colonel Waleed Al-Shihab. Members of the Paul Clemens (1-2) took the loss after allow- team include Major Talal Al-Jazzaf, Abdelhameed Al- ing three hits and two runs while getting only Jazzaf, Raed Abdallah Al-Saleem, Hussein Al-Ashwak one out before Wright replaced him. Bruce Chen and Khalid Al-Enezi. BALTIMORE: Pitcher David Robertson (3-0) pitched a scoreless seventh for the win. Colonel Waleed Al-Shihab said, the participation in No. 30 of the New York Yankees throws the world police tennis tournament, which is one of the to a Baltimore Orioles batter during WHITE SOX 3, RED SOX 1 most important and strongest competitions is an the eighth inning.—AFP In Chicago, Jose Quintana took a no-hitter achievement for our team, and hope to achieve good into the seventh before David Ortiz broke it up results. pitched seven scoreless innings and Yoenis with a one-out broken-bat single, and the White He said the care of chairman of PSA Lt. General Cespedes homered as the Athletics won their Sox beat Boston. fifth straight game, beating the Rangers and Yu Jeff Keppinger hit a two-run homer off Felix Ahmad Nawaf Al-Ahmad will be our motive to try hard Darvish. Doubront (3-2) in the fifth. Alex Rios extended The Kuwait tennis delegation to get the hoped for results. Straily (2-2) gave up only two singles while his career-high hitting streak to 16 with a single facing 22 batters, just one over the minimum for and RBI double, and the White Sox won for the his seven innings. He struck out five. sixth time in eight games. They’ll try to com- NBK takes three MasterCard Cardholders to Even with consecutive wins to start the plete the sweep against Clay Buchholz late yes- three-game series, Oakland still trails the terday. Quintana (3-1) was simply terrific. The Rangers by 41/2 games in the AL West. Darvish left-hander struck out five and walked two. the UEFA Champions League Final in London (7-2) had won all five of his previous starts this season when pitching after a Texas loss. The INTERLEAGUE BRAVES 5, TWINS 4 KUWAIT: National Bank of Kuwait (NBK) three for the final match. Each travel pack- Japanese right-hander struck out five, but In Atlanta, Evan Gattis hit a two-out, pinch- announces the three winners of a fully- age includes two round trip airline tickets, walked three and hit a batter while giving up hit homer in the ninth to send the game to extra paid trip to London to attend the final hotel accommodation, transfer service and five hits in six innings. innings and Freddie Freeman won it in the 10th, match of the UEFA Champions League match tickets for both winner and a guest. sending Atlanta to its fifth straight win. 2012/2013, in collaboration with NBK’s leadership in the Credit Card mar- TIGERS 5, INDIANS 1 Freeman blooped a two-out single off Brian MasterCard International. Rola Maissar ket in Kuwait has been established by con- In Cleveland, Miguel Cabrera hit a two-run Duensing (0-1) to bring home Jason Heyward, Arab, Reem Essa Mohammed Bin Haji and sistently delivering superior value to our homer and Max Scherzer retired 22 straight bat- handing the Twins their seventh straight loss. ters after the first inning, helping Detroit stop Trevor Plouffe and Ryan Doumit had RBI sin- Ali Jawad Abdulhameed Al Saffar will fly to customers. NBK always strives to develop Cleveland’s five-game winning streak. gles in the eighth against the depleted Atlanta London; all expenses paid by NBK, to watch promotions to reward customers. Cabrera’s laser shot in the sixth inning off bullpen, giving the Twins a 4-3 lead. They were the UEFA Champions League finals, one of NBK Credit Cards are accepted world- Corey Kluber (3-3) helped the Tigers win for just one out away from snapping their slide when the most popular sporting league in the wide and are the safest, most convenient the second time in six games. The defending AL Gattis lined an 0-1 pitch from Glen Perkins deep world. and rewarding way to pay. For more infor- champions also moved within 1 1/2 games of into the left-field seats for his ninth homer of the The campaign offered NBK MasterCard mation log onto nbk.com or contact Hala the first-place Indians, who have won 18 of 23 season. Craig Kimbrel (1-1) worked a scoreless Cardholders chances to win four travel Watani on 1801801, or follow NBK on since April 28. 10th for the win. Brian McCann homered and packages to the semi final matches and Twitter and on Instagram @NBKPage. Scherzer (6-0) gave up two singles and a run drove in two runs for the Braves.—AP THURSDAY, MAY 23, 2013 SPORTS Play ball with Goodell and NFL — or else

NEW YORK: The NFL is free to twist arms, votes.” In case you haven’t been following language from the NFL staff. It’s a shame. We The NFL already rules the sporting land- up against someone else’s, you never saw just like anybody else. So maybe it’s just the recent dust-up in South Florida over may not see another Super Bowl for another scape and the airwaves from coast to coast. the bemused smile on his face when some- coincidence that all five of the new stadiums who’s going to pay for the nearly $400 mil- 10 years.” The last one in South Florida was Apparently, that’s not enough. Based on a one pointed out that pushing the Super that will come on line during Roger lion in improvements the Dolphins want only three years ago, and taxpayers there few things Goodell let slip at the end of the Bowl from late January deeper into February Goodell’s brief tenure as NFL commissioner made to SunLife Stadium, here’s all the back- already shelled out much of the cash for owners meeting, it sounds like he’s working would pit his biggest game against have now been awarded Super Bowls. Or ground you need to know: Team owner new homes for the Heat and Marlins recent- on plans for a Death Star. NASCAR’s season-opening Daytona 500. The maybe not. Steve Ross wants taxpayers to foot the bill. ly, but who’s counting? Certainly not Next year, the league’s draft will be new NFL calendar will mean more work for Goodell emerged from an owners meet- In a rare bit of gumption, some state and Goodell. He’s made securing new stadiums moved back from April to between May 8 clubs and their front-office personnel and ing Tuesday in Boston to announce that the local politicians blocked a referendum that for franchise owners - largely publicly- and 17, ostensibly to avoid a scheduling more programming for the NFL Network, 2016 Superpalooza - the 50th anniversary of would have put the matter to a vote. What financed stadiums - every bit as much a sig- conflict with New York’s Radio City Music but less time for rookies, since many clubs the game - was awarded to a nearly-open- followed soon after were lamentations from nature issue as player safety. So far, as noted Hall, which is hosting an Easter show. It’s are likely to cut out minicamps. There’s still for-business stadium in Santa Clara that will Ross and his hired hands about all the mon- above, every town that helped build one likely to stay there in following years, too. talk of an 18-game season floating around, be home to the 49ers, and that the 2017 ey that South Florida was losing out on. since 2006 has been rewarded with a Super Never mind those dates likely means a con- as well as expanding the playoffs, mercifully game will return to Houston. Goodell delivered the same message in per- Bowl. “It hasn’t been a strategy for the NFL. flict with Mother’s Day and the NBA and by cutting two preseason games. The one More telling than the argument Goodell son to the state legislature earlier this But it’s come to us as a happy consequence,” NHL playoffs, plus three more weeks of end- thing that’s guaranteed to swell is the and the owners made for either venue month. But after Tuesday’s vote, he let Frank Supovitz, the league’s senior vice pres- less hype. league’s bottom line. might be the one they aimed at the Miami Rodney Barreto, chairman of South Florida’s ident of events, told NFL.com - the day There’s also a good chance the league “How much hype is enough? How big Dolphins’ failed bid. bid committee, rub it in. before the vote was taken. will push the scouting combine back from does the league need the golden goose to “I think the stadium is a very important “I suspect there’s a couple of state reps That kind of arrogance may seem breath- February to mid-March, inviting another get?” SI.com’s Peter King, one of the NFL’s part of any of these proposals,” he said after down in Miami-Dade County where I live taking, but it’s all just another day’s work for scheduling conflict, this time with the NCAA sharpest observers, asked in a recent col- the vote. “I had a couple of owners express who are going to look at this and realize this the NFL. Goodell runs a cartel that could basketball tournament’s Selection Sunday umn without waiting for an answer. “Silly to me privately the condition of the stadium was a huge mistake,” Barreto said. “We had teach the International Olympic Committee or its opening weekend of play. If you think question. We see it answered every day by was an important factor to them in their the better bid. I could just look at the body a thing or two about ruthlessness. Goodell is worried about his empire running an insatiable league.”—AP Bruins take 3-0 lead, Sharks square series

NEW YORK: It took 40 years for Boston and New goal of the postseason, setting up the series- San Jose jumped on top early when Joe York to face off again in the playoffs, and now it squaring 2-1 win. Thornton stole the puck and fed Burns, who shot looks like being over in a hurry, as the Bruins Logan Couture followed up his overtime was blocked. Thornton came up with the loose beat the Rangers 2-1 on Tuesday to take a 3-0 game-winner in Game 3 with his fifth power- puck and slid a perfect cross-ice pass to Burns, series lead. In the day’s other playoff game, San play goal of the playoffs to add to the lead and who was not denied on his second chance, beat- Jose beat Los Angeles 2-1 to square their series Antti Niemi made 22 saves as the Sharks ing Jonathon Quick with a one-timer. at 2-2. Daniel Paille scored the tiebreaking goal matched the Kings’ two home wins to open the Couture gave the Sharks a 2-0 lead early in with 3:31 left in the third period to take what has series with two of their own. the second period, deflecting a point shot by historically been a nearly unbeatable series lead. Mike Richards scored a power-play goal for Dan Boyle past Quick while Colin Fraser was in Only three NHL teams have come back from 3-0 the Kings, who have lost 10 of 11 road games the penalty box for roughing Andrew Desjardins. down and the Rangers will try to start that dating to the end of the regular season. The Kings outshot the Sharks 14-2 in the third comeback at home on Thursday. Game 5 is Thursday in Los Angeles when the period, holding San Jose without a shot for near- The Bruins need no reminding of the threat, Sharks will look to end a streak of four straight ly 13 minutes but couldn’t get the equalizer as they led Philadelphia 3-0 in the 2010 playoffs wins by the home team in this series. against Niemi.—AP and lost 4-3. “We can talk about it all we want, but that’s in the past,” Bruins coach Claude Julien said. “We had to live with that and we still have Al-Roudhan addressing the press conference. to live with that.” Boston also nearly blew a 3-1 series edge in Al-Roudhan Indoor the opening round this year against Toronto, before rallying from a three-goal deficit in the third period and capturing Game 7 in overtime. Soccer tourney “The Toronto series, I didn’t think our team was in the zone the way it is right now,” Julien KUWAIT: Chairman of the Higher two on the playing field to give the said. “I anticipate - knowing my team - that we’re Organizing Committee of the Late opportunity for the largest number pos- going to come out the same next game and cer- Abdallah Mushari Al-Roudhan Indoor sible for local players. He said that all tainly not be the Jekyll and Hyde team that we Soccer Tournament announced that HH players who are participating with the were in the first round.” The Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al- 40 teams will be professional whether The Bruins trailed 1-0 heading into the third, Jabar Al-Sabah will patronize the 34th local or foreign. but Johnny Boychuk tied it with his fourth goal edition of the annual tournament which He said that tournaments held in of the playoffs after he netted just one in 44 reg- will be held from Ramadhan 1st until the Ramadhan is a positive phenomena, that ular-season games. It was the first time in three 28th of the month. helps develop the game locally, and will years that the Rangers had lost in regulation Al-Roudhan who met with members create a true competition, adding that when leading after two periods. of the Media Monday night, thanked HH such tournaments are not a strictly Al- “We played a pretty strong game,” New York The Amir for his care of the sports and Roudhan only, but everyone has the goalie Henrik Lundqvist said, “but we came up short again and it definitely hurts.” Taylor Pyatt youth. He said that this patronage will right to organize a tournament. had made it 1-0 in the second period for the encourage to bring out the best in Al-Roudhan was pleased by the influ- Rangers, who had won their previous nine home everyone for success of the tournament. ence of Al-Roudhan tournament on the games. NEW YORK: Henrik Lundqvist No. 30 of the New York Rangers makes a save against Al-Roudhan said fans will witness indoor soccer, and this is evident as Meanwhile, San Jose’s Brent Burns helped the Milan Lucic No. 17 of the Boston Bruins in Game Three of the Eastern Conference many surprises and guests, like Juan Kuwait National Team qualified for the Sharks jump off to a fast start with his second Semifinals during the 2013 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs.—AFP Laborta of Barcelona who came five World Cup finals, and most of its players years ago. He said that several digni- will be playing in Al-Roudhan tourna- taries will be honored including the late ment. Sameer Saeed who was remembered He said that the fans of Al-Roudhan Sreesanth denies spot-fixing during the tournament of last year. He tournament is a major reason for its suc- said it was decided to reduce the num- cess, as it is gaining great popularity in NEW DELHI: Indian cricketer Shanthakumaran be proved innocent and my honor and dignity ber of foreign professional players to the Gulf and Arab World. Sreesanth has insisted he is innocent of any will be vindicated and restored,” said the crick- wrongdoing in the ongoing spot-fixing scandal eter, who played the last of his 27 tests against and is confident of emerging from the “tough England at The Oval in Aug. 2011. Sreesanth, Preview period” with his dignity intact. who is from the south Indian state of Kerala and The 30-year-old bowler was one of three represented IPL’s Rajasthan franchise this season, players, along with 11 bookmakers, arrested last has been accused of taking money to concede a Pakistan raring to week on suspicion of spot-fixing in the Indian fixed number of runs in one of his overs during a Premier League (IPL) Twenty20 competition, the May 9 match against Kings XI Punjab. allegations also earning him an immediate sus- Legal sports betting in India is confined to go against Ireland pension from the cricket board. “I am innocent horse racing, while illegal gambling syndicates and have done no wrong. I have never indulged thrive in the absence of a law dealing specifically DUBLIN: Pakistan are keener than ever and current skipper William Porterfield. in any spot-fixing and I have always played crick- with such corruption in sport. et in the spirit of the game,” the paceman said in Media estimates put the amount gambled to get back on the field for the first of Pakistan still have three players from a statement issued late on Tuesday through his on India’s top Twenty20 competition at $427 two one-day internationals against that infamous day six years ago: lawyer. “As a cricketer, I have learnt to take million in 2009. India’s film industry has also Ireland today after their second ODI Kamran Akmal, their top scorer and knocks along with accolades in my stride. I been pulled into the controversy when Mumbai against Scotland on the weekend was a who has previous experience of club recognise that I am going through a tough peri- Police arrested a Bollywood actor, Vindu Dara wash-out. As Ireland are the strongest cricket in Ireland, Shoaib Malik and od in my life. “I have utmost faith in our judicial Singh, on Tuesday for alleged links to a book- team outside the Full Members - they Mohammad Hafeez. Hafeez disap- process and I am confident that with time, I will maker.—Reuters Indian cricketer S Sreesanth are five places below sixth ranked peared from the Pakistan Test team Pakistan - it promises to be a more after the 2007 World Cup but after a searching examination for the team as three-year exile he has not only Clarke believes Aussies the countdown to the Champions returned to the fold but is now consid- Trophy starts in earnest. ered the captain-elect when Misbah Although Scotland caused Misbah decides to step down. ul-Haq’s side early problems in both He is also now the No 1 all-rounder can cause Ashes upset innings of the first game, reducing in one-day internationals - the fourth Pakistan to 115 for five and then racing ranked bowler and needing just three SYDNEY: The Australians are getting ing to defend the Champions Trophy test for minor off-field issues, and journalists. Warner wasn’t among the away to 50 for one in 12 overs, a cap- for 100 wickets. the civil formalities out of the way ear- title, starting June 6, and then four Clarke missed the last test through 12 Australian players at the morning tain’s knock doubled the tourists’ score But modestly, Hafeez said: “I always ly ahead of the Ashes, starting with tour matches against County teams injury. Shane Watson has quit as vice- tea Wednesday - he was scheduled to in the last 20 overs and three wickets see my responsibility as a batsman. I yesterday’s very cordial morning tea in before the first test at Trent Bridge on captain, prompting selectors to recall face a disciplinary panel later in the each from Junaid Khan and Saaed never try to do too much with my a jet aircraft hangar to formally July 10. There’s been a lot of criticism veteran wicketkeeper Brad Haddin as evening. Ajmal hurried Scotland to a 96-run bowling, I have some limitations and I farewell the team - several days before of the Australian squad since the woe- his replacement, and opening bats- With an inexperienced batting defeat. know that, so I always stick to the they leave for England. ful tour to India in March, when three man David Warner got into a social group struggling to score runs consis- But as Scotland captain Kyle Coetzer basics, and it’s been working for me for Because the minute Michael Clarke players were suspended for the third media stoush with two senior cricket tently, Australia’s best hope of being admitted after the match, from a simi- the last two or three years. and his lineup board the plane on the competitive in England revolves lar position Ireland would likely to have “I feel that I’ve found good consis- weekend, it’ll be all business. The around its strong seam bowling gone and won the match and that is tency. I try to stay economical for my Australians go into the series as rank attack. underdogs after a 4-0 series defeat in “There’s a lot of talk about our fast the difference that Pakistan should team and pick up the odd wicket.” After India and back-to-back Ashes series bowlers and we have plenty of talent,” notice at Clontarf today and Sunday. the new ball partnership of Junaid and losses to England. Clarke said. “But it will come down to Seven of the Ireland team are regu- the giant Mohammad Irfan, it is Saeed They haven’t won the Ashes in the batters making runs, the spin lars in their county line-ups and the Ajmal, the No 1 ranked bowler, who England since 2001, and face the department doing their role and our other four, including Kevin O’Brien, the will cause the teams below the very prospect of 10 tests in away-and- fast bowlers maximizing conditions. man who almost single-handedly top class the most problems as the home series against their oldest foes “Without doubt the Ashes tour is defeated England two years ago with Scots found to their cost. between July and January. the most special, but it does take a the fastest ever century at the World The batting has been too reliant on “We have probably the most excit- whole squad of 16 players to have Cup finals, are likely to have more than Misbah in recent series and it is no ing 12 months of our careers ahead of success.” Haddin’s recall adds some 230 one-day international appearances coincidence that the captain has hit us,” Clarke said Wednesday. England experience following the retirement of between them. half centuries in the last three ODIs “are certainly the favorites, but we former skipper Ricky Ponting and reli- Indeed, O’Brien is one of five sur- which Pakistan have won. Conversely, look forward to that challenge. able middle-order batsman Michael vivors from the game that put Ireland the three games they lost in South “There is not one cricket game Hussey. Haddin hasn’t been Australia’s on the world map, their victory over Africa in March was when he didn’t. where I’ve walked out onto the field AUSTRALIA: A handout photo shows Australian cricket captain first-choice keeper since Matthew Pakistan at Sabina Park, Jamaica. Also The low, slow pitch at Clontarf may with the Australian team and not Michael Clarke (second right), Qantas CEO Alan Joyce (second Wade took the gloves on the tour to still around and arguably playing bet- not be ideal for batsmen to express expected to win, and this series will be left) and two flight attendants on the steps of a Qantas A380 the West Indies last year, but is deter- ter than ever are winning captain Trent themselves but it time for others to no different.” The Australians have plane at an official farewell event as the Australian cricket mined to regain and keep his spot in Johnston, Niall O’Brien, Andrew White come to the party.—AFP been training in Brisbane to prepare team prepares to leave on the Ashes tour of England later in the team and concentrate on “getting for a tour which starts with them try- that urn back.”—AP the week.—AFP THURSDAY, MAY 23, 2013 SPORTS Stanford takes NCAA Photo of the day women’s tennis title

URBANA: With Kristie Ahn back in secutive championship and second set, she said, ‘I have to win the lineup after missing parts of knocked off fourth-seeded this match. I have to do things dif- the last two seasons, 12th-seeded Georgia and fifth-seeded USC ferently.’ “ Stacey Tan secured Stanford was a different team. The over the previous four days. Stanford’s other singles victory, a Cardinal completed a string of The Cardinal were the lowest- 7-5, 6-3 decision over Ines upsets by defeating No. 3 Texas seeded team to reach the champi- Deheza. Anna Mamalat grabbed A&M 4-3 for the NCAA women’s onship match since 2007. “It was the first of three consecutive sin- tennis championship Tuesday an interesting and extremely gles victories for the Aggies that night. “For Kristie Ahn to clinch, rewarding ride for us,” Forood tied the match at 3-3. Mamalat it’s poetic justice,” Stanford coach said. “We had our ups and downs, defeated Ellen Tsay 6-1, 7-5. Texas Lele Forood said. “She’s been the but we came to play when it A&M’s Nazari Urbina downed missing player for us the last two counted.” Krista Hardebeck 6-3, 7-6 and the years. We weren’t able to get it The best part about the title Aggies’ Stefania Hristov beat done without her.” wasn’t dumping a bucket of cold Natalie Dillon 6-2, 3-6, 6-1. Ankle and foot injuries slowed water on Forood or holding the Stanford earned the doubles Ahn, and hurt her neck in a bus national championship trophy, point, despite an 8-3 loss by Ahn accident. Yet Ahn was already Ahn said. It’s the trip to the White and Gibbs to Stancu and Hristov. pondering the night before about House, just another part of the Stacey Tan and Tsay defeated the “how sick it would be if I clinched,” spoils. Aggies’ Wen Sun and Sanchez- she said. “My team is a bunch of nerds,” Quintanar 8-4, and Stanford’s The thought kept crossing her Ahn said. “We love politics. I can’t Dillon and Hardebeck secured the mind during 7-5, 4-6, 6-2 win over tell you the dinner conversations doubles point with an 8-5 win Cristina Stancu to wrap up we have. It’s too much about sub- over Deheza and Paula Deheza. In Stanford’s 17th national champi- stance.” its second season under coach onship and seventh under Forood. When Stanford’s Nicole Gibbs Howard Joffe, Texas A&M (26-4) “I was thinking about how rallied for a 0-6, 6-2, 6-0 win over made its first appearance in the absurd it was coming down to Cristina Sanchez-Quintanar, the championship match after reach- me,” Ahn said. “It’s a big moment, Cardinal gained some momen- ing the quarterfinals and semifi- highlight of life.” Stanford (22-4) tum. Gibbs won NCAA singles and nals for the first time in school overcame a “brutal draw,” Forood doubles titles last season. history. “The trajectory and speed said. “I felt bad for her,” Forood said. we’ve come from nowhere, so to Stanford ended top-seeded “I wanted her to find a way to get speak, is somewhat startling,” Competitors perform during the Red Bull King Of The Rock at Marina Basketball Courts in Kuwait City. Florida’s run toward a third con- back in the match. Early in the Joffe said.—AP www.redbullcontentpool.com Pole position, not tire wear, crucial at Moncao GP

MONACO: The Monaco Grand Prix have to be extra sharp and focused. ... track by debris and gravel. ferent driving style.” “The last race in Spain was won from should be less about tire degradation Overtaking is almost impossible,” “It is very, very difficult - almost Red Bull has been one of the leading lower down on the grid than it has ever and more about pole position, as Raikkonen said. “We’ll have to see how impossible in fact - to have a clean critics of the tires and Pirelli have been won before, so it will be interest- Formula One returns for its showcase the tires perform and if there are any weekend down there,” Raikkonen said. pledged to make changes from next ing to see if this pattern can repeat itself race on a street circuit that is notorious- good strategies to be made, but the “My win in 2005 ranks up there with my month’s Canadian Grand Prix. The tires in Monaco.” ly difficult to overtake on. That will be most important thing is to qualify well.” most memorable.” There will be less will feature a revised construction The chances of Alonso repeating his good news for Red Bull’s Sebastian Mark Webber won from pole last year speed, so therefore less tire wear and including elements from last year’s tires Barcelona win, where he drove brilliant- Vettel, but less so for Lotus driver Kimi and in 2010, Vettel did likewise in 2011 - less pit stops - and overtaking is always to combine durability with performance. ly to win from fifth on the grid, are slim Raikkonen. giving Red Bull three straight victories. a gamble in the home of casinos. But the other argument in the tire and he will need a strong qualifying per- Vettel, the three-time defending In the last 10 years, only Lewis Red Bull will be especially looking debate is that Red Bull’s dominance has formance to have a chance of repeating Formula One champion tops the cham- Hamilton, five years ago, and Juan Pablo forward to this weekend, after finishing been countered, which has added a his Monaco wins from 2006 and 2007. pionship standings by four points from Montoya, 10 years ago, have won not behind both Ferraris in Barcelona two dose of uncertainty to race day. By win- Alonso is third overall, 17 points Raikkonen, who closed the gap by fin- starting from pole. weeks ago. Fernando Alonso won, Felipe ning the season opener in Australia and behind Vettel, with Hamilton sitting ishing second at the Spanish GP with When Raikkonen won in 2005, he led Massa was third, and Webber rolled in finishing second in Spain with three fourth and trailing Vettel by 39. Ferrari’s Vettel placing fourth. That was from the front. This season, his superb behind Vettel in a hectic race that saw stops, Raikkonen has shown that smart mission in recent weeks has been to Raikkonen’s third consecutive second tactical sense, coupled with smart man- almost 80 pit stops with most drivers strategy can compensate for tire wear. close the gap on Red Bull in qualifying. place as the Finn bids for his second F1 agement of Pirelli’s vulnerable tires, backed into a four-stop strategy due to However, for the first time in many Alonso has never qualified higher than title. have helped him stay in touch with tires shredding at an alarming rate. weeks, the pressure should be off Pirelli third so far, and Massa’s qualifying best However, he has one major problem: Vettel. “It is very, very difficult to predict and - at least for one race. “We’d expect an was second at the Malaysian GP. qualifying speed. He has been on the Monaco, with its tube-like circuit, is say these tires will last 15 or 20 percent average of two pit stops per car, “We have seen an all-round improve- front row only once - in Bahrain last unique because drivers are hemmed in of the race because each circuit is differ- because - in complete contrast to the ment this year,” Massa said. “But clearly month - compared to Vettel’s two poles. on pencil-thin streets and have to con- ent,” Bernie Ecclestone said. “We are fac- last race at Barcelona - Monaco has very we can still improve, especially in quali- That could work against him in Monaco. centrate for nearly two hours to avoid ing very different temperatures, the cars low tire wear and degradation,” Pirelli fying. We are well aware of this and “It’s such a narrow, twisty track; you crashing into walls or getting spun off are different, and each driver has a dif- motorsport director Paul Hembery said. working towards that goal.”—AP

Red Bull driver Sebastian Vettel of Germany, right, steers his car after the start of the Formula One Spanish Grand Prix at the Catalunya racetrack in Montmelo, near Barcelona, Spain, Sunday, May 12, 2013. —AP Photo/Manu Fernandez Banker Carrion bids Garcia wants meeting with for IOC presidency Woods to defuse racist row BERLIN: Puerto Rican banker Richard Games deal to 2020 with U.S. broadcaster Carrion launched his bid for the presidency NBC worth $4.38 billion. Sponsorship rev- WENTWORTH: A contrite Sergio okay. I said how sorry I am - it was a Players ended nearly two weeks ago was caught off guard by a question of the International Olympic Committee enues for the IOC through its TOP pro- Garcia said yesterday he wants a bad comment. “I am sure that I will be and it is time to move on and talk and I understand my answer was (IOC) yesterday, with his long financial gramme for the 2013-16 period are set to meeting with Tiger Woods to apolo- able to talk to him and apologise to about golf.” totally stupid. “I would like to say sor- experience a powerful pitch in his quest for exceed $1 billion for the first time, com- gise directly for the racist row that him face-to-face. Then move forward Garcia confirmed he had also ry to the European Tour and to my the world’s top sports job. The 60-year-old pared with $663 million for 2001-4. was sparked by his “fried chicken” and forget about the whole thing.” apologised to European Tour chief Ryder Cup team mates for taking the Carrion, who is chairman of Puerto Rican “(IOC) President (Jacques) Rogge has comments at an official dinner. Garcia Woods tweeted: “The comment executive George O’Grady and PGA shine away from what was a wonder- lender Popular Inc, heads the IOC’s finance entrusted me with a lot of responsibility, has had a long-running feud with that was made wasn’t silly. It was Tour commissioner Tim Finchem and ful awards dinner. “Most importantly I commission and is a director of the Federal financial and television. It was his vision that Woods and it exploded on Tuesday wrong, hurtful and clearly inappropri- that no disciplinary action would be want to apologise to Tiger and to Reserve Bank of New York, becomes the we should grow the foundation to have night when he was questioned on ate. “I’m confident there is real regret taken against him. Garcia added: “I anybody that I could have offended. I third official candidate in the race to be enough money at hand in case Games were stage at the annual tour dinner. that the remark was made. The want to give an unreserved apology. I feel sick about it and I am truly, truly decided on Sept. 10. cancelled,” said Carrion. Garcia was asked if he would sorry.” The remark rekindled memo- “We have a lot at stake in this election,” Broadcasting revenues, the biggest invite Woods for dinner and respond- ries of Fuzzy Zoeller’s comments Carrion, an IOC member since 1990, told source of income for the IOC, are seen top- ed by saying he would have him when Woods first one the US Masters Reuters in a telephone interview. ping $4 billion until 2016, with revenues for round every night and serve fried in 1997 and as holder could choose “Our place in the world is not guaran- the 2002-4 period at almost half that. chicken, stereotypically associated the menu for annual champions’ din- teed. We must have a leader that knows “If you look at the IOC, it has a great with black people in the American ner. how not just to manage the coming change standing but by nature when things are deep south. Zoeller then said: “You pat him on but also make it work for the IOC and the going well I think about what could go Woods took to twitter, calling the back and say congratulations and movement,” said the soft-spoken Carrion. wrong. This is a great standing but it is not Garcia’s comment “hurtful” before enjoy it and tell him not serve fried IOC Vice Presidents Thomas Bach from something that is guaranteed,” said Carrion. attempting to diffuse the row after chicken next year. Got it? Or collard Germany and Singapore’s Ng Ser Miang He said he wanted to see the IOC branching the Spaniard had issued a statement greens or whatever the hell they have already launched their campaigns out to other organisations to become though the European Tour saying he serve.” He later claimed the com- while the head of the International Boxing stronger. “We cannot do everything on our did not mean to cause the world ments had been misconstrued.. Federation (AIBA) C.K. Wu is set to own. We have tremendous resources in the number one any offence. Woods’ mention of the Players is a announce his bid today. work our members do. We can create asso- And Garcia has been in touch with reference to the row that he and Several more could decide to run, with ciations with other organisations around Woods’ agent to apologise and Garcia had during the Players’ Swiss sports administrator Denis Oswald the world, learn from best practices.” attempt to set up a meeting with the Championship at Sawgrass a fort- and former pole vault champion Sergei In turn, Carrion said he wanted to see world number one to sort out the night ago. The week was marred by Bubka seen as likely candidates. Olympic Games expertise brought back into problem once and for all. Garcia’s spat with Woods - the even- “I don’t have his phone number tual winner - on the third day when As head of the IOC’s finance commission the IOC as the Games became more com- FILE - At left, in a May 5, 2013 file photo, Sergio Garcia grimaces since 2002, Carrion, who is also responsible plex. “We developed an expertise and need but I have called his manager,” Garcia Woods disturbed the Spaniard as he told reporters at Wentworth ahead of during The Players Championshop golf tournament in Ponte was hitting a shot. The incident spi- for negotiating broadcasting rights for the to bring this core of people in-house. There Vedra Beach, Fla. At right, in a March 25, 2013 file photo, Tiger IOC, has overseen major revenue growth are areas in staging Olympics where we the PGA Championship. “He didn’t ralled into a war of words with Garcia over the past decade despite the global would benefit if we had a core of people pick up so I left him a message and Woods walks to the 16th green during the final round of the telling reporters again on Tuesday economic downturn. permanently engaged in host cities,” he told them I was very sorry and that I Arnold Palmer Invitational golf tournament in Orlando, Fla. that he did not like playing with He also helped to negotiate a four- said.—Reuters would love to talk to them as soon as Woods and Garcia don’t like each other, and are making no Woods and the two would never be possible and make sure everything is attempt to disguise their feelings.—AP friends.—AFP SPORTS THURSDAY, MAY 23, 2013 Bayern out to exorcise ghosts of 2012 defeat

BERLIN: Bayern Munich are out to European title. Until Chelsea ruined season’s Bundesliga with a 25-point focused team, as a coach or as a play- Saturday when they ran out 4-3 win- exorcise the ghosts of losing the 2012 Munich’s party. margin. er.” “After last season, after such a dis- ners having found themselves 3-1 Champions League final at home to Ivory Coast star Didier Drogba-on They claimed more than two appointment, when we were the bet- down at Moenchengladbach in the Chelsea when they take on Borussia his last appearance in a Blues shirt dozen records, including most points ter team over the 90 minutes, games first ten minutes. Dortmund on Saturday at Wembley equalised from his team’s only corner (91), most wins (29 of 34 games), like that carve out exceptional people Likewise, two goals in the last 17 for the European title. This will be of the game on 88 minutes, then con- biggest goal difference (80+) and and that is what my players are.” minutes at home to Fortuna Bayern’s third European final in four verted the final penalty as the fewest goals conceded (18). Heynckes said losing a second Duesseldorf in March rescued a 3-2 years after the 2-0 defeat in 2010 to Londoners won the shoot-out 4-3 to They are bidding to become the consecutive Champions League final league victory. Midfield star Bastian Jose Mourinho’s Inter Milan in break Bayern’s hearts. first German team to win the treble of has not entered his head, while Schweinsteiger, who hit the post with Madrid, then the acute disappoint- “I experienced the 1999 final, European, league and cup crowns, Thomas Mueller said dealing with Bayern’s fifth and final penalty in the ment of losing last May’s penalty when we lost so dramatically to but insist the 2012 final disappoint- pressure is just part of being a Bayern 2012 final, said strength in depth is shoot-out in Munich. Manchester United in Barcelona,” said ment is just a distant memory. player. the key difference this time around. Ever since it was announced in Bayern chairman Karl-Heinz “This is an incredibly stable squad, “The pressure is always there at FC And should he be called up to take January 2010 that the 2012 final Rummenigge in the wake of the in its mentality and psychologically,” Bayern, regardless of which game, another penalty in a possible shoot- would be held at Bayern’s Allianz Chelsea defeat. said coach Jupp Heynckes, who will except maybe for our second-leg at out? “If the coach wants me to, I’ll Arena, the Bavarians had targeted “That was also unbelievably brutal, bow out to be replaced by Pep Barcelona,” he said after Bayern won take one,” said the 28-year-old, who lifting the cup ‘dahoam’-’at home’ in but I have the impression that this is Guardiola after the German Cup final the return semi-final 3-0 in Spain, Heynckes has described as the “best the local dialect. even more bitter, brutal and has on June 1 against VfB Stuttgart. “We after their 4-0 home leg victory. midfielder in the world”. “It’s always Having beaten Basel, Marseille and superseded that.” don’t let anything upset us and we “Last season, we seldom turned difficult talking about it and we want Real Madrid to reach the final, The Bavarians came back stronger, have a very clear goal to win the things around when we went behind, to decide the game over 90 minutes, Germany star Thomas Mueller gave adding centre-back Dante and striker European cup. Nothing will dissuade but on the few occasions it has hap- and carry out our plan as well as pos- the hosts an 83rd-minute lead, put- Mario Mandzukic to their squad, and us from that. pened this year we have reacted sible, but if it comes to it, I’m ting Bayern on course for their fifth brushed aside all-comers to win this “I have never experienced such a well.” Bayern showed their mettle last ready.”—AFP Guangzhou sink Mariners to reach Asia’s last eight

SINGAPORE: Chinese giants Guangzhou Evergrande marched into the AFC Champions League quarter-finals and underlined their strong title credentials with a con- vincing 3-0 win over Central Coast Mariners yesterday. Goals from Muriqui, Dario Conca and Gao Lin took Marcello Lippi’s team through with room to spare, as Japan’s Kashiwa Reysol also swept into the last eight with a 5-2 aggregate win over Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors. Guangzhou, 2-1 winners in last week’s first leg, are now into the quarters for the sec- ond straight year as they target China’s first Asian title since 1990. And they will remain one of the favourites after another impressive performance. The hosts had to wait only seven minutes to open their account, when Gao’s instinctive flick released Muriqui in the box and the prolific Brazilian rolled it past Mariners goalkeeper Mat Ryan for his eighth goal of the tournament. Argentine maestro Conca was causing havoc and after teasing the Mariners defence on the edge of the area, his pullback to Muriqui GUANGZHOU: China Guangzhou Evergrande’s Muriqui (right) tussles for the ball against Australia Central drew a clumsy challenge from Coast Mariners’ Trent Sainsbury during the AFC Champions League round of 16 match at the Tianhe Sport Bernie Ibini-Isei and a penalty. Center.—AFP Conca stepped up for the spot- kick, on the stroke of half-time, and had strayed offside. Japanese interest in the competi- utes after the break, and Kashiwa his left-footed strike curled low and Chances were at a premium for tion and with the loss of Jeonbuk, were all but there when Masato to the goalkeeper’s right to make it the visitors but substitute Oliver the only former winners still stand- Kudo fired in a low shot to make it 2-0 and effectively kill off the Bozanic blazed over and defender ing, it ensures the 10th different 3-1 on 69 minutes. Mariners’ hopes. Feng Xiaoting had to clear another champion in 11 editions of the Kevin Oris grabbed a late conso- With celebrations already under effort off the line. And in the dying Asian tournament. Kashiwa had lation for the visitors but Jeonbuk, way among the large and boister- seconds, Daniel McBreen’s header their hearts in their mouths when who were also runners-up to Al ous Tianhe stadium crowd, Ryan was flagged off for offside. defender Tatsuya Masushima put Sadd two years ago, finished the tie denied Muriqui and Gao early in the Earlier Kashiwa, with a 2-0 the ball in his own net on 22 min- well beaten. second half. And Gao’s efforts paid advantage from the first leg, came utes. But Hirofumi Watanabe con- Qatar’s Lekhwiya host Al Hilal off on 68 minutes when he was set back from a goal down to win 3-2 in nected with an inviting Jorge and Esteghlal are at home to Al up by Conca for Guangzhou’s well- the return game and eliminate 2006 Wagner cross to restore parity just Shabab Al Arabi in late yesterday’s taken third, despite the Mariners’ champions Jeonbuk Hyundai before half-time. remaining games, which will decide protests that the Chinese forward Motors. The result maintains Wagner was on target six min- the last two quarter-finalists.—AFP MUNICH: A picture dated November 19, 2011 shows Dortmund’s Brazilian defender Felipe Santana playing during the German First Division Bundesliga football match. —AFP Bundesliga CEO rips FIFA Dortmund’s path from over Qatar’s World Cup LONDON: The head of the Bundesliga ognizes it’s warm in the summer in cash-crisis to Wembley criticized FIFA yesterday for awarding Qatar. This is a great, great finding,” the 2022 World Cup to Qatar, saying said Seifert, who is also vice president BERLIN: Borussia Dortmund’s path from the finance package, it would have meant regis- the decision “is not for the good of the of the German Football Association. “I brink of bankruptcy in 2005 to Saturday’s tering for insolvency and amateur football. game.” am absolutely convinced that it is Champions League final against Bayern “The creditors were at our door and until Munich has been dubbed “Ground Zero to September 2006, we were under their gover- Bundesliga chief executive hard, if not impossible, to play a World Wembley” by CEO Hans-Joachim Watzke. nance. “If the financial crisis had hit Germany Christian Seifert, speaking in London Cup in the summer in Qatar. Last November, he announced that any earlier, rather than 2008, there would def- ahead of the all-German Champions “Maybe you can create an artificial Dortmund had posted a record net profit of initely not be professional football in League final between Bayern Munich second sky over the whole country or 34.3 million euros ($44.5 million) for the 2011- Dortmund.” and Borussia Dortmund, said staging over the stadia but what does that 12 season, when they won the league and The players had to take a 20 percent pay the tournament in the tiny desert mean for the people in the media who cup double. It is a far cry from March 2005 cut as shares in the club plummeted by 80 nation’s summer heat could endanger need to work there, what does that Manuel Pellegrini when, with debts of 120 million euros percent. With bankruptcy avoided, the club the health of players and fans. mean for the fans who are there?” (US$154m), Watzke came within days of slashed their budget, off loaded overpaid “The priority is always first the If the tournament was moved to declaring Borussia bankrupt which would players, signed young talent and adopted a Pellegrini to have seen them drop out of the Bundesliga new philosophy. “We would never again go health of the players and this is what the Gulf winter, it would likely be and into the obscurity of amateur football. into debt in the pursuit of sporting success, makes me most upset that the deci- played in January and February 2022 - Having won the 1997 Champions League now we only spend what we have earned,” sion was done that ignores probably splitting the Bundesliga season and leave Malaga title, the club had descended into heavy debt said Watzke. Borussia struggled for form in the health of the players and that impacting the start and finish dates of by signing big names for huge sums in a bid the years after their crisis with three different ignores what is real in the game,” leagues across Europe. “From other MADRID: Malaga coach Manuel Pellegrini has announced to stay near the top of German football. managers from December 2006 and May Seifert said. “If you make a decision leagues I do have the feeling they are that he will leave the La Liga side at the end of the season, a Borussia was floated on the Frankfurt 2008, when the club finished 13th in the which is so far away from the sports also very upset with the situation - club spokesman said yesterday. The Chilean has been linked with a move to Premier League Manchester City who are stock exchange in October 2000, but the cash league. Then Dortmund approached ambi- perspective if it turns out only to that the decision was done and that a poured out quicker than it flowed in, leading tious manager Jurgen Klopp, who had got looking for a manager after sacking Roberto Mancini. to dire financial straits. Mainz 05 promoted to the Bundesliga in 2004 become, let’s say, politically driven, four-week tournament effects maybe “Professionally, these are my final hours at Malaga,” When ex-president Dr Gerd Niebaum and kept them there for three seasons with a sports politics decision, then this is three years of running of professional Pellegrini said at an awards ceremony in the Costa del Sol resigned in October 2004, the club was debt limited squad, but a well-organised system. not good for the game ... I’m not sure football leagues in Europe,” Seifert city, according to local media. riddled, their Westfalenstadion had been sold As luck would have it, Klopp had been of the credibility of FIFA. Maybe first said. “It shows me which FIFA, as a “On Sunday, I will take charge of my last match at the and successor Reinhard Rauball faced an approached to coach Bayern Munich, but the they should change the claim - body which says what’s good for the Rosaleda. Everyone has the right to follow their own path. I unenviable task. “I had never taken on such a Bavarians opted for another Jurgen-ex- because this (Qatar) is not for the game, ignores completely the day-by- am not leaving because of financial ambition, but because responsibility in my entire life,” said the Germany coach Klinsmann-and Dortmund of a sporting project that will allow me to feel fulfilled.” good of the game.” day basis in those leagues who are He gave no further details about his future. Malaga are trained lawyer, who had twice bailed out got their man. FIFA President Sepp Blatter has effectively the core and the heart of Borussia in the 1970s and 80s. The 45-year-old’s first few campaigns were sixth in La Liga and host Deportivo La Coruna on Sunday as “When I had previously helped save the encouraging: a sixth-placed finish in his first stopped short of advocating a winter football - not the tournament that they chase a place in the Europa League next season, club, the situation hadn’t been easy, but the season, fifth in his second, then the first of World Cup, despite saying last week comes up every four years.” Moving though they would not be able to take it up unless a UEFA sums involved meant we could find a solu- back-to-back league titles in 2010-2011. that it is “not rational and reasonable” the dates to winter could also spark ban, imposed because of delays in payments to creditors, is tion. “This was a whole new experience given “When I arrived here, I thought, naively, to play in the summer heat. calls for a re-vote, according to Seifert. overturned. Their final game of the season is at Barcelona the huge sums involved.” Watzke also has that I could go shopping with a big bag of Air-conditioned stadiums to beat “I am absolutely sure if countries like on June 1. “It’s going to be very emotional and we hope to clear memories of the days around March 14 money and pick players. Then I heard about leave the club with a place in European competition,” the the 50-degree C (122-degree F) heat England see a chance of a re-vote 59-year-old Pellegrini added. “The agreement with the club 2005 when they had to persuade Borussia’s the budget,” admitted Klopp. were a defining theme of Qatar’s bid, they will force a re-vote,” he said. The has been gratifying and satisfactory.” 5,800 shareholders, numerous banks and the “There was little money, but a great tradi- but the cooling technology is for the English Premier League shares some The former Villarreal boss, who joined Malaga after German Football League (DFL) that the club tion and high expectations. “There were two venues. of Seifert’s concerns about a winter being sacked by Real Madrid in 2010, led the Qatar-owned had a financial future. “It was pure chaos and options: take credit, but there was none to be Since the vote in 2010, which gave tournament. club to the Champions League quarter-finals in their anarchy, it doesn’t get tighter than it did eight had, so we had to rely on young players. debut season, where they lost to finalists Borussia years ago,” said Watzke of his first days as CEO “Some of these boys were playing in the the tournament to Qatar ahead of “We think moving the World Cup to rival bids from Australia, Japan, South winter is fraught with difficulties and Dortmund. Known as ‘The Engineer’, Pellegrini has had a in February 2005. Bundesliga at 19, it’s nice to see how they strained relationship with the club and its owners over “Within two days of me taking over, we have developed and realised their potential. Korea and the United States, FIFA offi- not workable or desirable from a their long-term commitment to the project. After an ini- had to notify the stock market of our situa- “This final is a milestone, but no one has cials have publicly expressed concern European football perspective,” tial investment in playing staff when they took over in tion, or broken the law for delayed filling of the feeling that the journey is over. “Even if about the heat. Premier League spokesman Dan 2010, the owners have sold some of their best assets insolvency. we win the final, we will stay tuned and then “We are really happy that FIFA rec- Johnson said.—AP including Santi Cazorla and Nacho Monreal to Arsenal, “Then if we hadn’t got a signature on a try to give rise to specific football.”—AFP and Salomon Rondon to Rubin Kazan. —Reuters Sreesanth denies Guangzhou sink spot-fixing Mariners to reach Asia’s last eight

THURSDAY, MAY 23, 2013 17 19 Bundesliga CEO rips FIFA over Qatar’s World Cup Page 19

SAN ANTONIO: Tim Duncan No. 21 of the San Antonio Spurs drives for a shot attempt against the Memphis Grizzlies during Game Two of the Western Conference Finals of the 2013 NBA Playoffs at AT&T Center. — AFP Spurs blow lead, beat Grizzlies in OT

SAN ANTONIO: San Antonio bounced back after squan- a jumper and Parker missed one of two free throws with 15-2 run over the final 8 minutes of regulation to tie it 85- tion, as they continue to rebuild a franchise reeling from dering a 13-point lead in the fourth quarter and beat the 14.6 seconds left, but Bayless’ 3-pointer from the left wing 85 on Conley’s runner in the lane with 18.2 seconds to play. the loss of LeBron James following the 2009-10 campaign. Memphis Grizzlies 93-89 in overtime on Tuesday, taking a was off-target. The Grizzlies got the chance to pull even after Manu “It’s huge for us,” Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert told 2-0 lead in the NBA Western Conference finals. Bayless and Mike Conley each had 18 points to lead Ginobili was called for a flagrant foul for pulling down Tony reporters. “This is our third year in a row in the lottery. Tony Parker had 15 points and a career playoff-high 18 Memphis, which has fallen behind in all three series of this Allen on a fast-break layup try. Hopefully it’s our last for a long, long time.” assists while Tim Duncan scored San Antonio’s first six postseason, including rallying from an 0-2 deficit to beat Allen hit both free throws and Memphis got possession, Cleveland selected Kyrie Irving with the number one points of overtime. the Los Angeles Clippers. Game 3 is Saturday in Memphis. setting up Conley’s tying basket at the end of a string of selection in 2011 and the guard has blossomed from a “I hate that we gave up that big of a lead in that situa- “We’re in the same boat we were when we left L.A. We’re seven straight Grizzlies points. But Memphis, which trailed Rookie of the Year into an All Star. tion,” Duncan said. “But we were resilient enough to go to down 0-2. We’ve got to go home and take care of business by as much as 18 in the second half, could never pull The Cavaliers were still unable to avoid finishing near overtime and not let it affect us.” at home,” coach Lionel Hollins said. “It’s not going to be ahead. the bottom of the Eastern Conference this past season, Duncan opened the extra period with a layup, then easy, but that’s where we are.” Duncan had 17 points and Meanwhile, the Cleveland Cavaliers won the NBA Draft however, though they are on the verge of receiving major made a tiebreaking putback on Parker’s missed jumper nine rebounds, missing most of the second half with foul Lottery and the top overall pick for the second time in help. Following the Cavaliers and Magic, the Washington before making a runner that bounced high of the back iron trouble before coming up with the key baskets in over- three years on Tuesday. Wizards will pick third. Charlotte, Phoenix, New Orleans and rattled in for a 91-87 lead with 1:08 to play. time. The Cavaliers were able to edge out the Orlando Magic, and Sacramento will get picks 4-7. The 2013 Draft is set for The Grizzlies had a chance to tie after Jerryd Bayless hit Memphis stormed back from a 13-point deficit with a who had the highest probability of winning the top selec- June 27 in New York. — Agencies Rogge cites need Visconti wins Giro stage

VICENZA: Italian Giovanni Visconti soloed to victory in the 17th for targeted tests stage of the Giro d’Italia yesterday to hand his Movistar team their fourth win of the race. LONDON: Olympic officials agree that more cized the federations. The meeting was Overall race leader Vincenzo Nibali (Astana) retained the targeted, out-of-competition testing in requested by the summer sports federa- pink jersey with a 1min 26sec lead on Australian rival Cadel high-profile sports is needed to catch the tions in February following public spats Evans (BMC) intact after the 214 km ride from Caravaggio to drug cheats who are escaping the net, IOC between WADA and the International Vicenza. Nibali won the Tour of Spain in 2010, was a runner-up President Jacques Rogge said yesterday. Cycling Union over the Lance Armstrong on the Giro in 2011 and also finished third at last year’s Tour de Rogge told The Associated Press that doping case. France. sports leaders who attended a summit at “It was the opportunity for the members Despite having the chance to take a step closer to his first IOC headquarters in Switzerland concluded of the stakeholders - the NOCs, the IFs, the ‘maglia rosa’ (pink jersey) on Thursday’s 18th stage, an uphill that better testing - rather than more tests - athletes commissions - to vent their ideas time trial over 20.6 km, the Italian refused to rule out the threat is the best way forward in the anti-doping and their feelings,” Rogge said. “We decided of 2011 Tour de France champion Evans. fight. Drug-testing strategies and the role of not to make a press release because these “I’ve always done well on mountain time trials,” said the the World Anti-Doping Agency were dis- were informal discussions without an offi- Italian. But he said he would still remain cautious of Evans in the cussed at a meeting of Olympic leaders cial point of view. “It was a very good event if he stretched his lead over the Australian to two minutes Tuesday in Lausanne. atmosphere. People could express their ahead of two key stages in the high mountains. While the IOC declined to release details views. I definitely think it will lead to very “Two minutes would be a good lead. But I don’t want to on Tuesday, Rogge said in an interview that good collaboration with WADA.” Pat make any predictions,” added Nibali. “Evans has always been up all sides agreed on the need for greater McQuaid, president of cycling’s governing at the front of the race and he’s pedalling very well.” unannounced out-of-competition testing. body, and predecessor Hein Verbruggen Visconti, meanwhile, showed his tactical nous and physical “There should be more targeted testing attended. No WADA representative was prowess for the second time in less than a week after a timely with athletes that might be considered as invited. WADA was set up by the IOC in 1999 attack 17km from the finish brought him his second win follow- being suspicious,” he said by telephone. to lead the global anti-doping fight. The IOC ing his stage 15 triumph on the legendary French Alpine climb “Top sports should be targeted more than and Olympic movement provide 50 percent of the Galibier. As the sprinters, including Britain’s Mark others because of the effect of doping on of WADA’s annual budget. Cavendish, began struggling to keep pace on the Crosara climb, their performances, and the prevalence of WADA is due to elect a new president in Visconti made his move, attacking from the main peloton and doping. All of that was discussed and defi- November, replacing former Australian gov- catching, then overtaking, leading pair Danilo Di Luca (Vini nitely will lead to an implementation.” ernment minister John Fahey. The new pres- Fantini) and Miguel Rubiano (Androni). IOC officials have expressed concern ident will be nominated from the Olympic Rubiano tried to follow, but Visconti upped the pace after cresting the climb he quickly went on to build a 30-sec lead that, despite the large number of tests car- movement. which proved decisive. ried around the world, the system is failing “We are defining the wish list of the “I knew Di Luca would be hard to shake off if he came with to catch serious doping offenders. sports movement toward the fight against me, that’s why I gave it full gas on the descent and in the clos- “Quantitatively, there was no call to do doping that we are going to give to the new ing kilometres,” said Visconti, a three-time national champion. more testing because there is already leadership in November,” Rogge said. Visconti survived a late scare when he entered a sharp left- 250,000 tests a year,” Rogge said. “But quali- Last week, former WADA president Dick hander too fast and narrowly avoided a spill in the final kilome- tatively, (there was a call) to make better use Pound submitted a report to the agency tre. The race was marked by the huge number of roadside fans, of this testing, do more out of competition detailing the ineffectiveness of the current and Visconti-who late last year served a three-month ban for and definitely more targeting, both of the drug-testing system. working with banned sports doctor Michele Ferrari-said: “With athletes and the sports.” Despite increased testing and scientific 200m to go on that last corner I couldn’t believe how many Rogge chaired Tuesday’s meeting, which advances to detect more sophisticated sub- people were there. “I was already starting to think about my win was attended by the four vice presidents of stances, Pound said drug cheats are getting and about how my picture would be in the newspapers tomor- the IOC and leaders of international sports away scot-free because of a lack of will row.” Ramunas Navardauskas was next over the finish line 19sec federations, national Olympic committees among sports organizations, governments later, the Lithuanian, who rides for Garmin, raising his hands in and other key groups. and athletes. The report cited statistics the air in the mistaken belief he had won the stage. The main topic was the role of WADA, showing that, of 250,000 drug tests per year, It is the second such occurence in the race. On stage nine which some sports bodies complain has less than 1 percent produce positive find- ITALY: Italy’s Giovanni Visconti celebrates as he crosses the finish line to win the 17th Colombian Carlos Betancur raised his arms in triumph shortly gone beyond its mandate and unfairly criti- ings for serious doping substances. — AP stage of the Giro d’Italia, Tour of Italy cycling race. — AP after Russian Maxim Belkov had claimed the honours. — AFP IMF’s chief to be quizzed in French arbitration case Page 24

Japan posts worst Business April trade deficit Page 25 THURSDAY, MAY 23, 2013

Explore Ethiopia - Is Sony un-Japanese enough to entertain change? ‘tourist paradise’ Page 22 Page 23

DUBAI: An ariel view shows part of Dubai’s Marina. The economy of Dubai maintains recovery pace, with grandiose projects making a comeback. — AFP Oil savings win-win drives Saudi solar boom Solar could cost much less than half oil fired power

DUBAI: A slide in solar power costs and a surge in oil prices over European Photovoltaic Industry Association. Dim growth in debt- gas forces it to burn up to 800,000 barrels a day of oil in summer, the last few years has made solar power a win-win strategy for ridden Europe, combined with a trade spat that could limit EU solar remains attractive even at well below $100. “Falling oil Saudi Arabia: saving billions of dollars of crude for export while panel sales to China, means the Saudi programme is a vital prices reduce the incentive, but don’t kill it until oil hits $50/bar- News making electricity at less than half the cost. Riyadh plans to install potential export market - and the economics should now guar- rel,” Parker said. According to a study by European engineering in brief 41,000 megawatts (MW) of solar power over the next 20 years, antee that it takes off. giant ABB, Saudi oil fired power plants have an average efficiency but to date has built only 12 MW - or less than even Britain Solar panel prices have fallen more than 80 percent over the rate of less than 30 percent. If valuing Saudi oil fed into these installed in early May. Despite year round sunshine, the oil and last five years, because of global over-supply and lower demand plants at international market prices of around $100, oil fired Oman Air orders 3 gas rich countries of the Gulf have lagged far behind most of the in Europe, while average annual Brent crude prices have risen by power costs Saudi Arabia far more, around 26 cents/KWh A330-300 aircraft world in solar power - so far. Saudi energy officials have talked of a third, making the sun a very cheap source of electricity for a because its inefficient plants get less power from each barrel they PARIS: Oman Air has placed an order for three long-haul becoming major solar players for years, but while China built country that currently burns oil which it could export for over burn, Robin Mills, chief analyst at Manaar Energy Consulting, said. Airbus airliners, the European aerospace giant said yester- 5,000 MW in 2012 alone, Saudi solar capacity is still insignificant. $100 a barrel. After years if stalling on solar, Saudi authorities now At a capital cost of $2/W for utility-scale projects, solar could day. The order of the three A330-300 aircraft has a total That is set to change, with an economic argument too strong appear to be moving quickly to capitalize on the slump in costs, produce electricity at around 12.6 cents/KWh, Mills said in a study catalogue value of $718.2 million (555 million euros). The to ignore. “Saudi Arabia is determined to diversify its energy with contracts for the first round of 500-800 MW of solar power for the Emirates Solar Industry Association published in early aircraft, each with a capacity of nearly 300 passengers, sources and reduce its dependence on hydrocarbons,” said Wail expected before the end of 2013 and a target of over 5,000 MW 2012. Costs have continued to fall since then, dragging solar will be used by Oman Air on long-haul routes, Airbus said. Bamhair, the project manager for the Saudi team that visited the installed in the next five years. costs down to 9.9 cents/KWh when capital costs for large scale The timetable for delivery was not divulged. The order US Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy “Solar in the Middle East is not being prompted today based projects are around $1.50/W, he said. Saudi Arabia’s light crude will bring Oman Air’s A330 fleet to 10 planes. The chief Laboratory (NREL) last week. “Renewable energy isn’t just an on environmental or reputational concerns. It is simple econom- has been sold at an average of more than $108/barrel since the executive of Oman Air, Wayne Pearce, said in the state- option, but absolutely necessary. We have the means to build ics,” Michael Parker, an energy analyst at Bernstein Research said start of 2013, according to Reuters calculations, making solar ment the airline considered its fleet of A330s an essential renewable energy, and we need to do it,” he said in a statement in a May 10 note. According to a Reuters study of average selling power even more attractive by saving millions of barrels a week factor for providing efficient and technically reliable oper- published on the NREL website during the Saudi delegation’s vis- prices reported by four of the top-10 manufacturers, silicon- from power plant furnaces. ations and in terms of passenger comfort. Airbus said that it on May 13. based modules have fallen from around $3.5-$4.5 per watt (W) in Bloomberg New Energy Finance agrees that utility scale solar it had so far won 1,200 orders and delivered 900 of its Five years ago, high costs made harnessing the sun’s rays an 2008 to less than $0.8/W last year. Bernstein estimates Saudi oil photovoltaics costs are likely to average around $1.52/W globally A330 series aircraft in various configurations to more than uneconomic way to make electricity and development was driv- fired power costs at about 16 US cents/KWh, based on a modern this year. At that installation cost, solar power offers Saudi Arabia 100 customers across the world. en mostly by environmental concerns of European politicians. power station with an efficiency of around 37 percent, compared an internal rate of return (IRR) on its investment of nearly 22 per- South Africa inflation Thanks largely to multi-billion dollar subsidies, Europe had 70,000 to less than 9 cents/KWh for solar, assuming an installation cost of cent at $108/barrel. Even a drop in oil prices to $94 would still stuck at 5.9 percent MW of solar photovoltaic installed by the end of 2012, compared $1/W. Solar power is still economically unattractive in a US mar- give an IRR of over 20 percent, Logan Goldie-Scot, lead Middle JOHANNESBURG: South African inflation remained to a global total of 102,000 MW, according to data from the ket awash with cheap natural gas. In Saudi Arabia, where a lack of East analyst at Bloomberg New Energy Finance said.—Reuters unchanged at 5.9 percent in April, official data showed yesterday, on the eve of a central bank decision on inter- est rates. The consumer price index remained perilously Millions fall into poverty high for the third month in a row, Statistics South Africa said. At 5.9 percent, year-on-year inflation is at the upper limit of the South African Reserve Bank’s target band, lim- iting the bank’s ability to boost the economy though in recession-racked Italy interest rate cuts. A rate cut could boost economic growth, but may push inflation even higher. Most econo- ROME: Millions of Italians cannot afford to heat their homes people, or a quarter of Italy’s 61 million population, are living in mists expected the reserve bank to keep rates on hold. properly or eat meat as their country is racked by recession families that meet three of more of ISTAT’s poverty indicators. Nedbank analysts said increase in inflation was higher and soaring unemployment, said a report which found the Just 57.6 percent of young people who graduated within than 5.7 percent the market expected. Warning against number of people considered seriously deprived had doubled the last three years are in employment, well below a European stagflation-high inflation coupled with low growth-the in the past two years. The findings from national statistics insti- average of 77.2 percent, the data showed. Italians’ purchasing bank foresaw inflation to breach six percent later this tute ISTAT underline the scale of the challenge faced by the power fell by 4.8 percent last year, an “exceptionally steep” year. new coalition government of Enrico Letta, which has vowed to decline caused largely by aggressive tax hikes aimed at Wealth fund trio to stimulate growth and tackle a youth jobless rate of almost 40 strengthening public finances, following four years of smaller invest $500 m each percent. falls, ISTAT said. A traditionally high savings rate in Italy has LONDON: Russia’s second-largest bank VTB expects to A recession that has lasted almost two years has taken a dwindled steadily and is now far below those of France and close its $3.3 billion offering of new shares by the end of heavy toll on ordinary Italians who are increasingly digging Germany, with the situation becoming particularly acute in the the week, with three sovereign wealth funds investing into their savings, ISTAT said in its annual report. Italy has the poor south, the report said. about $500 million each, Chief Executive Andrei Kostin highest level in Europe of young people who are neither in Italy’s new government, already sinking in opinion polls said. Azerbaijan’s state oil fund SOFAZ, Norges Bank education nor employment, at 23.9 percent, the study showed. and riven by internal disputes yesterday laid out its plans to Investment Management and Qatar Holding are buying In Italy’s impoverished south, one in three people aged 15-29 address one of the main causes of public anger - soaring more than 50 percent of the offering of 2.5 trillion VTB fell into this group. unemployment among young people. But the left-right coali- shares on the Moscow stock market at 4.1 kopecks each. The number of people living in families considered to be tion’s room for maneuver even to address this pressing prob- Kostin told Reuters in an interview that the anchor seriously deprived has doubled in the past two years to 8.6 mil- lem is restricted by Europe’s second-biggest debt, the longest investors were each taking “more or less similar” stakes of lion, or about 14 percent of the population, ISTAT said. Families recession in at least four decades, and a long list of campaign about $500 million - “the kind of ticket we are thinking who meet more than four of nine poverty indicators are con- promises. of”. VTB is offering shares at a discount to its 2007 initial sidered seriously deprived. These include not being able to The coalition between Prime Minister Enrico Letta’s centre- public offering and 2011 secondary offering, when the heat their home adequately, which affected one in five people left Democratic Party (PD) and Silvio Berlusconi’s centre-right bank sold shares at 13.6 kopecks and 9.15 kopecks in 2012 according to the report, twice as many as in 2010. People of Liberty (PDL) was formed only last month but has respectively. The share issue will bolster VTB’s Tier 1 capi- The percentage of people in families who could not afford already run into trouble. Berlusconi is besieged by court cases, tal ratio to 11.9 percent from 10.3 percent at Dec 31, to eat a protein-based meal such as meat every two days rose Letta’s own party is badly split over whether it should even be in helping it meet loan growth targets. The new Tier 1 capi- DUBAI: Window cleaners on zip lines are seen as they to 16.6 percent in 2012 from 12.4 the previous year and 6.7 an alliance with the scandal-plagued media magnate, and the tal ratio - a key measure of a bank’s ability to absorb loss- clean the glass of pedestrian passage next to Burj Khalifa. percent in 2010. More than 50 percent were unable to afford two factions bicker openly on a daily basis. The government’s es - will be higher than No 1 Russian lender Sberbank’s Burj Khalifa is the tallest man-made structure in the world, one week of holiday away from home last year, ISTAT said, with approval rating fell last week to 34 percent from 43 percent just 10.4 percent at Dec 31. at 829.8 m (2,722 ft). — AFP the figure rising to 69 percent in the south. About 14.9 million two weeks earlier, according to an SWG poll. —Agencies THURSDAY, MAY 23, 2013 BUSINESS

Is Sony un-Japanese enough to entertain change?

TOKYO: Few foreign activist investors to Loeb’s proposals when the CEO gives deflation-snarled Japan. “Westernized companies are in the minori- big-name companies where their atten- have made much headway in forcing an update on his revival strategy - with a Sony also stands out among its ty among large caps, for sure. Boards tend tions would be welcome. “When I look at change in Japan, where a conservative focus to date on growing sales of smart- Japanese peers by having less of its stock to focus on stakeholder management at Japan, I struggle to find large caps with corporate culture favors long-standing phones, digital cameras and PlayStation held by conservative banks and insurance the expense of shareholder value,” said attractive business models,” he said, ties with banks, business partners and game consoles - at a press briefing. companies. Prior to Third Point’s arrival, Oscar Veldhuijzen, a London-based fund though he noted that Central Japan workers rather than shareholders seeking Sony’s top 20 shareholders held around 13 manager at The Children’s Investment Railway Co, which operates the country’s value. Struggling electronics giant Sony DIFFERENT MIX percent of its shares, with Japan’s big Fund Management (UK) LLP. “The back- most lucrative bullet train lines, could be a Corp, though, with more foreign and few- Sony’s share registry could work in banks accounting for about half of that. At ground of activism is very negative as it “phenomenal” company if management er bank shareholders, may prove some- Loeb’s favor. The $21.2 billion electronics Panasonic, with an ownership structure used to be a sort of Mafioso involved with could be persuaded to raise prices and thing of an exception. That’s the hope, at a very different type of activism involving ditch plans to spend $50 billion on a high- least, of Californian billionaire Daniel Loeb, a lot of violence.” speed magnetic levitation rail line from whose Third Point hedge fund has built up A preoccupation by Japanese compa- Tokyo to Osaka in western Japan. To tap a more than 6 percent stake in Sony, mak- nies in the 1980s and 1990s to keep into the ‘Abenomics’ effect, Veldhuijzen ing it the group’s biggest stockholder. shareholder meetings benign created a said his fund recently raised its stake in Loeb wants CEO Kazuo Hirai to sell as niche for sokaiya - gangsters who extort- Japan Tobacco - which now accounts for much as a fifth of the group’s money-mak- ed money by threatening to disrupt care- 15 percent of the fund - hoping a return to ing entertainment arm - movies, TV and fully orchestrated annual meetings. inflation will push up cigarette prices, music - to free up cash to revive an elec- Veldhuijzen can boast a rare success for which at around $4 a pack are far cheaper tronics business that has been battered by foreign activist shareholders. Rebuffed in than in other developed markets. competition from Apple Inc and Samsung a 2007 bid to raise dividend payouts at Josh Schechter is another investor who Electronics. He reckons the shake-up Japan’s Electrical Power Development Co, has succeeded where others have failed in could increase Sony’s market value by 60 or J-Power, The Children’s Investment Japan. Schechter is a partner at activist percent. The target and timing of his polite Fund Management bought a stake in for- fund Steel Partners Holdings, which forced hand-delivered overture are not acciden- mer state-run monopoly Japan Tobacco the removal in 2008 of management at tal. in 2011, and called for higher dividends, Japanese wig maker Aderans Co. A year Sony earns two-thirds of its revenue management changes and a share buy- later Steel Partners wrested control of the overseas and, for corporate Japan, appears back. board, and still owns 28 percent of the more westernized. Hirai, who spent most At the time, the government was look- company. “It’s important you have a credi- of his childhood in the United States, was ing for cash to help the reconstruction ble plan,” said Schechter, who sits on the picked by former CEO Howard Stringer, a effort after the devastation of the March Aderans board. He said his fund aligned Welshman, in part for his ability to be both 2011 earthquake and tsunami. It agreed itself with local shareholders unhappy a Japanese boss in Sony’s domestic elec- TOKYO: Sony President and CEO Kazuo Hirai speaks during a press confer- to increased dividends and this year sold a with the board and with managers wary tronics hub and a western CEO in the US- third of its stake in Japan Tobacco for more of where the company was heading. centered entertainment business. Also, ence at the Sony Corp headquarters in Tokyo yesterday. Hirai said the com- than $10 billion. At the same time, Japan The fund, though, could not repeat its investors are clamoring to get back into pany’s board will discuss a proposal by US hedge fund manager Daniel Tobacco bought back stock worth more success in 2010, failing to place its candi- the world’s third-biggest economy where Loeb to spin off up to 20 percent of its movie, TV and music division.—AP than $2 billion. “They needed the money dates on the board of brewer Sapporo Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s promise of and the popularity of the government was Holdings. It later sold its 18 percent stake deflation-busting policies has triggered a group has a large pool of foreign share- similar to most Japanese blue chips, banks very low. It was a very unique activist situ- in the company. Schechter declined to say share bonanza. holders, who could be more easily tempt- and insurers hold more than half of the 22 ation in that respect,” said Veldhuijzen, whether his fund would chase new “He (Hirai) is very accessible to a west- ed by the lure of a near-term valuation percent owned by the top 20 investors. who says his fund’s return on its Japan Japanese targets in the current climate, ern person,” Loeb told Reuters in Tokyo the gain. Before Third Point amassed its stake, Tobacco stake is “close to half a billion dol- but noted Japan could spur investors if it day after announcing that his hedge fund 35 percent of Sony stock was held over- RARE SUCCESS lars.” tweaked its tax code to let companies turn had built up a $1.1 billion stake in Sony. seas, compared with 22 percent at rival While driving change in Japan can be business units into separate entities and “And we wouldn’t be here if we didn’t Panasonic Corp. Sony’s foreign ownership tough - foreign activist investors are often ABE MAGNET offer their shares to existing stockholders think there was a tailwind from the eco- peaked at 53 percent six years ago, but stigmatized as asset stripping sharks - Veldhuijzen said ‘Abenomics’ could free of a capital gains levy - the type of nomic policies in Japan.” Sony sharehold- has been whittled down as the group’s Loeb may be in the vanguard of a new spur foreign activists to seek out Japanese corporate rejigging at the core of Loeb’s ers will be able to gauge Hirai’s response losses ballooned and investors exited wave of activism attracted by ‘Abenomics’. targets, though he warned there are few proposal for Sony. —Reuters Rating firms sow doubt on euro-zone bond rally Africa lures Gulf Euro-zone ratings ‘still at risk’ bond investors

LONDON: Credit rating firms say they Analysts say the recent market moves The downgrade did not cause forced DUBAI: The lure of sub-saharan Africa, with its looking for new investment opportunities to international debt sale, with a coupon of 6.625 could further downgrade the ratings of have been because plentiful liquidity pro- selling of Slovenian bonds as they are not geographic proximity and promise of higher diversify risk, and invest in higher-yield oppor- percent, partly to fund infrastructure projects. highly indebted euro zone countries, put- vided by the ECB and other major central part of major bond indexes, but a similar returns, is tempting cash-rich Gulf Arab bond tunities,” said Dilawer Farazi, portfolio manager ting their bonds at risk of being pitched out banks has outweighed unfavorable funda- move on larger countries is likely to be investors to look south, a marked departure at UAE-based asset manager InvestAD. The FIRST-TIME ISSUERS of global indexes and reversing a fall in mental factors such as the fact that most more damaging. Rated only one notch from the relative comfort and familiarity of the company launched a fixed income fund in Though still a nascent market, new US dol- their borrowing costs. The view from the euro zone economies continue to contract, above junk by Moody’s and Standard & Middle East. Gulf investment in Africa is not a November to focus on Africa as well as the lar issuance from sub-Saharan Africa is likely to rating firms contrasts with the sanguine while annual budget deficits and public Poor’s, Spain is most at risk of forced selling, new trend, with numerous examples of strate- Middle East. Along with Morocco’s increase in 2013 from just under $10 billion last attitude of investors who, flush with central debt levels remain stubbornly high. Ratings since some institutional investors only hold gic as well as opportunistic forays into the con- Attijariwafabank, it also said it would launch a year. Kenya, Angola and Cameroon could be bank cash and reassured by the European agencies warn that may change. “The cur- investment grade bonds or constituents of tinent in sectors such as telecommunications, fund to invest in African-listed equities. among first-time sovereign issuers over the Central Bank’s promise to take whatever rent favorable market environment is not investment-grade bond indexes. “They agriculture, and healthcare, through mergers Yields on emerging market bonds have next couple of years, according to the IMF. measures are necessary to safeguard the something that Moody’s is sure will be sus- were not at all shy of junking Slovenia, and and acquisitions, private equity deals and for- slumped to historic lows this year as global “Demand for African fixed income assets is common currency, have been buying low- tained,” Alastair Wilson, chief EMEA credit this could change market perception of eign direct investment. investors have scrambled to put excess liquidi- growing, and Middle East investors are becom- er-rated bonds because of the higher policy for the agency said. “The longer the how high the bar is to junk Spain,” said Although timely and complete data on ty to use. With safe-haven assets such as US ing more active in buying sub-Saharan Africa returns or ‘yields’ they earn on them. underlying problems - growth, debt, insti- David Schnautz, rate strategist at Gulf investment in Africa is not available, ana- treasuries offering low single-digit returns, bonds,” said Rupesh Hindocha, head of credit On the face of it, conditions for sover- tutions - remain unaddressed, the greater Commerzbank in New York. lysts say it broadly follows increases in annual investment into riskier bonds in “frontier mar- trading for Middle East and North Africa at eign borrowers in the euro zone are the potential for further shocks.” Data on how many funds are tracking trade between the Middle East and Africa, kets” has risen. Last year, African bonds deliv- Standard Chartered Bank in Dubai. improving. Ireland and Portugal - whose Rating firms have a track record of mak- the bond indexes Spain is part of is not which has grown fivefold to $49 billion over ered returns of almost 20 percent according to “For Middle East investors, the historical bonds are already rated as ‘junk’, or below ing decisions that at times contrast with the readily available. An exclusion from all the past decade, according to Standard the JP Morgan Emerging Markets Bond Index. trade links, for example with East Africa, plus a investment grade - are gradually emerging market sentiment. In the past year, Moody’s indexes could cause 30-40 billion euros of Chartered Bank. Deploying cash into the conti- Although yields on African bonds have also strong commodities play on many potential from international bailout programs and reaffirmed a negative outlook for the rat- selling - 5-6 percent of outstanding central nent’s debt markets, though, would signal a tightened, they are still higher than other mar- African issuers, make sense.” Hindocha said returning to bond markets for their borrow- ings of Ireland, Portugal and Italy, Fitch government debt, JPMorgan estimates. new form of investment, supported by kets. Farazi said that many African issuers tend regional accounts, particularly asset managers, ing needs, while yields on benchmark downgraded Italy, while Standard & Poor’s Analysts say domestic banks and foreign increased US dollar-denominated issuance to be lower rated than issuers in the Middle have been more “active” in trading African bonds issued by Spain and Italy, two other stripped France of its AAA rating. The most hedge funds - using the cheap cash avail- from Africa to help fund massive development East and hence the yield pickup, but if investors bonds in recent months but did not wish to countries that have felt the heat of the cri- recent example was last month’s down- able - are likely to step in and buy the and infrastructure needs. are comfortable with the credit story and the give any quantitative volume data. Recent new sis, have fallen to around 2-1/2 year lows grade of Slovenia by Moody’s, just before bonds that institutional investors sell, but “The increased issuance from African risk, Africa throws up some good opportuni- issues out of Africa had attracted interest from after hitting unsustainable peaks above 7 the country avoided a bailout by selling they would demand more of a premium to names in hard currency has started to attract ties. In April, Rwanda, ravaged by genocide 19 the Middle East on the secondary market, he percent at crisis points last year or the year $3.5 billion of bonds in a sale that attracted hold Spanish bonds over safe-haven regional (Middle Eastern) investors who are years ago, sold a$400 million bond, its first said. —Reuters before. plentiful buyers. German bonds. —Reuters EXCHANGE RATES

Commercial Bank of Kuwait Thai Baht 9.651 Omani Riyal 744.82 748.000 Guinea Franc 0.0000445 0.0000505 Malaysian ringgit 94.221 Qatari Riyal 79.09 79.500 Hg Kong Dollar 0.0344062 0.0375062 Irani Riyal 0.271 Saudi Riyal 76.50 77.000 Indian Rupee 0.0051116 0.0051756 US Dollar/KD .2770000 .2880000 Irani Riyal 0.273 Indonesian Rupiah 0.0000244 0.0000295 GB Pound/KD .4310000 .4470000 Dollarco Exchange Co. Ltd Jamaican Dollars 0.0028682 0.0038682 Euro .3680000 .3760000 GCC COUNTRIES Japanese Yen 0.0027159 0.0028959 Swiss francs .3020000 .3170000 Saudi Riyal 76.564 Rate for Transfer Selling Rate Kenyan Shilling 0.0033694 0.0035994 Canadian Dollar .2780000 .2920000 Qatari Riyal 78.890 Rate for Transfer Selling Rate Malaysian Ringgit 0.0901163 0.0971163 Australian DLR .2940000 .3020000 Omani Riyal 745.750 US Dollar 286.750 Nepalese Rupee 0.0030839 0.0032839 Indian rupees .0040000 .0069000 Bahraini Dinar 762.590 Canadian Dollar 282.465 Pakistan Rupee 0.0028840 0.0029240 Sri Lanka Rupee .0020000 .0035000 UAE Dirham 78.180 Sterling Pound 436.890 Philippine Peso 0.0065058 0.0069758 UAE dirhams .0771240 .0778990 Euro 370.980 Sierra Leone 0.0000733 0.0000763 Bahraini dinars .7513970 .7589480 ARAB COUNTRIES Swiss Frank 295.860 Singapore Dollar 0.2239459 0.2299459 Jordanian dinar .3930000 .4110000 Egyptian Pound - Cash 40.300 Bahrain Dinar 759.185 Sri Lankan Rupee 0.0022295 0.0022715 Saudi riyals .0720000 .0770000 Egyptian Pound - Transfer 40.448 UAE Dirhams 78.050 Thai Baht 0.0092397 0.0098397 Yemen Riyal/for 1000 1.339 Arab Omani riyals .7366120 .7440150 Qatari Riyals 78.710 Tunisian Dinar 175.000 Bahraini Dinar 0.7543157 0.7628157 Egyptian pounds .0370000 .0440000 Saudi Riyals 76.430 Jordanian Dinar 405.450 Jordanian Dinar 404.225 Egyptian Pound 0.0384236 0.0404536 Lebanese Lira/for 1000 1.926 Egyptian Pound 40.419 Ethiopeanbirr 0.0129449 0.0194449 CUSTOMER TRANSFER RATES Syrian Lier 3.119 Ghanaian Cedi 0.1458305 0.1476205 US Dollar/KD .2841000 .2862000 Sri Lankan Rupees 2.269 Morocco Dirham 33.924 Indian Rupees 5.174 Iranian Riyal 0.0000798 0.0000803 GB Pound/KD .4338920 .4370990 Iraqi Dinar 0.0001762 0.0002362 Euro .3707360 .3734770 Pakistani Rupees 2.908 EUROPEAN & AMERICAN COUNTRIES Bangladesh Taka 3.680 Jordanian Dinar 0.3989505 0.4064505 Swiss francs .3043390 .3065880 US Dollar Transfer 287.000 Philippines Pesso 6.954 Kuwaiti Dinar 1.0000000 1.0000000 Canadian dollars .2795430 .2816100 Euro 372.380 Cyprus pound 703.420 Lebanese Pound 0.0001760 0.0001960 Danish Kroner .0497330 .0501010 Sterling Pound 436.240 Japanese Yen 3.795 Moroccan Dirhams 0.0217232 0.0457232 Swedish Kroner .0443660 .0446940 Canadian dollar 280.700 Thai Bhat 9.710 Nigerian Naira 0.0012225 0.0018575 Australian dlr .2963730 .2985640 Turkish lira 158.720 Syrian Pound 4.095 Omani Riyal 0.7339262 0.7449262 Hong Kong dlr .0365940 .0368650 Swiss Franc 297.100 Nepalese Rupees 3.330 Qatar Riyal 0.0781215 0.0789045 Singapore dlr .2291130 .2308060 US Dollar Buying 285.800 Malaysian Ringgit 94.935 Saudi Riyal 0.0759467 0.0765867 Japanese yen .0029600 .0028810 Sudanese Pounds 0.0466344 0.0471844 Indian Rs/KD .0000000 .0052870 GOLD Bahrain Exchange Company Syrian Pound 0.0027730 0.0029930 Sri Lanka rupee .0000000 .0022880 20 Gram 298.000 Tunisian Dinar 0.1726442 0.1786442 Pakistan rupee .0000000 .0029190 10 Gram 150.000 UAE Dirhams 0.0766578 0.0781078 5 Gram 77.500 COUNTRY SELL CASH SELLDRAFT Yemeni Riyal 0.0012941 0.0013941 Bangladesh taka .0000000 .0036810 Europe UAE dirhams .0773800 .0779520 British Pound 0.4278611 0.4368511 Bahraini dinars .7538810 .7594530 UAE Exchange Centre WLL Czech Korune 0.0062438 0.0182438 Al Mulla Exchange Jordanian dinar .0000000 .4048090 Danish Krone 0.0457049 0.0507049 Saudi Riyal/KD .0757800 .0763400 COUNTRY SELL DRAFT SELL CASH Euro 0.3659017 0.3734017 Norwegian Krone 0.0454473 0.0506473 Currency Transfer Rate (Per 1000) Omani riyals .7382100 .7436660 Australian Dollar 285.82 283.000 Scottish Pound 0.4273130 0.4348130 US Dollar 286.400 Philippine Peso .0000000 .0069870 Canadian Dollar 284.05 282.000 Swedish Krona 0.0393132 0.0443132 Euro 372.050 Swiss Franc 300.81 299.500 Swiss Franc 0.2910703 0.2980703 Pound Sterling 439.150 Euro 372.76 372.000 Al-Muzaini Exchange Co. Australasia Canadian Dollar 281.650 US Dollar 286.40 287.500 Australian Dollar 0.2708603 0.2828603 Japanese Yen 2.825 Sterling Pound 440.36 439.500 New Zealand Dollar 0.2263366 0.236366 Indian Rupee 5.190 ASIAN COUNTRIES Japanese Yen 2.86 3.300 Uganda Shilling 0.0001138 0.0001138 Egyptian Pound 40.445 Japanese Yen 2.800 Bangladesh Taka 3.689 3.720 America Sri Lankan Rupee 2.265 Indian Rupees 5.176 Indian Rupee 5.186 5.380 Canadian Dollar 0.2723171 0.2813171 Bangladesh Taka 3.680 Pakistani Rupees 2.908 Sri Lankan Rupee 2.268 2.460 Colombian Peso 0.0001460 0.0001640 Philippines Peso 6.960 Srilankan Rupees 2.270 Nepali Rupee 3.258 3.400 US Dollars 0.2846500 0.2868000 Pakistan Rupee 2.915 Nepali Rupees 3.243 Pakistani Rupee 2.910 2.960 Asia Bahraini Dinar 762.700 Singapore Dollar 228.500 UAE Dirhams 78.04 78.700 Bangladesh Taka 0.0036376 0.0036926 UAE Dirham 78.000 Hongkong Dollar 36.980 Bahraini Dinar 762.27 762.000 Cape Vrde Escudo 0.0031825 0.0034125 Saudi Riyal 76.500 Bangladesh Taka 3.675 Egyptian Pound 40.40 40.000 Chinese Yuan 0.0457047 0.0507047 *Rates are subject to change Philippine Peso 6.967 Jordanian Dinar 407.61 410.000 Eritrea-Nakfa 0.0165567 0.0196667 THURSDAY, MAY 23, 2013 BUSINESS

KUWAIT: (Right to left) Ethiopian Airline Sales manager Hussam Farid, Area Manager Ali Mohammed, Ethiopian Ambassador H E Mohamed Gudeta, Minister Counselor, Halima Muhamed Feke and other top official pose for a group photo during an ‘Ethiopian Travel and Tourism’ seminar on Tuesday 22, May 2013. (Right) Some Ethiopian ladies are pictured dur- ing the seminar. —Photos by Joseph Shagra Explore colorful Ethiopia - tourist paradise Ethiopian Airlines, Embassy woo tourists

By Chidi Emmanuel

KUWAIT: Kuwaitis and expatriates have been urged to explore and tap into the Ethiopia’s natural beauty as the Ethiopian Embassy and Ethiopian Airlines (EAL) unveiled their packages for this year’s summer. Speaking at the ‘Ethiopian Travel and Tourism’ seminar held on Tuesday, the Ambassador, HE Mohamed Gudeta described Ethiopia as a tourist paradise and the land of enchantment. He underlined some of the measures Ethiopia and its national carrier have taken to boost tourism which include hotel arrangements, visa- on-arrival for Kuwaitis and some expa- triates, and other promotional offers. “Ethiopian government has removed most constraints relating to visa and customs regulations, which will liberal- ize and facilitate growth of Ethiopia’s tourism trade. Ethiopia’s Ministry of international tourists. It is a land of con- water rivers, savannahs, giant waterfalls cal sites, as well as numerous areas rich called on the Kuwaitis and the expatri- Culture and Tourism is working closely trasting natural beauty, ranging from and volcanic hot springs,” the ambassa- in wildlife. Ethiopia’s various attractions ates to join the queue and fly with an with the regional bureaus, tour operator the peaks of the rugged Simien dor highlighted. and mix of people and cultures give it a award-winning and one of the few prof- associations and hotel associations. It Mountains to the depths of the Danakil He pointed out that some of the great potential for anthropological and itable African airlines. He underscored has a pivotal role in bringing together Depression, which at more than 400 tourist hotspots and ancient sites educational tourism, photo and hunting the Airlines’ achievements and its future the private sector and regulatory feet below the sea level is one of the include nine world heritage sites, the safaris, bird watching, water sports, projections. “Ethiopian Airlines has a authorities, and is eager to work with lowest points on earth. Ethiopia’s natu- active volcano of Ertale, monuments of desert trekking, mountain hiking, strong safety record and a modern fleet. private investors to position Ethiopia as ral beauty includes a varied abundance the Axumite Kingdom, the ancient camping and general ecotourism. Our offers, services and hospitality are a top-notch African tourist destination,” of landscapes, including Afro-Alpine walled city of Harar and the second holy Another area with great growth poten- too good to be ignored,” Ali said, adding the Ambassador said, even as he called highlands that soar to more than 14,000 place of Islam etc. “This combination of tial is conference tourism,” Gudeta that the airline now links the country on the investors to invest in one of the feet, moors, mountains, deep gorges, attractions is rare in a single country emphasized. with 60 cities across Africa, Asia, the fast growing economies in Africa. the largest cave in Africa (Sof Omar), the and includes a wealth of historical, cul- In his remarks, the Area Manager of Middle East, Europe and the United “Ethiopia has much to offer to the Great Rift Valley, tropical forests, white- tural, archaeological and anthropologi- Ethiopian Airlines, Ali Mohammed, States. Mercedes review opens home front in luxury war

FRANKFURT: How many Mercedes staff does it take to PRICEY PERKS facturers. Daimler said its own German sales staff - a third sell a car? The answer, in the luxury carmaker’s German Germany is the second-biggest car market after the of which sell commercial trucks and delivery vans - showrooms, is more than it takes to shift an Audi - just United States for Mercedes, which reported a 7.1 percent “watered down” group profit with a negative 0.3 percent part of the cost gap Daimler wants to close with its pre- margin last year, compared with 10.9 percent at BMW’s car return on sales last year, according to an internal presen- mium rivals. Among the top three, Mercedes depends business and 11 percent at Audi’s. Not including Smart, tation. on its unprofitable company-owned dealerships for a Daimler owns 98 Mercedes car showrooms that account That would amount to a loss of more than 30 million bigger share of domestic sales than either Volkswagen’s for about half of all the brand’s German car sales. By com- euros on 11 billion in revenue. Based on available data, it Audi or BMW, which rely more on franchises. parison BMW’s 43 owned dealerships contribute only took an average 3.8 employees to sell a Daimler car each Now, according to documents seen by Reuters, Chief about a quarter of its volumes in Germany, and Audi’s 16 week last year, while it took only 3.2 to get an Audi off its Executive Dieter Zetsche is targeting the company’s in-house outlets account for less than 10 percent. in-house forecourts. BMW needed roughly 4.5 employ- “own retail” operations as part of a promised 2 billion Daimler is already in talks to sell two dealerships in ees, however, though companies warn such comparisons euro ($2.6 billion) savings drive. Daimler, already in talks northern Germany and two more in the west to existing are only approximate because staff numbers can include to sell four German outlets, could mount a bigger sell-off franchise holders, sources said. By selling off more outlets, servicing and other non-sales personnel. if those transactions go well, a person familiar with the Mercedes could cut its 16,000-strong German retail staff company’s thinking said. “Management wants to try this and associated costs including vacation pay, Christmas INTERNAL OBSTACLES out to see exactly how it would work in practice,” said the bonuses, corporate pensions and profit shares - perks Daimler isn’t the only one unhappy with its low-mar- JPMorgan Chase Chairman and CEO Jamie Dimon person, who asked not to be named. that most franchise staff can only dream of. “Our own gin retail business. A job guarantee for the roughly 6,200 “They are gathering experience that could serve as a retail showrooms naturally have to be competitive when high-wage BMW sales staff in Germany expired in blueprint,” he said, adding “Zetsche is no fan of own benchmarked against franchise dealers,” Daimler said in December, and unions fear management views some of JPMorgan’s Dimon keeps retail.” The rethink opens a home front in Daimler’s battle an e-mailed statement, adding this had become “ever the 43 retail stores as excess flab. “There are no concrete to lift profitability to the 2013 operating margin target of more challenging” in its weakening domestic market. closure plans in the desk drawer, but we are permanently chairman and CEO jobs 10 percent it set three years ago, only to shelve it in “There is currently no final concept for restructuring examining the efficiency of our own dealerships,” a BMW October. Zetsche, 60, has so far failed to put Daimler on the group’s own retail network in Germany, but different spokeswoman said. BMW may have provided a clue NEW YORK: JPMorgan Chase shareholders have Shareholder activists argued that the losses course to keep its pledge to overtake Audi and reclaim options are still being evaluated,” the company said. It about its future strategy, after acquiring an insolvent endorsed chief executive Jamie Dimon to remain demonstrated the need for an independent chair- the crown from BMW by 2020 - or even trim their lead in declined to comment specifically on disposals. Car deal- Munich dealer during the 2009 financial crisis. In a break chairman, but the bank’s board faces added pres- man as a check on Dimon. JPMorgan countered sales and profit. Daimler further cut its guidance late last erships are typically a 2-4 percent margin business at with the past, BMW chose not to integrate the business sure after some board members barely won a that its aggressive investigation and follow-up to month. best, which drags down overall margins for luxury manu- with its retail network, preferring to keep it a separate majority. The Wall Street banking titan, under the loss, which included slashing Dimon’s pay, unit that offers fewer employee benefits. pressure over the huge “London Whale” derivative showed strong oversight. In addition, the bank, Sometimes luxury carmakers need wholly owned losses one year ago, beat back a shareholder pro- the nation’s largest by revenue, pointed to its Manipulation probe draws showrooms - particularly in fashionable downtown areas posal to strip Dimon of one of his leadership roles. record profits and strong performance in the stock where independent dealers struggle to run a viable busi- The proxy vote mustered just 32.2 percent of market as further reasons to reject the proposal. attention to trading desks ness - to give faster, unfiltered customer feedback to aid the vote Tuesday, even less than the 40 percent a JPMorgan heavily courted key investors ahead product development and take on slower selling models similar measure garnered last year. But sharehold- of the vote. During one investor meeting, the other dealers won’t order. But Daimler’s heavy reliance on LONDON: Europe’s energy price manipulation probe Despite massive disclosure obligations by publicly- ers sent a strong message of concern about the charismatic Dimon threatened to leave the bank if them may become a problem as the Internet changes effectiveness of board oversight in the wake of shareholders approved splitting the two execu- has turned regulatory attention to secretive trading listed oil firms, simple metrics such as revenue and the way people buy cars, and company dealerships typi- units at oil companies with huge turnover and million- profit at their trading divisions are not public. There is the London debacle in which the bank lost $6.2 tive jobs, according to published reports. Marty cally underperform better-run franchises, said Pieter van billion in an out-of-control derivatives trading Mosby, an analyst at Guggenheim Partners, said aire staff with risk appetite higher than at Wall Street’s also pressure from shareholders for the companies to Rosmalen, automotive retail specialist with MSX biggest banks. Regulators have scrutinized banks, trad- provide more transparency. “Obviously you can’t talk operation. Three members of the bank’s risk com- the outcome showed shareholder confidence and International. mittee received less than 60 percent support as support for Dimon’s long-term track record. “But it ing houses and commodities markets more closely fol- about the size of the positions that the companies are Van Rosmalen cited companies like Penske lowing the Libor benchmark rigging scandal but trad- taking, but in terms of the impact that trading has on shareholders said they shared some of the blame also shows their support for the board’s reaction Automotive Group among possible interested parties for for the losses. to last year’s (trading) loss and how they’ve han- ing desks at oil majors have largely escaped attention. profitability, it should be evident because that helps to any Mercedes showrooms that are put up for sale. “I bet Although banks and trading houses have expanded explain the underlying profitability of the company,” Dimon expressed regret for the Whale deba- dled that over the last year.” The critics were not all you if a German premium carmaker put its own show- cle, but said the company was working hard to satisfied. rapidly in energy over the past decades, oil companies said Charles Whall, who helps co-manage $1.08 billion rooms up for sale, then some of the larger retailers like still often dwarf them in size, geographical reach, prof- at Investec Global Energy Fund, including shares in put the problem behind it. “We try to admit our Dimon had “a kind of a cat-that-ate-the-canary Penske would buy it,” he said. Penske, which describes its problems, fix them and move on,” Dimon said dur- look on his face throughout the meeting,” said its and sometimes the magnitude of scandals sur- Shell. general acquisitions policy as “opportunistic”, declined to rounding their operations. The world’s biggest trading houses including ing the meeting. Afterwards, he added in a formal Lisa Lindsley, director of capital strategies at pub- comment on Daimler outlets, but the company has statement: “We appreciate the support shown by lic employee union AFSCME, which sponsored the An EU investigation into the suspected manipula- Glencore , Vitol, Gunvor, Trafigura and Mercuria, long recently expanded into crisis-hit Europe by buying up tion of the price of crude oil, refined products and perceived as the most secretive firms in oil trading, shareholders and the thoughtful way many have proposal to split the chairman and chief executive some Italian BMW dealerships. engaged with us as they determined how to vote roles. “He probably sees it as a big victory,” ethanol has thrown them into the spotlight. “Political have all started releasing detailed financial data in Other observers are skeptical that Daimler could clear pressure for regulatory action and stricter oversight of recent years to tap bond and equity markets. By con- on these issues.” “We take the feedback from Lindsley said. “I do think that’s how he sees it, but the internal obstacles to selling off its dealerships, includ- shareholders very seriously.” Shareholder groups it’s unfortunate for the rest of us.” But if Tuesday’s both traders and price reporting agencies will ramp up,” trast, oil majors like BP, Shell, Statoil, Total and Eni dis- ing a supervisory board where staff are heavily represent- said Roderick Bruce, energy analyst at IHS think-tank. close very little. For example, BP, one of the biggest had hoped to prod the board via a non-binding vote shored up Dimon’s authority, it left the board ed. “Management wants to do something,” said London- vote to remove Dimon from the chairmanship. itself in question. Some shareholders at Tuesday’s EU investigators raided offices of BP, Shell and Statoil, and most powerful trading desk in the industry, last based Credit Suisse analyst Erich Hauser. “But I ask myself trading house Argos Energy and pricing agency Platts disclosed figures for trading in 2005 when it earned Though widely praised for his leadership dur- meeting sharply questioned Dimon and Lee whether this is going to be another of those Daimler sto- ing the 2008 financial crisis, he came in for heavy Raymond, presiding director on the board, on the last week as part of the case. It was the biggest cross- $2.97 billion, or over a tenth of the group’s overall net ries where the goodwill is there but nothing happens in border action by the regulators since the Libor scandal. profit. —Reuters criticism after the London Whale losses, so-called qualifications and effectiveness of members of the end.” —Reuters after the nickname of one of the traders involved. the bank’s risk committee. —AFP THURSDAY, MAY 23, 2013 BUSINESS Europe shares, German bond yields ease Dollar index steady before Bernanke testimony

LONDON: The dollar hovered near a three-year too soon to taper back the $85 billion in lar to regain ground, especially against the high and German debt yields eased yesterday monthly asset purchases. “I think three or four yen,” Marcus Hettinger, currency strategist at as expectations hardened that the head of the months from now you’ll have a much better Credit Suisse said. US central bank later in the day would not sig- sense of (whether) the economy (is) healthy Ten-year German bond yields were down nal any change to its ultra-loose policy. US enough,” Dudley said. The dollar recovered two basis points at 1.39 percent, in line with a stock futures pointed to a firmer open on Wall from a slight dip against a basket of major cur- firmer tone to US Treasury prices that were Street as well, where the Dow and the S&P 500 rencies to be virtually unchanged at 83.84, just being supported by the signs the Fed will stick indexes currently stand at all-time highs. below a near three-year high of 84.37 struck with its asset purchase plan for now. Public comments from several top Federal last week. The euro added 0.25 percent to Reserve officials in the past 24-hours have $1.2937. The dollar index is up nearly 5 percent SHARES PAUSE strengthened the market’s view that Chairman this year as investors favor the greenback on Having rallied to multi-year highs on policy Ben Bernanke will point to the need for more signs of growing economic momentum and stimulus from the Fed and other major central certainty over the economic outlook before talk of an early end to its huge stimulus effort. banks, world stock markets were mixed yes- changing policy when he addresses a congres- “The market’s bias has been for dollar terday with MSCI’s world equity index sional committee at 1400 GMT. New York Fed strength, but it is much more finely balanced unchanged by the mid session in Europe. The President William Dudley, a close Bernanke ally, now,” Elsa Lignos, senior currency strategist at pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 share index, was the latest to comment, telling Bloomberg RBC Capital Markets said. “The reaction (to which has risen to a 5-year peak this month, TV in an interview aired yesterday, that it was Bernanke) seems much more likely to be influ- eased 0.5 percent to 1,249 points while the TOKYO: Tokyo Stock Exchange employees work at the computer terminal in Tokyo yesterday. — AP enced by flows and technicals than the funda- euro-zone’s blue-chip Euro STOXX 50 index mental outlook,” she said. was 0.3 percent lower. Earlier Japan’s Nikkei The dollar’s moves were also seen limited climbed 1.6 percent to a 5-1/2 year high after by expectations that minutes from the last the Bank of Japan, as widely expected, main- Fed rate setting meeting, due for release at tained an aggressively loose policy that will 1800 GMT, will underscore the wide diver- inject up to $1.4 trillion into the financial sys- gence between policymakers on the future of tem. That kept the yen on the back foot the bank’s $85 billion a month bond buying against the dollar, which gained 0.4 percent to plan. “Bernanke’s comments could see the 102.85 yen. MSCI’s broadest index of Asia- dollar ease somewhat. But the Fed minutes Pacific shares outside Japan eased 0.1 per- are likely to be hawkish, so we expect the dol- cent.— Reuters

SHANGHAI: A man sleeps on his tricycle next to a loudspeaker on a street in Shanghai yesterday. China’s economy expanded 7.8 percent in 2012, its slowest pace for 13 years, in the face of weakness at home and in key overseas markets. —AFP IMF’s chief to be quizzed in French arbitration case

PARIS: IMF chief Christine Lagarde will be from her duties. questioned by a French magistrate today over her role in a 285-million-euro ($366 mil- FORMAL INVESTIGATION THREAT lion) arbitration payment made to a sup- Lagarde, herself a former lawyer and porter of former president Nicolas Sarkozy. based in Washington since taking the IMF Lagarde risks being placed under formal helm, said last month she was perfectly hap- investigation at the hearing for her 2007 py to go to Paris to answer questions about decision as Sarkozy’s finance minister to use the Tapie affair. Her lawyer has played down arbitration to settle a long-running court the hearing as routine. The hearing, the first battle between the state and high-profile time Lagarde has been questioned over the businessman Bernard Tapie. affair, starts on Thursday and will likely run Under French law, that step would mean into Friday. A judge will either place Lagarde there exists “serious or consistent evidence” under formal investigation or give her the pointing to probable implication of a sus- status of “supervised witness”, which means pect in a crime. It is one step closer to trial she will have to answer questions as a wit- but a number of such investigations have ness accompanied by a lawyer. been dropped without any trial. Such a The case goes back to 1993 when Tapie, a move could prove uncomfortable for the colorful and often controversial character in International Monetary Fund, whose former the French business and sports world, sued head, Frenchman Dominique Strauss-Kahn, the state for compensation after selling his quit in 2011 over a sex assault scandal, and stake in sports company Adidas to then for a woman who has been voted the most state-owned bank Credit Lyonnais. Tapie, a influential in France by Slate magazine. one-time Socialist minister who later Lagarde is not accused of financially prof- became a supporter of the conservative iting herself from the 2007 payout and has Sarkozy, said the bank had defrauded him denied doing anything wrong by opting for after it later resold his stake for a much high- an arbitration process that enriched Tapie. er sum. Credit Lyonnais, now part of Credit However a court specializing in cases involv- Agricole, has denied any wrongdoing. ing ministers is targeting her for complicity The long-lingering case, which saw in the misuse of funds because she over- Lagarde’s Paris apartment searched in ruled advisers to seek the settlement. “The March, has stayed largely under the interna- (IMF’s) board is comfortable that she did not tional media’s radar screen as the former profit from this herself. For now it is not a finance minister won plaudits for her role in concern,” a source close to the board said, Europe’s response to the 2009 credit crisis adding that it could reconsider that position and in putting together the 2010 Greek if judicial procedures took Lagarde away bailout. — Reuters Brent dips towards $103

LONDON: Brent crude oil dropped towards congressional committee at 10 am. The $103 per barrel yesterday after data show- Fed’s quantitative easing programs have ing a surprise jump in US gasoline stockpiles released hundreds of billions of dollars into sparked worries that summer demand in financial markets over the last few years, the world’s top oil consumer could be weak- boosting many commodities, and any sign er than expected. The American Petroleum that the easing programs could end would Institute said late on Tuesday US gasoline be bearish for oil. inventories rose by 3 million barrels last Bernanke’s remarks will be followed by week, suggesting the US domestic fuel mar- the release at 2.00 p.m. EDT (1800 GMT) of ket would be well supplied during the peak minutes of the last Fed meeting, which driving season. Investors awaited oil inven- economists also expect to give further tory figures from the US government’s details of how it will eventually manage the Energy Information Agency (EIA), due at exit from ultra-easy policy. Some econo- 10:30 am to see if they confirmed the data. mists expect Bernanke to suggest the Fed But a slight weakening of the dollar from will keep monetary policy easy for the time 34-month highs helped steady oil, which being, a signal that would be supportive for tends to move inversely to the US currency. oil. “We expect Bernanke and the Fed will Brent crude fell 60 cents to $103.31 per remain cautious in any tapering of the cur- barrel by 0845 GMT, after shedding nearly a rent $85 billion per month asset purchase dollar in the previous session. US crude lost program,” ANZ analysts said in a note. “The 30 cents to $95.88. “Investors are worried oil minutes from the FOMC’s May meeting will fundamentals are weakening with less also likely reflect this.” Tuesday’s API data demand than expected and better supplies,” showed a build of 532,000 barrels in US said Carsten Fritsch, senior oil analyst at crude stockpiles during the week ended Commerzbank in Frankfurt. “Higher US May. 17. Analysts had expected crude stocks gasoline stockpiles, revised demand growth to drop 800,000 barrels and gasoline stocks estimates and more oil from non-OPEC pro- to remain unchanged from a week ago. ducers are all negative and there is little Investors will also watch initial purchasing geopolitical tension to help prices.” manager’s indexes for May due on Thursday, for signs of economic revival in the three “CAUTIOUS” key consumer regions - China, the United Losses were limited ahead of a testimony States and the euro zone. Reuters surveys by US Federal Reserve Chairman Ben suggest they may show a slight pickup from Bernanke, who was expected to shed light April but not enough to dispel fears of a on US monetary policy when he speaks to a sluggish outlook.— Reuters BUSINESS THURSDAY, MAY 23, 2013

A cake is cut in celebration of flydubai’s new route to Salalah flydubai touches down in Salalah flydubai extends network to 60 destinations

KUWAIT: flydubai began flights to Salalah, in the During the reception inside the airport termi- the office of His Highness Sheikh Ahmed bin FLIGHT INFORMATION Sultanate of Oman yesterday bringing its opera- nal, Obaidalla, flydubai’s Chief Commercial Saeed Al Maktoum. Salim Al Kathiri, Consul Flights to Salalah operate three times a week on tional network to 60 destinations. flydubai flight Officer said: “With Oman just next door to the General of the Consulate of Oman in Dubai said: Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays. FZ039 departs FZ039 touched down at Salalah Airport just UAE, there is a long history of tourism and trade “We are very pleased to welcome flydubai to Dubai Terminal 2 at 1620hrs, landing in Salalah hours before the airline began scheduled opera- between our countries. Through this new service Salalah and celebrate the opening of this new Airport at 1820hrs local time. The return flight, FZ040, tions to Mattala, its second point in Sri Lanka, fol- we hope to further enhance these ties and make gateway between Oman and Dubai. As the sum- departs at 1920hrs, arriving in Dubai at 2130hrs local lowing a special flight in March on the opening it easier and more convenient to travel between mer travel season approaches, I look forward to time. Round trip fares from Dubai to Salalah start at day of Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport. Dubai and Salalah. I would like to take this oppor- welcoming more visitors from the UAE to Salalah.” KD66 with fares from Salalah to Dubai from KD40. The inaugural flight delegation, led by fly- tunity to thank all those involved in enabling us Meanwhile, earlier yesterday, Obaidalla inau- Fares include one piece of hand luggage weighing dubai’s Chief Commercial Officer, Hamad to fly to Salalah for the support and encourage- gurated the new flydubai Travel Shop in Salalah, up to 7kg and one small laptop bag or handbag. Obaidalla, was met by Sheikh Hamood Bin ment they have given flydubai.” making it even easier for passengers to book Checked baggage starts at KD3 ($14) for 20kg. A seat Mustahil Al Mashani, Vice President of Muscat Also present for the celebrations were; Omar their travel to Dubai. Located on the Indian with extra legroom costs KD7 ($28). Flights between Overseas Group; HE Sheikh Abdullah Bin Saif Al Bin Ghaleb, Deputy Director General of the Ocean, Salalah the second largest city in Oman, is Dubai and Salalah can be purchased from flydubai’s Mahrooqi, Deputy Governor of Dhofar; Salim Bin General Civil Aviation Authority; Mohamed Al known for both its beach and mountain land- website (www.flydubai.com), its call centre (+9714 Awadh Al Yafi, Director General of Salalah Airport Zarouni, Head of Air Transport at the Dubai Civil scapes. It also enjoys cooler climes than neigh- 231 1000), flydubai Travel Shops or through travel and Khalid Bin Musallam Bin Salim Al Rawas, Aviation Authority; Salim Al Kathiri, Consul boring cities in Oman and the region making it a partners. Passengers in Oman can call the local call Director General of the Directorate General of General of the Consulate of Oman in Dubai; and popular holiday destination, especially during centre (+9682 329 2183 / 84), or book through travel Tourism in Dhofar. Ahmed Jassim, Director of Public Relations for the summer months. partners. Azeri SOCAR to borrow $20 bn to boost exports Fitch warns SOCAR’s rating may worsen

BAKU: Azeri state energy firm SOCAR plans to its, while the remaining 35 percent (will come) investment program. The company’s debut borrow more than $20 billion over the next five from Azerbaijan’s own resources, mainly the state Eurobond issue was in February 2012. years to finance energy projects to help boost gas oil fund.” SOCAR is a sole shareholder in three Gasymov dismissed concerns over increasing exports to Europe, a challenge to plans by neigh- projects and controls the TANAP project aimed at SOCAR’s debt. “There are no risks for Azerbaijan boring Russia. SOCAR, one of the world’s oldest taking Azeri gas to Turkey and to markets in over financing of these projects, because the oil companies, wants to send gas to Europe, hop- Europe. state is behind them and we have a high interna- ing to capitalize on a desire in European capitals Construction of the TANAP pipeline, which will tional rating,” he said, adding that SOCAR planned to diversify their supply from Russia after be built from the Turkish-Georgian border to to borrow funds mainly in export-import banks Moscow’s “gas wars” with Ukraine disrupted sup- Turkey’s border with Europe, is expected to start abroad. Fitch cut Azerbaijan’s sovereign-credit plies in 2006 and 2009. at the end of 2013 and the project’s first phase is grade outlook to BBB- earlier this month because The plan to tap its Shah-Deniz II project for an seen ready at the end of 2017 or early 2018. the Caspian Sea nation raised spending as oil out- expected 16 billion cubic meters per year South Stream, which will stretch more than 2,000 put declined. (bcm/y) of gas to Europe is in direct competition km to northeast Italy, is expected to be built by Gasymov said the European Bank for to the South Stream pipeline project, led by the end of 2015, its chief executive of the offshore Reconstruction and Development, the World Azerbaijan’s former Soviet master, Russia. Vice section said earlier this month. New drilling rigs Bank and some foreign commercial banks had President Suleiman Gasymov said he would on the Caspian Sea will be built for SOCAR by already expressed interest in funding one of the approach foreign banks as well as turning to the Singapore’s Keppel. projects- construction of a new refinery at Aliaga state oil fund to pay for a $5 billion refinery in in western Turkey, which is expected to be com- Turkey, a $17 billion oil and gas processing and CREDIT RATINGS pleted by 2016. Azerbaijan’s $34 billion state oil petrochemical complex, the $8 billion Trans- But credit ratings agency Fitch said in April fund holds proceeds from oil contracts, oil and Anatolian natural gas pipeline project (TANAP) that further investment or acquisitions by SOCAR gas sales, transit fees and other revenues and and new drilling rigs on the Caspian Sea worth would result in “a significant and sustained deteri- uses investment proceeds to help finance social $4 billion. oration of credit metrics (which) would be nega- spending and infrastructure projects. Apart from “SOCAR starts implementation of four projects tive for the ratings”. Fitch’s rating in April was BBB- transfers to the Azeri state budget, it invests in with a total estimated cost of $33 billion-$35 bil- . In March 2013, SOCAR placed a $1 billion 10- real estate abroad and plans to spend about $1 lion from 2013,” he said in an interview. “Sixty-five year Eurobond with 4.75 percent coupon to refi- billion on buying commercial property this year, percent of the cost will be provided by bank cred- nance part of its existing debt and for its capital mainly in Asia and Australia. — Reuters

ITS restructures to face India L&T looks overseas new business dynamics to offset weak home market NEW DELHI: KAWASAKI: Cars for export park at a port in Kawasaki, west of Tokyo. — AP KUWAIT: ITS (International Turnkey Larsen and Toubro could see it ramp up social Systems) Group, a leading solution Ltd, India’s largest engineering spending, especially on higher provider for both Islamic and con- and construction group, will look food subsidies. “Until the new ventional banks, yesterday overseas to offset a weak econo- government is installed, there Japan posts worst announced a ‘transformative’ restruc- my and project bottlenecks at will be social spending and turing of its business focus, organiza- home that led to a bigger-than- development will take second tion model, processes and product expected profit drop. Shares in priority,” said Naik. But L&T has April trade deficit positioning to meet new macroeco- L&T closed down nearly 6 per- put a “tremendous amount” of nomic realities and prepare the com- cent after the Mumbai-based effort into diversifying and not TOKYO: Japan yesterday posted its worst Nikkei stock average gaining 1.00 percent pany to embark on a profitable company’s profit fell 6.9 percent being an “only-India organiza- April trade deficit as a weak yen ramped up by mid-morning. In April exports rose 3.8 growth journey from 2013 onwards. for the fiscal fourth-quarter end- tion”, he added. import costs and helped extend the run of percent to 5.78 trillion yen while imports The announcement today comes ing March, as its margins nar- “Since L&T has a wide range monthly shortfalls to the longest in more jumped 9.4 percent to 6.66 trillion yen. The on the heels of an overhaul in the rowed and existing infrastructure portfolio and since we have over- than three decades. Data from the finance yen’s average rate was 96.01 to the dollar in company’s executive leadership and projects struggled to get off the seas presence, whatever shortfall ministry showed Japan incurred a trade April against 82.31 a year ago, meaning the business plan when in April 2013, L. ground. we have in India we’ll make up deficit for the 10th straight month in April value of the Japanese currency fell by near- John Loomis took over the reins The share drop was L&T’s for it outside India.” L&T’s net with the red-ink expanding a worse-than- ly 17 percent on year, the ministry data from Khaled Faraj Al-Saeid, who had biggest since January 2010, profit fell to 17.88 billion rupees expected 69.7 percent on year to to 879.9 showed. been running ITS for two decades. underscoring worries about the in the March quarter, from 19.2 billion yen ($8.6 billion). A lower yen helps Japanese exporters Loomis, who comes to ITS with state of India’s economy, for billion rupees reported a year Trade data is a closely watched indicator but pushes up import bills. Higher import more than 20 years of executive which L&T is seen as a bell- earlier. Analysts had expected of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s progress in costs have been resulting in higher materi- management and leadership expe- wether. India’s economy slowed the company to report a net firing up Japan’s export-led economy. als and parts prices, which are leading to rience in the financial, technology, ready to face new market realities to 4.5 percent in the December profit of 18.56 billion rupees, Expectations for Abe’s pro-growth, pro- higher retail prices of various items ranging entertainment and communication has been expansive and current to quarter, far off the near double- according to Thomson Reuters spending policies have weakened the yen from foodstuff to laptops. With the yen hit- industries, set forth and is rolling industry needs and opportunities as digit growth the leaders of the I/B/E/S. Overseas orders for the more than 20 percent against the dollar ting multi-year lows against the dollar, out a plan to align, focus and regain new lines of business would bring emerging Asian giant would like, current fiscal year would exceed over the past six months and boosted share some politicians have started voicing con- ITS’ technology prowess and indus- new revenue streams, and a new as bureaucracy and a lack of 250 billion rupees ($4.52 billion), prices to their highest level in more than cerns over its negative impact on people’s try leadership. industry positioning for ITS. The financially viable projects have Naik said, up from nearly 150 bil- five years. But the latest data could be a lives. Japan’s fuel imports have also stayed “ITS is today rolling out a rejuve- Turnaround, which is well underway hit infrastructure building. lion in the last fiscal year, which sign that a rebound in exports has yet to high as most of its nuclear reactors remain nated comprehensive business plan today, aims to rebuild, reorganize However, L&T, whose interests ended in March. outweigh higher imports on the back of a off-line since the huge earthquake and that will put the company back on and prepare for profitable growth, span shipbuilding to railways, L&T has in recent months won weaker yen and greater energy needs. tsunami in 2011 sparked the world’s worst track. This plan, which has been which the new company leadership forecast net sales for the current construction work at an Abu The deficit was the biggest for the atomic accident in a generation. developed between April and May projects to happen throughout fiscal year would rise by as much Dhabi airport and a contract for a month of April in comparable official data By region, US-bound exports in April this year is set to reposition ITS as a 2014. as 17 percent and new orders gas processing plant for state- that goes back to 1979 and was also worse jumped 14.8 percent to 1.10 trillion yen, the profitable, cutting-edge IT and busi- “Our new mission today and into would swell by about a fifth, run Saudi Aramco, according to than an average shortfall of 620 billion yen highest figure since October 2008, on the ness solutions provider, producing the future is to be the world class thanks to expansion in the Middle media reports, although it has forecast by economists polled by the Nikkei back of strong shipments of automobiles. and delivering to the highest stan- strategic solutions provider for all IT East and Africa. “I would be very declined to comment. The com- business daily. It was also the longest run of Japan’s surplus with the United States dards of quality to meet customer and related business needs across cautious about India growth,” A M pany, valued at about $18 billion, monthly deficits since a 14-month string soared 32.5 percent to 563.0 billion yen demand,” said L John Loomis, ITS’ all industries globally, based on Naik, executive chairman, told a wrote off about 170 billion from July 1979 to August 1980. “Exports while Japan suffered a trade deficit of 38.6 CEO. “Our business requires that we sharia compliance,” continued news conference in Mumbai. “I rupees of orders in the past fiscal may recover further but because import billion yen with the European Union as develop a more agile structure, Loomis. “Built on a solid foundation wouldn’t want to give a very opti- year in sectors including power costs are rising quite a bit, trade deficits will exports there kept falling. With China, focusing on quality and cutting of innovation, trust, respect, mistic view,” he said. and steel as projects failed to get likely continue,” said Junko Nishioka, chief Japan’s deficit expanded by 60.2 percent to edge technology products that sat- accountability and customer and The Indian government, off the ground, Naik said. He economist at RBS Securities Japan. 442.5 billion yen as exports rose only 0.3 isfy all our stakeholders, from cus- shareholder satisfaction, we are which has struggled to imple- added that another 50-60 billion The latest set of figures indicated that percent on a slowing of growth in China’s tomers to shareholders and employ- focused on taking ITS into the glob- ment a slew of policy reforms to rupees worth of “slow-moving” the “worst period” is over for exports, she economy and as political tensions between ees.” al arena where we know that our help revive growth, faces a gen- orders were expected to revive, said. The data did not damp enthusiasm for the two countries continue to weigh on Coined the ‘Turnaround,’ this business fundamentals are very eral election within a year, which however. — Reuters Japanese shares with the benchmark sales of Japanese goods there. — AFP process of getting ITS prepared and competitive.” BUSINESS THURSDAY, MAY 23, 2013 Ghana hopes to shield economy from oil curse Economists cite risks of fiscal laxity, Dutch disease

ACCRA: Oil brought riches to Nigeria but also oil already contributes 6 percent of state rev- A vibrant civil society pressing for better oil ravaged its economy and fuelled corruption and enue. industry regulation and accountability is also conflict. Now nearby Ghana has begun produc- Ghana’s cocoa production, meanwhile, is key. “There is cause for optimism when you look tion and wants to take the wealth but dodge the down 11 percent so far this season year-on-year at Ghana,” said Valerie Marcel, energy expert at oil curse. Ghana is used to resource riches: it is but industry regulator Cocobod blames bad the Chatham House think tank. Ghana set up a already the world’s number two cocoa producer growing weather. It has forecast a total harvest National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC) before and Africa’s second-largest gold miner. But there of 800,000 tons for 2013, second only to neigh- the 2007 discovery of the Jubilee field, ensuring are signs it is struggling to manage the new oil boring Ivory Coast. The leaders of Ghana’s cocoa a reservoir of expertise and a structure to handle money and some people are disappointed. sector say their industry may benefit from the oil regulation and contracts was in place. In 2012, A budget deficit last year which soared to 12 flows. The involvement of farmers in the deci- the government established a Ghana National percent of gross domestic product (GDP), nearly sion-making process, close cooperation with Petroleum Commission to oversee licensing and Air Arabia signs $350 million twice the targeted level, raised fears among government, and internal checks and balances regulation. economists of fiscal laxity, a classic symptom of shield the sector from any policy neglect, they The mandate of the commission is being the resource curse that often feeds corruption. say. finalized but experts praise the government’s financing deal with QNB, CBI Investors are also watching the strengthening “We all admit that oil is a big thing happen- decision to split the role of oil license holder and cedi currency. An inflation-adjusted rise due to ing to Ghana now but for us it is a positive devel- license giver into separate institutions. One dan- SHARJAH: Air Arabia, the first and largest SAQ (QNB Group), the world’s strongest an influx of petro-dollars can signal “Dutch dis- opment because oil inflows will free more ger is that a new law gives the energy minister low cost carrier (LCC) in the MENA region, bank, and Commercial Bank International resources for the government to implement too much discretion to award contracts, said signed a $350 million finance deal from a (CBI), a UAE growing commercial bank. ease”, where the competitiveness of farming and new programs to further boost cocoa produc- Mohammed Amin Adam, director of the Africa syndicate of two GCC banks to support The financing facility is to support the manufacturing is eroded, as in Holland in the Center for Energy Policy in Accra. “We have been the acquisition of 10 new Airbus A320 air- purchase of 10 new aircraft, which is part 1960s. tion,” said Yaw Adu-Ampomah, deputy chief craft. Air Arabia signed the deal with sen- of a larger order for 44 A320s placed with “The government seems to be very much executive of the Ghana Cocoa Board, referring to talking about transparency but I don’t see the ior representatives of Qatar National Bank Airbus in 2007. wary of the dangers of Dutch Disease,” central programs for fertilizers and seedlings. transparency being implemented,” Amin Adam bank governor Henry Kofi Wampah said. “Oil will With rising demand from Asian countries, as said in an interview. continue to attract attention but not at the higher living standards bring increased choco- expense of cocoa or gold.” In Nigeria, agricultural late consumption, many industry watchers say DANGEROUS EUPHORIA production plummeted in the 1970s and 1980s global cocoa prices are set to rise in the coming Poor allocation of revenue can reduce oil’s as oil came to dominate the economy. Some years, making the sector an attractive invest- economic benefits. Nigeria has seen scant now fear Ghana’s cocoa sector, the largest ment bet. Moreover, to counteract oil’s effects improvement in healthcare, education and infra- employer in the country, could be similarly on the currency and the broader economy, structure and inequality has deepened, accord- threatened by oil that began flowing in 2010. Ghana is channeling 30 percent of tax revenues ing to Edward Al-Hussainy, analyst at Moody’s The cedi weakened last year as the oil boom from petroleum into a stabilization fund to ratings agency. “Ghana benefits from being fuelled imports but its depreciation has now hedge against price fluctuations and a sovereign more open and more transparent than many slowed to below inflation, which stood at 10.6 wealth fund, which contained $72 million in African peers so it is likely to be a better steward percent in April, leaving the currency slightly 2012. of a commodity windfall,” Al-Hussainy said. stronger against the dollar year-on-year in real Mahama’s government had promised to terms. Ghana, however, has several advantages CAUSE FOR OPTIMISM channel oil revenues into building new school over its giant neighbor to shield itself from the Some fear that oil revenues could encourage blocks and improving services, though many oil curse, according to senior government offi- Ghana to spend unwisely, squandering money Ghanaians complain progress has been slow. Oil cials, economists and watchdog groups. Not on unproductive “white elephant” infrastructure swelled GDP growth to 15 percent in 2011 but Air Arabia takes off least of these, it is aware of the risks and is trying projects or inflationary wage hikes. In Nigeria, may have encouraged the government to spend to avoid the mistakes made by other African the wash of oil money made the government freely before December’s presidential election, states. less dependent on tax revenue and less behold- according to some economists. The government to Abha, Saudi Arabia en to its citizens. It encouraged graft as oil-relat- denies this. The budget deficit overshot its tar- FRONTIER MARKET ed contracts become an economic honey pot get of 6.7 percent in 2012 to stand at 12.1 per- SHARJAH: Air Arabia, the first and largest focus for the airline as we continue to Ghana, a country of 25 million people that and sparked conflict in the Niger Delta amid cent and the government has set lowering it to 9 low-cost carrier (LCC) in the Middle East explore opportunities for growth in this has long lived in Nigeria’s economic shadow, is anger the region had not benefited from its oil percent as a key fiscal priority for 2013. and North Africa, inaugural flight yesterday market. With the launch of twice weekly now one of Africa’s hottest frontier markets. The wealth. Fitch in February downgraded Ghana’s out- touched down in Abha, Saudi Arabia, from direct flights from Sharjah, we are confi- stock market is up more than 50 percent this “Our problem is no longer money but how to look to negative. Ghana this year also saw pub- its primary hub in Sharjah. The new service dent that our customers will benefit from a year but many ordinary Ghanaians complain spend it,” General Yakubu Gowon, Nigeria’s mili- lic sector pay strikes that raised concerns from the carrier’s primary hub in Sharjah unique value driven product, while further about lack of jobs and basic services. “I’m not tary ruler from 1966 to 1975, said in the midst of about wage growth stoking inflation. Public marks Air Arabia’s eighth destination in the strengthening the ever increasing econom- Kingdom and 85th worldwide. Air Arabia ic ties between the UAE and KSA.” seeing any benefit,” said Jennifer Omaboe, a his country’s oil boom. Ghana’s advantages start expectations of oil-fuelled good times carry offers two weekly flights to Abha, making it Offering 88 weekly non-stop flights to receptionist in Accra. “Those who are really ben- with a strong democratic tradition that pre- their own dangers, Nana Osei-Bonsu, director easier and more convenient for passengers Saudi Arabia from Sharjah, and its efiting are those at a high level because they dates its discovery of oil. A series of peaceful general of the Private Enterprise Federation, to travel between the two cities. Operating Alexandria hub in Egypt, Air Arabia contin- have connections.” electoral transitions of power since 2000 said in an interview. “The euphoria is height- on Mondays and Saturdays, Air Arabia’s ues to strengthen its intra-regional Arab An influx of rural workers hoping for jobs in between the ruling National Democratic ened to the point where we might fail our- Abha service will depart from Sharjah network offering customers a wider choice the capital, has spawned shanty towns and Congress of President John Mahama and the selves. People go to sleep arms folded and International Airport at 13:50 and arrive for affordable air travel. In addition to spilled vendors across Accra’s streets, where main opposition have helped empower parlia- think of all the glorious things that might hap- Abha International Airport at 15:40. Return Abha, Air Arabia operates non-stop flights cranes loom over construction sites and glossy ment as a supervisory body of the executive. pen,” he said. — Reuters flights will depart from Abha on the same the Riyadh, Jeddah, Madina, Dammam, billboards advertise cars and mobile phones. In days at 16:20 and arrive in Sharjah at 20:10. Qassim, Yanbu, and Taif in Saudi Arabia. The March, oil overtook cocoa as a source of govern- “The launch of Abha in Saudi Arabia is a city of Abha is the capital of Asir, a south- ment revenue, standing only behind the mining continuation of Air Arabia’s commitment to western province in the Kingdom of Saudi sector in importance in the $39 billion economy. offer multiple destinations in the Kingdom,” Arabia. It is a popular tourist destination With output at Tullow’s Jubilee field still ramping Drake & Scull International said, Adel Ali, Group Chief Executive Officer, due to natural attractions such as its sea- up to its plateau level of 120,000 barrels a day, Air Arabia. “Saudi Arabia remains a key sonal weather and fertile mountains. and the nearby TEN field yet to come onstream, wins SAR 1.7 billion contract

DUBAI: Drake & Scull Construction (DSC) the Dubai welcomes maiden General Contracting Arm of Drake & Scull International PJSC (DSI), a regional market leader in the integrated design, engineering call of Mariner of the Seas and construction disciplines of General Contracting, Mechanical, Electrical and DUBAI: Dubai welcomed Mariner of the Seas, meters that can accommodate up to six cruise activity, along with a three-story high theatre Plumbing (MEP), Water and Power, Rail and a member of Royal Caribbean International’s ships simultaneously, making it the most in which some of the latest production tech- Oil and Gas, has announced that it has been cruise line fleet, as it made its maiden call to advanced and largest cruise tourism facility in nology is used to produce Broadway-standard awarded a SAR 1.725 billion contract by the Emirate on 21st of May. The maiden call, the Middle East. shows at night.” Lamar Investment and Real Estate which is another demonstration of Dubai’s Dr Ahmad Belhoul continued: “Dubai is cur- Weighing in at 138,279 gross registered Development Co to complete the Lamar increasing prominence on the cruise tourism rently the homeport for four luxury cruise tons and spanning 15 guest decks with a pas- Towers project in Jeddah, Kingdom of Saudi map, was greeted with a traditionally warm lines and features in the itineraries of no less senger capacity of 3,807, ‘Mariner of the Seas’ Arabia. DSC Saudi Arabia will oversee and and impressive welcome ceremony at Mina than 20 world’s leading cruise lines. Since was built in Turku, Finland before making its undertake all aspects of construction works Rashid, which included the creation of huge Royal Caribbean International first started its maiden voyage in 2003. In preparation for on the project complemented by the inter- heritage village replica that featured a variety operations in the Middle East, choosing Dubai being reassigned to Asia from the Caribbean, national expertise of the engineering divi- of traditional activities such as live cooking as its homeport in the region, we have devel- she has undergone the multi-million dollar sion of DSI KSA assigned to execute all inci- stations, a performance by the Harbiya band, oped a highly successful working relationship Royal Advantage revitalization, which includes dentals MEP works. Arabic hospitality (Gahwah), a falcon display, and so are very pleased to be able to welcome enhanced staterooms, new onboard dining The Lamar Towers project was initially and a henna station. launched in 2007, however has undergone The welcome was organized by Dubai some challenges and was halted in 2009. Cruise Tourism, a department of DTCM (the The project was restructured and refinanced Department of Tourism and Commerce in 2013 attracting a profile of elite regional Marketing). Calling on Dubai en route to and international investors while a new Singapore and China, the luxury liner - which development company was assigned to can carry more than 3,800 passengers - is manage the project with DSI appointed as offering a wide variety of itineraries, ranging Khaldoun Tabari from three nights to 12 nights from China and the main contractor in light of the compa- tion and real estate landscape.” Singapore to Southeast Asia, Japan and Korea ny’s extensive experience in completing throughout the rest of the year. some of the largest and most complex proj- Saleh Muradweij, Managing Director of Following maritime tradition, the welcome ects in the region. Drake & Scull Construction added: “The proj- event included a plaque and key exchange The Lamar Towers project occupies a ect will bring together an abundance of high ceremony, during which Dr Ahmad Belhoul, 34,800 square meter plot with a total built up profile engineering experts within our team CEO of Strategy & Tourism Sector area of 409,770 square meter on Jeddah in the region. We are quite familiar with the Development for DTCM, and representatives Corniche, and comprises two-high rise tow- unique architectural design of the project as from other Government Departments that ers sitting atop a 13-floor curved podium. we are currently successfully executing the support cruise operations such as Tower T1 and T2 measure 322 meters and Jawhara tower in Jeddah which is a project Immigration, Customs, Dubai Maritime City 293 meters in height and comprise 57 and 49 of similar structural scale and engineering Authority (DMCA), and DP World exchanged storeys respectively. When completed in the complexities. The construction of this commemorative crests with the Ship’s fourth quarter of 2015 the Commercial and extraordinary structure is scheduled to be Captain. The event continued with a ship visit Residential Towers will offer a unique lifestyle completed by the fourth quarter of 2015 and and lunch on board for all the attendees. at the highest level of living standards, a will be one the most remarkable landmarks Speaking about the event Dr Ahmad remarkable stylish housing and a gateway for in the region. We are delighted to have been Belhoul, CEO of Strategy & Tourism Sector modern and contemporary businesses in the chosen to execute this iconic project and to Development, DTCM said: “Dubai is increasingly the beautiful ‘Mariner of the Seas’ on its jour- options, a variety of entertainment options Kingdom for international companies. contribute to the landscape development of consolidating its position as a destination of ney to the Far East. We look forward to contin- and other innovative features, such as a giant Commenting on the award, Khaldoun the city of Jeddah. “ choice for cruise tourism. In 2012 we received uing to work together and foresee many more outdoor movie screen overlooking the pool Tabari, CEO of Drake & Scull International, Drake & Scull continues to enhance and 105 ship calls carrying almost 408,000visitors prosperous cruise seasons in the future.” that Royal Caribbean International has created strengthen its services offering with and expect this to increase to more than Lakshmi Durai, Executive Director (Middle in recent years. said: “The Lamar Towers Project is a very unmatched vertical integration and global 420,000 from 110 ship calls this year. This will East), Royal Caribbean International, said, The cruise liner’s sports facilities have also important vote of confidence in the techni- continue to increase in 2014 and 2015 with an “Mariner of the Seas is one of the biggest been overhauled to include an inline skating cal capabilities and specialized expertise of footprint. The collaborative capabilities of annual growth rate that is in line with the pro- cruise ships to arrive in Dubai yet from our track, Royal Caribbean’s signature rock- Drake & Scull International in KSA. The scope the Engineering services (MEP and Water jected global cruise tourist growth of 3% and fleet and belongs to the Voyager class of ships climbing wall, a 9-hole mini golf course, a of work required for this project highlights and Power), General Contracting, Oil and we are looking forward to receiving over that revolutionized the cruise industry by golf simulator, a full size sports court with DSI’s flexibility in managing all types of con- Gas, Rail and Infrastructure development 450,000 passengers in 2015.” introducing the active cruise vacation, basketball court, three swimming pools, and struction challenges and requirements. DSI’s continue to deliver strong performance Discussing the reasons behind Dubai’s through debuting innovations such as the first six whirlpools. In addition ‘Mariner of the strong focus on premium developments and quality work on project sites. Armed with a steep increase in popularity as a cruise desti- onboard ice-skating rink and rock-climbing Seas’ is the sixth Royal Caribbean our commitment to deliver great-value MEP multicultural workforce, inherent financial nation, Dr Ahmad Belhoul accredited the sec- wall. International ship to offer the DreamWorks and construction solutions remain the cor- strength and solid regional experience, the tor’s growth to the combination of meticulous Another stunning feature is the Royal Experience, which features parades, themed nerstones of our regional growth strategy. company’s outlook remains positive in terms planning, judicious infrastructure develop- Promenade, an interior boulevard that runs activities and events based on DreamWorks We will continue to consolidate our expert- of realizing greater profitability and improv- ment, and targeted investment, combined nearly the ship’s length; flanked by restau- Animation’s popular feature-film characters. ise, technologies and resources as we sup- ing productivity across MENA, South Asia with Dubai’s global appeal as a tourism desti- rants, lounges and boutiques and where lively Each ship also is equipped with a 3-D movie port the on-going boom in KSA’s construc- and Europe. nation. Dubai Cruise Tourism currently oper- parades and evening street parties are held. theatre that plays the latest DreamWorks ates three facilities on a pier stretch of 1900 This area is the heart of the ship for evening Animation films. THURSDAY, MAY 23, 2013 technology Microsoft touts Xbox One as all-in-1 entertainment Microsoft, Sony, Nintendo battle it out

REDMOND: Microsoft thinks it has the one. The com- work on the new system because the underlying fer multiple screens, fans can get an even deeper pany unveiled the Xbox One, an entertainment con- technology is different, though the company said it experience on mobile devices such as tablets. sole that wants to be the one system households will will continue to make games for the older machine. Microsoft is also branching into creating original con- need for games, television, movies, sports and other Whitten said the Xbox 360 “is going to be incredibly tent beyond games, following the trend of other entertainment. It will go on sale later this year, for an vibrant for some time to come.” technology companies such as Amazon.com Inc. and undisclosed price. For the past two years, Microsoft’s Among the games previewed for Xbox One were Netflix Inc. Director Steven Spielberg will produce a Xbox 360 has outsold its rivals. But it’s been eight the military shooter “Call of Duty: Ghosts” from TV series based on the “Halo” games. (From left to right) Habib Mahakain, Mohammed Amin and Ahmed Halmy years since that machine came out, and Microsoft is Activision Blizzard Inc., soccer extravaganza “FIFA 14” The original Xbox debuted in 2001, and its high- the last of the three major console makers to unveil a from Electronic Arts Inc and racing simulator “Forza definition successor premiered in 2005. The Xbox rep- new system. In those eight years, Apple launched the Motorsport 5” and time bender “Quantum Break,” resents a small fraction of Microsoft’s overall revenue, EMC establishes new iPhone and the iPad, “FarmVille” rose and fell and both from Microsoft Game Studios. Microsoft said but it is an important consumer-facing business for tablets began to threaten desktop computers, chang- more games will be shown at next month’s E3 video Microsoft and offers a way to direct traffic to other ing how people interact with games and beyond. game conference in Los Angeles. Microsoft-owned services, including Skype. operations in Kuwait Now, the stakes are high as Microsoft, Sony and The company said there will be more than 15 Microsoft’s stock fell 23 cents, or less than 1 percent, Nintendo are all using their latest machines not only games available exclusively on the Xbox One in its to close Tuesday at $34.85. By Islam Al-Sharaa “Kuwait represents a fast developing Middle to draw gamers but also to command the living first year, eight of them new franchises. In recent Nintendo kicked off the next generation of gam- East market where both the government and room. The goal is to extend their reach beyond loyal years, the Xbox has been the exclusive home to such ing in November with the launch of the Wii U, the suc- KUWAIT: EMC Corporation, a global leader in private organizations are investing in game- legions of hardcore gamers and to become as impor- enabling businesses and service providers to changing technologies such as virtualization tant to our lives at home as smartphones have transform their operations and deliver IT as a and cloud computingto boost operational become to our lives on the go. Don Mattrick, service, announced that it is strengthening its efficiency. As these organizations become Microsoft’s president of interactive entertainment commitment to current and prospective cus- more competitive, they continue to focus on business, said the company has spent the past four tomers and channel partners in the Middle more innovative ways to offer their cus- years working on an “all-in-one home entertainment East region by opening an office in Kuwait. tomers an enhanced experience while opti- system.” From the new office, EMC will extend its mizing costs. EMC is committed to helping At an hour-long unveiling at the company’s expertise to organizations across various local organizations meet their business Redmond, Wash., headquarters on Tuesday, Microsoft industries in the Kuwaiti market to help them objectives.” Kuwait Times asked Amin why executives used voice controls to switch back and reduce their operational costs, increase effi- they chose Kuwait to open new offices and forth seamlessly between watching live TV, listening ciency, reduce risks, and increase their com- he said that it was a necessity, not an option to music, playing a movie and browsing the Internet - petitive advantage. to open the office as their work is growing. all while running apps for stuff like fantasy football Ahmed Helmy, who has been with EMC “We have to be close to our customer”. and Skype chats on the side of the screen. for seven years, will manage operations at the Habib Mahakian, EMC Regional General “It really extends the home entertainment experi- Kuwait office. Prior to this appointment, Manager for the Gulf and Pakistan said “Our ence,” Gartner analyst Brian Blau said. He said the con- Ahmed was EMC’s Telecom District Manager presence in Kuwait brings us closer to local sole seems to appeal to “more than just a core gamer for the North Gulf and Levant Area. In this customers and channel partners thereby giv- in the family” and should be of interest to all types of role he was responsible for relationships with ing us an opportunity to better understand audiences, from sports players to TV viewers to those two major telecom operators in the Gulf their needs and requirements. We are here to who are “social and want to share things.” The Xbox region. help organizations lead their IT and business One unveiling follows Nintendo Co.’s launch of the Wii Mohammed Amin, Senior Vice President transformation and help them further devel- U in November and Sony Corp.’s tease in February of and Regional Manager, Turkey, Eastern op their skill set through knowledge transfer, the upcoming PlayStation 4. Each of the new con- Europe, Africa and Middle East at EMC said technology consultancy, and support.” soles has shifted away from simply serving as gaming machines, as they incorporate streaming media apps and social networking features. People will be able to connect their cable or satel- lite set-top box and watch TV through the Xbox One. It will have its own channel guide and allow viewers to change channels by voice command. Senior Vice REDMOND: A member of the Microsoft security team watches over the newly unveiled President Yusuf Mehdi demonstrated how the con- sole switched quickly between channels after saying Xbox One videogame console at the Microsoft campus. —AFP show names such as “Mary and Martha” or com- mands like “watch MTV.” His voice command of “What’s on HBO?” brought up the channel guide for HBO. “No more memorizing channels or hunting for the remote control,” Mehdi said. The interface for the TV goes well beyond the functionality in the Wii U, which still requires users to press buttons to change the input source on the TV. Xbox One seamlessly flipped between games, movies and TV shows with voice commands. In addition to the console, Microsoft unveiled a new version of its camera-based Kinect system with better motion and voice detection, Risky behavior starts including the ability to recognize faces, tell if you’re smiling or talking and gauge your heart rate. In a young on web: study demonstration, the new sensor detected up to seven people in front of it. Microsoft said the new Kinect will SYDNEY: Australian children are accessing social Conroy said it was troubling that children talk to be included with the Xbox One and is deeply inte- media websites at an increasingly younger age, a strangers online. “It shows we must remain vigilant grated into the system, but it won’t necessarily always new survey suggests, with one in five “tweens” to online threats,” he said. The findings suggest the be watching users in their living rooms. admitting they have chatted to someone online age at which children first use social media is falling, “There’s the ability for you to manage the privacy they do not know. The report “Tweens, Teens and given a 2012 McAfee survey of teens aged 13-17 settings so you can turn it off,” Marc Whitten, Technology” by online security company McAfee found the average age they opened their first social Microsoft’s chief product officer of interactive enter- found that children in the tweens age category of network account was 13. On average, tweens were tainment business, said in an interview in his office eight to 12 were adopting technology faster than using three or four devices that can be Internet after Tuesday’s presentation. “Just like the 360, the expected, with 67 percent using a social media enabled, with 66 percent opting for mobile phones biggest thing for us is that you are in control of your REDMOND: Yusuf Mehdi, senior vice president of Microsoft’s interactive entertainment website. Despite the age eligibility for Facebook and/or tablets. Fifty-four percent said they used a privacy.” The company also introduced a more ergonomic Xbox controller, with a slightly different business, talks about the next-generation Xbox One entertainment and gaming con- being 13, one in four (26 percent) admitted to using tablet for more than an hour a day. Most tweens sole system’s capabilities for viewing live sports. —AP the site-although 95 percent said they had their use their devices to access the Internet, and on layout from the Xbox 360 controller and trigger but- parents’ permission to do so. average spend about 1.5 hours a day accessing the tons that vibrate. The new console will also add the The most popular site for tweens was Skype web, the survey said. “Both parents and schools are ability to play Blu-ray discs, matching what Sony has popular gaming franchises as sci-fi shooter “Halo” and cessor to the popular Wii system. The Wii U features (used by 28 percent), but children were also using encouraged to keep a close monitor on their child’s in its older PlayStation 3. alien shoot-’em-up “Gears of War.” Wedbush analyst an innovative tablet-like controller, though its graph- Instagram, according to the survey of 500 young- online behaviour to ensure they have safe online The Xbox One won’t require a constant connec- Michael Pachter said Tuesday’s presentation was ics is on par with the previous-generation Xbox 360 sters geograhically representative of Australia’s experiences,” said Andrew Littleproud, president of tion to the Internet, but having it will be useful for more general than what Microsoft will likely give at and Sony’s PlayStation 3. Nintendo said the console online population. While the survey found that one McAfee Asia-Pacific. “By working closely with child many of the gaming and entertainment features. The E3, where games will be central as thousands of sold just 3.45 million units by the end of March, well in five tweens (19 percent) said they chatted to psychologists, we have seen that online behaviours Xbox has been popular largely because of its Xbox game industry insiders, bloggers and journalists gath- below expectations. someone online that they did not know, only seven become entrenched in the tween age group so Live service, which lets users play games online with er for the annual industry conference. “They didn’t Sony was next, teasing plans for its upcoming percent said they had shared personal information. proactive education is critical within eight to 12 age other players with annual plans that cost as much as focus on games,” he said. “They focused on everything PlayStation 4 - without showing the actual box - at a Australia’s Communications Minister Stephen bracket.” —AFP $60 a year. “The box wants to connect to the Internet,” else.” February event in New York. The reaction to that con- Whitten said. “That said, we understand the Internet is That everything else includes a multiyear agree- sole, which featured richer graphics and more social flakey. It doesn’t always work. We want to make sure ment between Microsoft and the National Football features, was mixed. The PS4 is expected by the holi- you can still play your games, watch movies and League to develop new interactive viewing experi- days. Microsoft didn’t waste any time showing off the watch TV if the Internet is down.” ences for pro football games through such products Xbox One console, new Kinect sensor and Xbox con- Teens migrating Despite talk that Microsoft might restrict the use as the Xbox One and Microsoft’s Surface tablet com- troller at the beginning of Tuesday’s presentation. of games previously owned by others, the company puter. Fans will be able to watch games, chat with Barbara Ortutay reported from New York. AP Business confirmed that the Xbox One will indeed play used other fans, view statistics, access highlights in real Writer Ryan Nakashima in Los Angeles and AP Pro to Twitter now games, but it didn’t provide details on how that time and gather fantasy information about players Football Writer Barry Wilner in Boston contributed to would work. It said games for the Xbox 360 won’t and teams - all on a single screen. For those who pre- this story. —AP WASHINGTON: Twitter is booming as a social than 60 percent of the teens with Twitter media destination for teenagers who complain accounts said their tweets were public, meaning Restaurant learns online about too many adults and too much drama on anyone on Twitter - friend, foe or stranger - can Facebook, according to a new study published see what they write and publish. About one- reviews can make or break Tuesday about online behavior. It said teens are quarter of kids said their tweets were private sharing more personal information about them- and 12 percent said they did not know whether PHOENIX: It was the customer service disaster Foursquare, Yelp, Facebook and Instagram, where selves even as they try to protect their online their tweets were public or private. heard around the Internet. An Arizona restaurateur, comments can often be more vitriol than in-person reputations. Teens are also sharing much more than in fed up after years of negative online reviews and an reviews because of the anonymous shield many Teens told researchers there were too many the past. More than 90 percent of teen social embarrassing appearance on a reality television social media websites provide. adults on Facebook and too much sharing of media users said they have posted a picture of show, posted a social media rant laced with salty No matter how ugly the reviews get, businesses language and angry, uppercase letters that quickly need to be willing to admit mistakes and offer dis- teenage angst and inane details like what a themselves - up from 79 percent in 2006, the went viral last week, to the delight of people who counts to lure unhappy customers back, digital friend ate for dinner. “The key is that there are poll said. Seven in ten disclose the city or town love a good Internet meltdown. marketing experts said. “In the past, people just fewer adults, fewer parents and just simply less where they live, up from about 60 percent over “I AM NOT STUPID ALL OF YOU ARE,” read the sent bad soup back. Well, now they are getting on complexity,” said Amanda Lenhart of the Pew the same time period. And 20 percent disclose posting on the Facebook wall of Amy’s Baking Co. social media and telling all their friends and friends Research Center, one of the study’s authors. their cell phone number - up sharply from a in suburban Phoenix. “YOU JUST DO NOT KNOW of friends how bad the soup was and why they “They still have their Facebook profiles, but they mere two percent in 2006. GOOD FOOD.” It was, to put it kindly, not a best should find other places to get soup in the future, spend less time on them and move to places Even so, Parry Aftab, an attorney and online business practice. Add to that an appearance earli- so it takes the customer experience to another lev- like Twitter, Instagram and Tumblr.” child safety advocate, says kids seem to be exer- er this month on the Fox reality television show el,” said Tom Garrity of the Garrity Group, a public In the poll, 94 percent of teens who are cising more caution about their posts. “They are “Kitchen Nightmares” - where celebrity chef relations firm in New Mexico. social media users have a profile on Facebook - sharing. This is their life,” Aftab said in an inter- Gordon Ramsay gave up on trying to save the “The challenge becomes - how do you respond flat from the previous year. Twenty-six percent view. “But they tend to be sharing personal stuff restaurant after he was insulted - and you have a when someone doesn’t think your food or product of teen social media users were on Twitter. That’s far better than they ever did before.” recipe for disaster. is as great as you think it is?” In Amy and Samy more than double the figure in 2011 of 12 per- The poll suggested teens are also taking “That’s probably the worst thing that can hap- Bouzaglo’s case, the bad reviews were compound- cent. “Facebook just really seems to have more steps to protect their reputations and mask pen,” said Sujan Patel, founder and CEO of Single ed by their horrible reality TV experience. The cou- Grain, a digital marketing agency in San Francisco. ple said during a recent episode of “Kitchen drama,” said 16-year-old Jaime Esquivel in an information they don’t want others to see. For In the evolving world of online marketing, where Nightmares” that they needed professional guid- interview. example, nearly 60 percent of teen social media the power of word of mouth has been wildly ampli- ance after years of battling terrible online reviews. Esquivel said he still checks his Facebook users said they have deleted or edited some- fied by the whims and first impressions of anony- They opened the pizzeria in an upscale Scottsdale account daily but isn’t using it as regularly as in thing that they had published. Just over half the ROTTERDAM: The PAKS, vehicle No. 519, UrbanConcept, mous reviewers posting on dozens of social media neighborhood about six years ago. “Kitchen the past. He sees teens complaining on Twitter, teens have deleted comments from others on running on Gasoline, competing for team SKAP from websites, online comments, both good and bad, Nightmares” follows Ramsay as he helps rebuild too, so Esquivel has been using the photo-shar- their profile or account. The researchers sur- Warsaw University of Technology, Poland races during and the reactions they trigger from managers, can struggling restaurants. After one bite, he quickly ing service Instagram more often, posting a veyed 802 parents and their 802 teens. The poll Day 2 of competition at the Shell Eco-marathon Europe make all the difference between higher revenues deemed Amy’s Baking Co. a disaster and chided couple of pictures each day and communicat- was conducted between July 26 and September at The Ahoy centre in Rotterdam, The Netherlands. The and empty storefronts. the Bouzaglos for growing increasingly irate over ing with friends. Facebook purchased 30, 2012, on landline and cell phones. The mar- car won first prize in the Gasoline category. Teams from Hotels, restaurants and other businesses that his constructive feedback. Among his many cri- depend on good customer service reviews have all tiques: The store-bought ravioli smelled “weird,” a Instagram last year. gin of error for the full sample is plus or minus universities all over Europe have brought their energy In what may be a concern to parents, more 4.5 percentage points. —AP grappled in recent years with how to respond to salmon burger was overcooked and a fig pizza was efficient cars to compete in the challenge. —AP online feedback on sites such as Twitter, too sweet and arrived on raw dough. —AP THURSDAY, MAY 23, 2013 HEALTH & SCIENCE Aviation experts see emissions deal by 2020

GENEVA: Senior officials from business and ers, ordered their carriers not to comply commercial aviation voiced cautious opti- and the United States said it would con- mism that a long-sought worldwide frame- sider retaliatory action. work to reduce aviation’s carbon emissions could be in place by 2020. And a key negotia- EU measures suspended tor for the European Union’s Executive The EU suspended implementation of Commission, focus of anger from many other the scheme, which would have compelled countries over its emissions trading scheme commercial and business aviation carriers (ETS), said she hoped a road map towards a from anywhere in the world to purchase off- pact would be agreed by this autumn. set credits for the carbon they emit over a The comments came on Tuesday at a dis- set baseline for any flight arriving or depart- cussion on prospects for a global deal elimi- ing European airspace. At Tuesday’s EBACE nating the threat of regional or national rules, discussion, Elina Bardram of the European which aviation leaders say would be disas- Commission’s climate action division said trous, at an annual European show for the Brussels remained committed to dialogue as international aviation business sector, EBACE. the best way to achieve global agreement “Eventually I think we’ll get there,” said Kurt by 2020 through the United Nations’ Edwards of the International Business Aviation International Civil Aviation Organization. Council, IBAC, which groups plane and equip- It has already suspended enforcement of ment makers and service providers for the its own interim scheme pending the out- multibillion dollar sector. come of negotiations at ICAO’s triennial Guy Visele of the European Business assembly from Sept 24 to Oct 4, but has not Aviation Association, EBAA, agreed but yet made clear what it will do if those end in argued that meanwhile his industry - which deadlock. “The path remains challenging creates a tiny fraction of the emissions which but we can remain confident that a road contribute to global warming - should be map will be agreed at ICAO if political rheto- PHOENIX: Solar Impulse, piloted by Andre Borschberg, takes flight during the second leg of the 2013 Across America mission yes- treated less harshly by the EU. Business avia- ric can be dropped,” she said. terday from Sky Harbor International Airport. —AP tion - in which a major role is played by big Officials from 17 countries are working manufacturers like Boeing, Europe’s Airbus, with Montreal-based ICAO to shape an Canada’s Bombardier and Brazil’s Embraer - agreement acceptable to its 191 member Solar plane eyes new leg has been seen by many politicians as a play- countries to reduce aviation’s carbon foot- ground for the super-rich. print through market measures. Paul Steele, But its advocates say the industry, in the environmental specialist for the commercial doldrums since the financial crisis of 2008/9 airlines’ International Air Transport of cross-country US trip after a decade-long boom, plays a major role Association, IATA, and head of the Geneva- in world trade and that over 80 percent of its based Air Transport Action Group, ATAG, operations involve moving businesspeople said considerable progress had been made Project sets goal of around-the-world flight in 2015 rather than elite individuals. in the ICAO talks but quick agreement was The EU, committed to combat the cli- unlikely. “We’re not going to get there this LOS ANGELES: The first-ever manned airplane that ters) per hour. Energy provided by 12,000 solar cells along with cockpit cameras of both Piccard and his mate change blamed on carbon emis- year. With 191 countries in ICAO, you’re not can fly by day or night on solar power alone was set powered the plane’s propellers. view from the plane, were online at live.solarim- sions, created an international storm going to get agreement easily,” he told the to soar early yesterday on the second leg of its jour- The project aims to showcase what can be pulse.com. when it said it would impose its rules from EBACE session. But to reach the 2020 dead- ney across the United States. The fuel-free plane accomplished without fossil fuels, and has set its The aircraft completed its first intercontinental January this year on all flights to and from line, agreement was vital at ICAO’s next was due to leave Phoenix, Arizona for Dallas, Texas, “ultimate goal” as an around-the-world flight in journey from Europe to Africa in June on a jaunt its territory. China and India, among oth- assembly in 2016, he said. —Reuters organizers said. The US crossing is being billed as 2015. The plane can fly at night by reaching a high from Madrid to Rabat. The plane completed the the plane’s first cross-continent flight. elevation of 27,000 feet (8,230 meters) and then first-ever solar 26-hour day and night trip in 2010. On May 3, Swiss adventurer Bertrand Piccard gently gliding downward, using almost no power However, the cockpit has room for just one pilot, flew the craft from Moffett Airfield near San through the night until the sun comes up to begin so even though the plane could likely make the Francisco, California to Sky Harbor International recharging the solar cells. entire US journey in three days, Piccard decided it Airport in Phoenix on the first leg of the trip. But The US itinerary allows for up to 10 days at each would be easier to rest and exchange flight control yesterday Swiss fellow adventurer Andre stop in order to showcase the plane’s technology to with Borschberg at the stops. Solar Impulse was Borschberg will be at the controls flying the craft to the public. Another stop is planned in the US capital launched in 2003. The slim plane is particularly sen- Dallas on a 1,337 km (830 mile) journey that would Washington before the trip concludes in New York sitive to turbulence and has no room for passen- set a world record for distance. in early July. The stopovers will allow Piccard and gers, but Piccard has insisted that those issues are On the first phase of the continental crossing Borschberg to share duties and rest between challenges to be met in the future, rather than set- the plane-which has a slim body and four electric flights. backs. Sponsors include the Solvay Chemical engines attached to enormous wings-flew quietly A dashboard showing the live speed, direction, Group, Omega watches and the Swiss elevator and at an average speed of about 30 miles (49 kilome- battery status, solar generator and engine power, escalator company, The Schindler Group. —AFP Cancer drugs tipped to be a $35bn market LONDON: A new wave of medicines that tap the power of the immune system to fight cancer could become the biggest drug class in history, with potential sales of $35 billion a year. That bullish sales forecast by analysts at US bank Citigroup high- lights the growing excitement surrounding so- Special K churns out called immunotherapy after positive results from clinical trials conducted by companies such as Bristol-Myers Squibb and Roche Holding. products in evolution “We believe this market will generate sales of up to $35 billion (a year) over the next 10 years and be NEW YORK: Special K was once just a line of lowed by cracker chips in 2009 and popcorn used in some way in the management of up to 60 cereals. Today, it’s a diet food empire. The chips last year. Three types of breakfast sand- percent of all cancers,” Citi analyst Andrew Baum brand first hit shelves in 1955 as a no-frills wiches popped up in frozen food sections this past January. said yesterday. Citi’s forecast is considerably higher breakfast alternative but now caters to dieters who see its airy chips and pastries as a Last year, Kellogg even transformed the than current market consensus, but if it proves cor- way to beat cravings and lose weight. And Special K website into a more sophisticated CUTLER BAY: In this undated photo, Ronald Poppo, a homeless man whose face rect, then cancer immunotherapy would exceed the this summer, Kellogg Co is building on its weight management site. Visitors can sign up was mostly chewed off in a bizarre attack last year in Miami, plays the guitar in peak market value of top blockbuster drug classes biggest moneymaker with a “hot cereal” for meal plans that help them reach their diet his room at Jackson Memorial Perdue Medical Center in Cutler Bay, Fla. —AP such as statins for high cholesterol. called Special K Nourish that’s made with goal; at least one Special K product is includ- After years of puzzling over how to get the quinoa and other grains. ed each day’s plan, sometimes two or three. body’s immune system to respond more effectively The new line, which promises to fill people The site now has more than 2 million mem- against tumour cells, scientists are now finding a up with 8 grams of protein and 5 grams of bers. Weight Watchers, meanwhile, says it Face-chewing fiber, reflects Special K’s push to move in step doesn’t see Special K as a challenger. The number of promising avenues. The new drugs are with evolving trends. Until now, Special K company says its approach is more holistic designed to target areas that act as brakes on the products largely gave dieters low-calorie imi- and follows the adage that “teaching a man victim recovering immune system. By interfering with these brakes, tations of their fantasy foods. But weight to fish” is better than giving him a fish to eat MIAMI: A homeless man whose face was most- in his best interest,” Kassira said. A Miami police the drugs free the immune system to attack and kill watchers are increasingly looking for added for just one meal. ly chewed off in a bizarre attack last year officer shot and killed Poppo’s attacker, Rudy cancer cells. Bristol-Myers Squibb’s nivolumab and nutritional benefits, rather than just counting Product-based diet plans are short-term appeared Tuesday to be mostly at peace with Eugene. It’s still not clear provoked Eugene. Roche’s MPDL3280A are two leading contenders in calories. solutions that fall into the latter category, said his disfigurement, strumming a guitar, making Callers reported seeing a naked Eugene swing- the field. Both had an impressive effect against a “They’re eating better, not just eating less,” Karen Miller-Kovach, chief scientific officer for jokes and thanking people for their donations ing from a light pole minutes before the attack. variety of cancers, according to preliminary trial said Noel Geoffroy, vice president of market- Weight Watchers International, which pro- ing for Kellogg Morning Foods. The Special K motes learning to eat all foods in moderation. to help pay for his care. Ronald Poppo doesn’t Lab tests found only marijuana in his system. results released last week. Further details of the like to leave his hospital room, though, and he Ruth Charles, Eugene’s mother, declined com- Nourish hot cereal will come in individual “That approach is like giving a person a cod studies will be presented at a meeting of the won’t allow anyone to visit him, other than his ment. “To tell you the truth, I don’t feel like serving cups; people add water and toppings for breakfast and a mackerel for lunch - but doctors and nurses. “My face,” he says. going back to this thing again,” she said. “I’m American Society of Clinical Oncology in Chicago that come in separate compartments on the the person still hasn’t learned how to fish,” Poppo lost his left eye, his nose and most of just trying to recover from what happened.” early next month. lids. The products, which have less than 200 she said. the surrounding skin when a naked man Poppo doesn’t blame Eugene for what hap- Conventional chemotherapy and other cancer calories, are slated to hit stores in July and will Miller-Kovach also noted that people also attacked him for no reason alongside a Miami pened, said Adolfa Sigue, nurse manager at the drugs often have a powerful effect in shrinking come in Maple Brown Sugar, Cranberry get sick of eating the same thing all the time, highway a year ago. In a video posted online Jackson Memorial Perdue Medical Center, tumours, but the effect is typically short-lived. The Almond and Cinnamon Raisin Pecan. A line of which is why diet food makers have to roll out Tuesday by the hospital caring for him, his left where he lives. “The only thing that he always effect of immunotherapy can last much longer Nourish bars will come in Dark Chocolate so many product extensions. Other healthy Nut, Cranberry Bliss and Lemon Twist. eating advocates question the nutritional cre- eye socket is a hollow shadow, his blinded right tells me is that, ‘I’m sure that that man had a because the immune system has effectively been eye is covered by a skin graft and his nose is bad day that day,’” Sigue said. Poppo, 66, still Special K’s evolution to stay relevant is crit- dentials of such packaged snacks, and reset to remember how to keep fighting cancer reduced to just the nostrils. Still, Poppo joked requires daily medical care for his wounds, and ical for Kellogg. The company, which also whether they have any role in a healthy diet. with his nurses and, though he wears a base- he’s working with occupational therapists and cells. Citigroup said that immunotherapy has the makes Frosted Flakes and Eggo waffles, has Michael Jacobson, executive director of ball cap, leaves his face uncovered to address specialists from the Miami Lighthouse for the potential to transform a significant percentage of been struggling to grow cereal sales at a time the Center for Science in the Public Interest, the camera. Blind to learn how to adjust to his blindness. cancers into something akin to a chronic disease, in when Americans are looking for more on- notes that there’s a difference between trying “People in my predicament need to be He can dress himself and is learning again to a similar way to how HIV drugs have made the viral the-go options. Over the past decade, for to lose weight and eating better. So while the helped out, and I’m sure there’s other people play the guitar, an instrument he had not disease a manageable condition. example, sales of cold cereals in the U.S. have Special K cereal bars may only be 90 calories, grown just 6 percent to $8.9 billion, according for example, he notes that they’re full of corn also that have the same type of predicament. I picked up for 40 years. On the back of its upbeat prediction for the to the market researcher Euromonitor syrup and a long list of other ingredients peo- thank the outpouring of people in the commu- He’s gained 50 pounds, and though his immunotherapy market, Citigroup has upgraded nity, I’ll always be grateful for that,” Poppo said caretakers would like to see him exercise more, International. ple may not recognize. in the brief video, which was shot recently. He he so far refuses to leave the facility unless he’s shares in Bristol-Myers Squibb and Roche to “buy” But Special K has been standout for “It probably provides 90 calories of a tasty spent nearly a month in the hospital after the going to the hospital to see his doctors, said from “neutral”. Roche stock was trading 1.7 percent Kellogg, with the brand’s market share snack but it’s not a health food,” Jacobson attack, before moving to a long-term care facil- Patricia Copalko, a certified nursing assistant at higher by 0914 GMT, outperforming a flat European increasing to 5 percent, up from 3.3 percent a said. Still, Special K has its loyal followers. ity. His doctors at Jackson Memorial Hospital the medical center. He also hasn’t allowed any drugs sector. decade ago, according to Euromonitor. The Lindsay Cobb, a 30-year-old who works in and the University of Miami Miller School of visitors to see him, other than his doctors, nurs- Other leading players with a range of drugs, vac- broader transformation of Special K into a finance in New York City, got into the habit of Medicine praised Poppo for his resilience and es and therapists. Sigue said Poppo doesn’t cines and cell therapy treatments in the cancer weight management tool is also a reflection eating Special K with Red Berries for breakfast said he’s satisfied with the surgeries and skin answer the telephone in his room and hasn’t of its “Special K Challenge” ad campaign that after trying it at her mother’s house four years immunotherapy field include GlaxoSmithKline, first aired in 2003. Those ads famously prom- ago. “My metabolism was slowing down and grafts that have closed his wounds. wanted to talk with relatives other than a sister, AstraZeneca, Novartis , Merck & Co and Amgen. In Poppo could still use his own tissues or who calls the nurse’s cellphone to get through. ised that women would be able to lose 6 it beat having a bagel in the morning,” she prosthetics to replace his nose or eye, but he is “He doesn’t wander out of his room very addition to the progress being made in research, pounds in two weeks by replacing breakfast said. not interested in more facial reconstruction. often,” Copalko said, adding, “He needs to get analysts believe that the immunotherapy field could and lunch with Special K and having a sensi- She still eats it for breakfast on most week- “There’s still work that can be done, but he’s out and he has refused. But also, I get it. He also benefit from a new US Food and Drug ble dinner at night. days, estimating that the generous bowls she more than happy with how he is now, and he’s says, ‘My face.’” Poppo’s caretakers describe him Administration initiative to speed approval of impor- “It really hit on the need women had for pours herself clock in at around 250 calories quite grateful,” said Dr. Wrood Kassira, a plastic as a charming, cooperative patient who enjoys tant and innovative drugs. The US watchdog recent- easy, attainable way to manage their weight,” with skim milk. And Cobb is usually willing to surgeon. A facial transplant wouldn’t be neces- listening to Miami Heat basketball games on ly started a scheme to allow quicker studies of life- Geoffroy said. For many looking to shed a few try whatever new Special K products she sees pounds, the Special K brand became a psy- at the supermarket at least once. Even sary, since Poppo didn’t lose any functions oth- the radio. He can stay at the medical center saving therapies designated as a “breakthrough”, er than his vision. indefinitely. His care is covered by Medicaid, chological stamp of approval and Kellogg has though she doesn’t like to snack often, she provided that clinical data is compelling. —Reuters “To put him through a lifetime of immuno- and a Jackson Memorial Foundation fund has been churning out spinoff products ever trusts that a Special K treat won’t crash her suppression is not something he nor us think is raised $100,000 for his medical expenses. —AP since. Shakes and bars came in 2006, fol- diet. —AP THURSDAY, MAY 23, 2013 HEALTH & SCIENCE

US govt signs up British fertility team hails GlaxoSmithKline embryo selection method for antibiotics LONDON: The US government has signed an antibiotics development deal worth up to $200 million with LONDON: British fertility experts have Fishel, a leading fertility doctor and director ods of selecting embryos are based largely developed what they call morphokinetic GlaxoSmithKline to tackle the dual threats of drug resistance devised a new IVF technique that takes at the IVF clinic operator CARE Fertility on what they look like through a micro- algorithms to predict success (MAPS). By and bioterrorism. The collaboration, the first of its kind between Washington and a drug company, will allow fund- thousands of snapshots of a developing where the technique is being developed. scope, and many IVF cycles fail because the applying these MAPS to the selection of ing to move around GSK’s antibiotics portfolio rather than embryo that they say can help doctors pick Independent scientists not involved in the embryo chosen and transferred to the embryos, they predict they could reach a focusing on a single drug candidate. those most likely to implant successfully work welcomed it as a significant advance womb fails to develop. live birth rate for patients undergoing IVF of The rise of antibiotic resistance is causing alarm among and develop into healthy babies. At a brief- but said full randomised controlled trials - The scientists who led this study said 78 percent - about three times the national governments worldwide, leading to warnings from officials ing in London before publishing their the gold standard in medicine - should be that using time-lapse images, they had average. Fishel, whose CARE Fertility clinics such as England’s chief medical officer Sally Davies that the results, the researchers said they are already conducted before it is adopted as main- found that developmental delays in the are Britain’s largest independent provider of issue is a “ticking time bomb” threatening public health. using the technique to select “low risk” stream practice. embryo at crucial stages are good indica- assisted conception cycles, with around Thomas Frieden, director of the US Centers for Disease embryos that are the least likely to have “This paper is interesting because we tors of likely chromosomal abnormalities 3,500 a year, said he is charging around 750 Control and Prevention, recently called for an urgent fight- chromosomal abnormalities that could really do need to make advances in select- that could result in a failed pregnancy. pounds ($1,100) for IVF using the MAPS back against “nightmare bacteria”. The collaboration between hamper their development. ing the best embryos created during IVF,” technique - compared to several thousand GSK and the Biomedical Advanced Research and In their study, published in the journal said Allan Pacey of Sheffield University, Viewing far more images pounds for a standard IVF cycle. Development Authority (BARDA), part of the US. Department Reproductive BioMedicine Online, the chair of the British Fertility Society. “The “In conventional IVF laboratories, But Sue Avery, head of the Women’s of Health and Human Services, will study potential new team’s chances of producing a successful idea of monitoring embryo development embryo development will be checked up to Fertility Centre in Birmingham, said it was drugs to treat conventional pathogens and those that might be developed as bioterrorism weapons. live birth after in-vitro fertilisation (IVF) were more closely is being used increasingly in six times over a 5-day period,” said Alison too soon for all clinics to adopt it. “Until Britain’s biggest drugmaker said yesterday it would increased by 56 percent using the new clinics around the world and so it is good to Campbell, Care Fertility’s embryology direc- the new technique is compared to current receive $40 million for an initial 18 months and up to a total technique compared to the standard see the science involved submitted to peer tor and the lead researcher on the study practice we cannot know whether differ- of $200 million if the agreement is renewed over five years. method of selecting embryos that look best review and publication,” he added. “All too being published. “With time-lapse we have ent embryos are being chosen,” she said. The problem of antibiotic resistance and the rise of so-called through a microscope. often, developments in IVF are trumpeted the ability to view more than 5,000 images “The IVF community needs a prospective “superbugs” that cannot be treated with traditional medi- “In the 35 years I have been in this field, as advances when they remain unproven.” over the same time period to observe and randomized controlled trial to prove that cines has been growing for years, but drug companies have this is probably the most exciting and sig- Experts say that today, as many as 1 to 2 measure more closely each stage of division the new approach delivers better results been reluctant to invest in new medicines because of poor nificant development that can be of value percent of babies in the Western world are and growth.” before it can be recommended to returns.—Reuters to all patients seeking IVF,” said Simon conceived through IVF. The standard meth- Using this new knowledge, the team patients.” —Reuters WHAT’S ON THURSDAY, MAY 23, 2013 Exhibition of photographs of SEND US YOUR Islamic monuments of India INSTAGRAM PICS

hat’s more fun than clicking a beauti- n Exhibition of Photographs of Islamic ful picture? Sharing it with others! Let Monuments of India by Benoy K Behl, Art - histo- rian and photographer was inaugurated by other people see the way you see A W Mohammed Al-Asoussi, Asst. Secretary General for Art & Kuwait - through your lens. Friday Times will Theater Sector, National Council of Culture, Arts & feature snapshots of Kuwait through Instagram Letters at 1900 hrs on May 21, 2013 at Al-Edwani Hall, feeds. If you want to share your Instagram pho- Dahiyat Abdullah Al-Salem. The exhibition has been tos, email us at organized by the Embassy of India, Kuwait in associa- [email protected] tion with National Council of Arts, Culture & Letters and will remain open till May 27 from 0900 hrs to 1230 hrs and 1700 hrs to 2100 hrs. The inauguration was attend- ed by Kuwaiti dignitaries, ambassadors from a number of countries, art lovers and members of the Indian com- Greetings munity in Kuwait.

ishing you on your 25th wedding anniversary, today to K Antony Thomas Wand Rosily Antony. Compliments from Ritty Ann Thomas, Kevin Thomas K, Rinku Mariya Thomas and Vipin Thomas K.

Announcements

Classical music at AUK he Department of Music and Drama is hosting a demonstration/ masterclass with the German clas- Tsical guitarist Friedemann at the American University of Kuwait (AUK), 28 May 3 pm, Liberal Arts Building, room 205. Wuttke is a gifted performer, having played with major ensembles and orchestras. Besides various concerts in Germany, he has toured in the United States and South East Asia, as well as several European metropolises. This, his first visit to the Gulf region, has been realized with the support of the German Embassy in Kuwait, in cooperation with the Dar al Athar al Islamiyyah. The AUK performance is free and open to the public.

AIP shaam-e ghazal he Association of Indian Professionals (AIP), Kuwait, forthcoming event has been scheduled for Tthe evening of May 25, 2013 at 6 pm at the audito- rium of Indian Community Senior School, Salmiya and is titled as AIP Shaam-e-Ghazal. We have invited Raghuram Krishnan, a Ghazal singer from Cochin, India to make this evening more melodious and vibrant. He will be supported by few local musicians also. Ambassador of India, Satish C. Mehta will be the Chief Guest. Admission is by invitation and children below 10 years of age will not be allowed.

The TIES Center’s ‘trip’ he TIES Center cordially invites those who are interested in its trip to the Historical, Vintage and TClassic Car Museum, which is the first museum in Kuwait specializing in old cars on May 30th at 6:00 pm. Revisit past memories or learn something new. If you love cars then this is the trip for you. Even if you don’t love cars, come anyway; you will enjoy the trip. For Kids Read celebrates World Book more information/registration, log onto: www.tiescen- ter.net. Day with fun-filled family event Photography exhibition o mark World Book Day, he Embassy of India, Kuwait in association with HSBC and the British National Council of Arts, Culture & Letters is organiz- Council joined together to ing an exhibition of photographs of Islamic monu- T T welcome over 200 children and ments of India by Benoy K Behl, Art - Historian & parents to a Kids Read event held Photographer at Al-Edwani Hall, Dahiyat Abdullah Al- in Ahmadi Primary school on May Salem. The exhibition is being inaugurated at 1900 hrs 16, 2013. Now in its 16th year, tomorrow 21 May, 2013. The exhibition shall be kept open World Book Day, designated by till 27 May 2013 from 0900 hrs to 1230 hrs and 1700 hrs to UNESCO, is a worldwide celebra- 2100 hrs. All are cordially invited to the exhibition. tion of books, authors and read- ing and is marked in over 100 countries around the globe. IMAX A joint statement released by HSBC and the British Council stat- ed, “Good reading starts early and children who share books with others are more likely to develop language skills and Broken Images: advanced reading levels. Our IMAX film program Kids Read event is a fun way to Shabana Azmi captivates get everyone’s imaginations fired Thursday: up and to encourage them to ** 9:30am Showtime Available for Groups audience in dual role become avid readers” Flight of Butterflies 3D 10:30am, 5:30pm, 8:30pm The special event included Born to be Wild 3D 11:30am habana Azmi with her character. Azmi performing live storytelling with guest story- Tornado Alley 3D12:30pm, 7:30pm, 9:30pm sheer stage presence and interacted with herself on a TV tellers from HSBC, exciting arts To The Arctic 3D 6:30pm powerful histrionics capti- screen playing a pre-recorded and crafts activities and fun com- S petitions. As well as joining in vated a house full audience in piece. With no scope for improvi- the activities, parents were able the acclaimed English play, sation, timing and technical per- to attend workshops delivered by Broken Images, brought to fection were key to such an act. the British Council on how to in encouraging children to read. in up to 12 government primary Kuwait courtesy the Al-Mulla Seasoned actress Azmi, car- help their children with reading HSBC is proud of its involvement schools in Kuwait to encourage Write to us Exchange. Written by Girish ried off the entire performance and an introduction to their free and investment in community reading for pleasure at school Karnad and directed by Alyque flawlessly and received a much websites LearnEnglish Kids and activities that support the devel- and at home. Through their com- Padamsee, two creative giants, deserved standing ovation as the LearnEnglish Parents. opment of young children and munity programme, Kids Read Send to What’s On the psychological thriller has play ended with a high pitched Simon Vaughan Johnson, CEO contribute to sustainable positive hosts up to four events through- Azmi portraying a dual role of climax. In an open interactive HSBC Kuwait said: “The Kids Read influences in the communities in out the year to highlight impor- upcoming events, birthdays or two sisters simultaneously. session with the audience follow- programme is growing in its pop- which we operate. “ tant world issues and interna- celebrations by email: In the one hour performance, ing the play, she spoke about the ularity and importance in Kuwait. Kids Read, sponsored exclu- tional days of celebration whilst The positive feedback received sively by HSBC Bank Middle East encouraging reading for pleas- [email protected] audiences watched silently as challenges of the act and shared from staff, parents and the chil- and Affiliates and developed by ure. Please contact your nearest Fax: 24835619 / 20 the story unfolded with Azmi interesting anecdotes about past dren is testimony to the success the British Council, currently British Council office to find out playing two facets of the same performances. of the programme and its impact works with children and teachers more about the next event. WHAT’S ON THURSDAY, MAY 23, 2013 Keep Kuwait Clean 3 (Beach Cleaning Campaign) Embassy Information

EMBASSY OF AUSTRALIA The Australian Embassy Kuwait does not have a visa or immigration department. All processing of visas and immigration matters in conducted by The Australian Consulate-General in Dubai. Email: info.aus- [email protected] (VFS) [email protected] (Visa Office); Tel: +971 4 355 1958 (VFS) - +971 4 508 7200 (Visa Office); Fax: +971 4 355 0708 (Visa Office). In Kuwait applications can be lodged at the Australian Visa Application Centre 4B 1st Floor, Al-Banwan Building Al-Qibla Area, Ali Al-Salem Street, opposite the Central Bank of Kuwait, Kuwait City, Kuwait. Working hours and days: 09:30 - 17:30; Sunday - Thursday. Or visit their website www.vfs-au-gcc-com for more informa- tion. Kuwait citizens can apply for tourist visas on-line at www.immi.gov.au/e visa/e676.htm. n n n n n n n EMBASSY OF CANADA The Embassy of Canada in Kuwait does not have a visa or immigration depart- ment. All processing of visa and immi- gration matters including enquiries is conduct- ed by the Canadian Embassy in Abu Dhabi, UAE. Individuals who are interested in working, studying, visiting or immigrating to Canada should contact the Canadian Embassy in Abu arrefour hypermarket on Tuesday May 14, 2013 A large number of Carrefour staff and management community, by conducting environmental activities to Dhabi, website: www.UAE.gc.ca or www.going- at 10 am, launched Keep Kuwait Clean campaign participated in this event in addition to a representa- protect and preserve the local environment, and as an tocanada.gc.ca, E-mail: abdbi-im- Cto clean up beaches. This year’s event took place tive of Kuwait environment public authority,that from example of these activities, Carrefour Kuwait few years [email protected]. The Embassy of in Salmyah Plagat beach and this environmental ges- their side always supporting activities that preserve ago launched eco-friendly shopping bags that are Canada is located at Villa 24, Al-Mutawakei St, ture comes from Carrefour’s desire for a clean environ- the Kuwaiti environment. reusable in each shopping visit. And today this initia- Block 4 in Da’aiyah. Please visit our website at mentin the State of Kuwait, and it should be noted that Carrefour Kuwait general manager Pierre-Yves tive of cleaning the beach comes for the third consecu- www.Kuwait.gc.ca. The Embassy of Canada is Carrefour has done this environmental initiative for the Martin stated “We at Carrefour as part of the Kuwaiti tive year”. open from 07:30 to 15:30 Sunday through third consecutive year. society, must do our part as an active member of this Thursday. The reception is open from 07:30 to 12:30. Consular services for Canadian citizens are provided from 09:00 until 12:00, Sunday Sheraton Kuwait celebrates 47th anniversary through Wednesday. n n n n n n n ne more year has unfolded and leaders and numerous awards from Avenues, which was very appreciated by EMBASSY OF CYPRUS the Sheraton Kuwait celebrates prestigious organizations. Moreover; the the guests. Looking forward for yet In its capacity as EU Local Presidency in yet another year of success Sheraton Kuwait has been awarded another development with the opening O the State of Kuwait, the Embassy of the marking the hotel’s 47th anniversary. It ‘Kuwait’s Leading Hotel’ at the World of the new expansion of the Four Points Republic of Cyprus, on behalf of the was in the year 1966 that the Sheraton Travel Awards 2013 to mark the year’s by Sheraton Kuwait scheduled for com- Member States of the EU and associated Kuwait was inaugurated to be the first achievement. pletion last quarter of this year which States participating in the Schengen cooper- managed Sheraton property to open On this special occasion, Fahed will further underline our commitment ation, would like to announce that as from outside North America and the first Abushaar the Area Director/General to this important market. On this occa- 2nd October 2012 all Schengen States’ Starwood property worldwide to contin- Manager of Sheraton Kuwait, expressed sion, I would like to take the opportunity Consulates in Kuwait will use the Visa ue operating under the same manage- his satisfaction at the superlative per- to congratulate all the associates of Information System (VIS). The VIS is a central ment company for over 40 years. formance of the hotel and reiterated the Sheraton Kuwait for their hard work, database for the exchange of data on short- Sheraton Kuwait has proven through- importance of being the pioneer in pro- playing a major role in the success of the stay (up to three months) visas between out the past 47 years to be the undis- viding high standards of hospitality in hotel by providing quality services to Schengen States. The main objectives of the puted pioneer in the hospitality indus- the region. the guests and I would like to extend my VIS are to facilitate visa application proce- try, locally as well as regionally. During He added “we are so proud of the sincere appreciation to all those who dures and checks at external border as well this journey, Sheraton Kuwait has won great success of the opening of the new have supported the hotel during the last as to enhance security. The VIS will contain all tremendous admiration from global restaurants at the Grand Avenue, The 47 years”. Fahed Abushaar the Schengen visa applications lodged by an applicant over five years and the decisions taken by any Schengen State’s consulate. This Rajiv Gandhi’s 22nd Martyrdom Day observed will allow applicants to establish more easily the lawful use of previous visas and their bona fide status. For the purpose of the VIS, applicants will be required to provide their biometric data (fingerprints and digital pho- tos) when applying for a Schengen visa. It is a simple and discreet procedure that only takes a few minutes. Biometric data, along with the data provided in the Schengen visa applica- tion form, will be recorded in the VIS central database. Therefore, as from 2nd October 2012, first-time applicants will have to appear in person when lodging the application, in order to provide their fingerprints. For subse- quent applications within 5 years the finger- prints can be copied from the previous appli- cation file in the VIS. The Cypriot Presidency would like to assure the people of Kuwait and all its permanent citizens that the Member States and associated States participating in the Schengen cooperation, have taken all necessary technical measures to facilitate the he 22nd Martyrdom Day of former residence of RGAC Chairman Markos Minister. Dr Tejinder Singh Arora, Dr administered the Anti Terrorism Pledge rapid examination and the efficient process- Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi Williams. Speakers from the Hindu, Jitendra Ariga, Dr Roy Francis, Veluthadath which calls for eschewing and communal ing of visa applications and to ensure a quick Twas observed on May 21, 2013 at a Christian, Muslim and Sikh communities Baderuddin, Jacob Channapetta and harmony. At the conclusion of the event and discreet procedure for the implementa- solemn event organized by the Rajiv representing the diversity of India paid Gurumeet Singh spoke on the occasion. everyone participating paid floral tributes tion of the new VIS. Gandhi Awards Committee (RGAC) at the rich tributes to the assassinated Prime Shaji Abraham, RGAC General Secretary to the departed leader Rajiv Gandhi. n n n n n n n EMBASSY OF SOUTH AFRICA KNES excels in Arabic competitions The Embassy of the Republic of South Africa will be closed on Tuesday, 28 May 2013, for an official event. The Embassy will resume it’s normal working hours on Wednesday, 29 May 2013, from Sunday to Thursday. Please note that the Working hours will be from 8h00 to 16h00 & the Consular Section operation hours will be from 8h30 to 12h30, for any emergencies please contact: 94924895.

n n n n n n n EMBASSY GREECE The Embassy of Greece in Kuwait has the pleasure to announce that visa applica- tions must be submitted to Schengen Visa Application Centre (VFS office) located at 12th floor, Al-Naser Tower, Fahad Al-Salem Street, Al- Qibla area, Kuwait City, (Parking at Souk Watia). For information please call 22281046 from 08:30 to 17:00 (Sunday to Thursday). Working hours: Submission from 08:30 to 15:30. Passport collec- tion from 16:00 to 17:00. For visa applications please visit the following website www.mfa.gr/kuwait.

n n n n n n n EMBASSY OF SOUTH KOREA The Embassy of the Republic of Korea in Kuwait will organize 2013 K-POP Contest on Thursday, June 6, 2013 at 6:00 pm. The aim of the contest is to provide an opportunity to the participants to showcase their exciting talents to the audience. Everyone is encouraged to participate in the contest. Application forms can be downloaded from the Embassy’s website: http://kwt.mofa.go.kr (Select English from the menu at the top of the page then Bilateral Relations) or visit the “Korean he students of Kuwait National English School spots amongst all the Foreign, Bilingual and Arabic amongst all schools in Kuwait. A hearty congratulation Culture Diwaniya” Facebook Group. Interested appli- participated in all the Arabic competitions held schools in Kuwait. Following their achievements, to the Arabic staff and students from Kuwait National cants must send their application forms to Tduring the current academic year and we are Kuwait national English School received the English School for their efforts. [email protected] by 24 May 2013. proud to announce that our students won all the top Prestigious Cup from the Ministry for being placed first TV PROGRAMS THURSDAY, MAY 23, 2013

03:45 Sport Today 19:30 Total Drama Island 18:45 CNN Marketplace Middle East 04:00 BBC World News 19:55 Mucha Lucha ! 19:00 CNN Football Club 04:30 Asia Business Report 20:20 Ben 10: Omniverse 19:30 Winning Post 04:45 Sport Today 20:45 The Amazing World Of 19:45 The Gateway 00:45 Your Worst Animal 05:00 BBC World News Gumball 20:00 International Desk 00:00 Dirty Soap Nightmares 05:30 Asia Business Report 21:10 Adventure Time 21:00 Quest Means Business 00:55 Style Star 01:35 I’m Alive 05:45 Sport Today 21:35 Regular Show 21:45 CNN Marketplace Europe 01:25 Too Young To Kill 02:25 Queens Of The Savannah 06:00 BBC World News 22:00 Ben 10 22:00 Amanpour 03:15 Style Star 03:15 Wildest Africa 06:30 Hardtalk 22:25 Ben 10 22:30 CNN Newscenter 03:40 Extreme Close-Up 04:05 Galapagos 07:00 BBC World News 22:50 Mucha Lucha ! 23:00 Connect The World With 04:10 THS 04:55 Shamwari: A Wild Life 07:30 World Business Report 23:15 Mucha Lucha ! Becky Anderson 05:05 THS 05:20 Echo And The Elephants Of 07:45 BBC World News 23:40 Powerpuff Girls 06:00 THS Amboseli 08:00 BBC World News 07:50 Style Star 05:45 SSPCA: On The Wildside 08:30 World Business Report 08:20 E! News 06:10 SSPCA: On The Wildside 08:45 BBC World News 09:15 Ice Loves Coco 06:35 Wildlife SOS 09:00 BBC World News 00:15 You Have Been Warned 09:45 Ice Loves Coco 07:00 The Really Wild Show 09:30 World Business Report 01:10 James May’s Man Lab 10:15 THS 07:25 Groomer Has It 09:45 BBC World News 00:30 Grim Adventures Of... 02:05 Mythbusters 12:05 E! News 08:15 Dogs 101 10:00 BBC World News 01:20 Johnny Test 03:00 Mythbusters 13:05 Chasing The Saturdays 09:10 Weird Creatures With Nick 10:30 World Business Report 02:10 Ben 10: Ultimate Alien 03:55 Border Security - Series 6 13:35 Chasing The Saturdays Baker 10:45 BBC World News 02:35 Ben 10: Ultimate Alien Specials 14:05 Kourtney & Kim Take New 10:05 Queens Of The Savannah 11:00 BBC World News 03:00 The Amazing World Of 04:20 Auction Hunters York 11:00 Animal Cops Phoenix 11:30 Hardtalk Gumball 04:50 Storage Hunters 15:00 Style Star 11:55 Shamwari: A Wild Life 12:00 BBC World News 03:25 Regular Show 05:15 How Machines Work 15:30 E!es 12:20 Wildlife SOS 12:30 World Business Report 03:50 Ben 10: Omniverse 05:40 How Stuff’s Made 16:30 Extreme Close-Up 12:50 Safari Vet School 12:45 Sport Today 04:15 Scooby-Doo! Mystery 06:05 Sons Of Guns 17:00 Playing With Fire 13:15 Safari Vet School 13:00 BBC World News Incorporated 07:00 Mythbusters 18:00 E! News 13:45 Animal Precinct 13:30 BBC World News 04:40 Powerpuff Girls 07:50 Jesse James: Outlaw Garage 19:00 THS 14:40 Queens Of The Savannah 14:00 GMT With George Alagiah 05:05 Evil Con Carne 08:45 Gold Rush 20:00 Kourtney And Kim Take Miami 15:30 Echo And The Elephants Of 14:30 GMT With George Alagiah 05:30 Cow & Chicken 09:40 Border Security - Series 6 21:00 Chasing The Saturdays Amboseli 15:00 BBC World News 06:00 Casper’s Scare School Specials 21:30 Fashion Police 16:00 The Really Wild Show 15:30 World Business Report 06:30 Angelo Rules 10:05 Auction Hunters 22:30 E! News 16:30 Dogs 101 15:45 Sport Today 07:00 Dreamworks Dragons Riders 10:30 Auction Kings 23:30 Chelsea Lately 17:25 Your Pet Wants This 16:00 Impact With Mishal Husain Of Berk 10:55 How Machines Work 18:20 America’s Cutest... 16:30 Impact With Mishal Husain 07:25 Johnny Test 11:25 How It’s Made 19:15 Escape To Chimp Eden 17:00 Impact With Mishal Husain 07:45 Scooby-Doo! Mystery 11:50 You Have Been Warned 19:40 Bondi Vet 17:30 Hardtalk Incorporated 12:45 James May’s Man Lab 20:10 Shamwari: A Wild Life 18:00 Global With John Sopel 08:10 Evil Con Carne 13:40 Mythbusters 00:05 Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives 20:35 Echo And The Elephants Of 18:30 Global With John Sopel 08:55 Adventure Time 14:35 Border Security - Series 6 00:30 Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives Amboseli 19:00 Global With John Sopel 09:45 Regular Show Specials 00:55 Unwrapped 21:05 Queens Of The Savannah 19:30 World Business Report 10:35 Angelo Rules 15:05 Auction Hunters 01:20 Unwrapped 22:00 Biggest And Baddest 19:45 Sport Today 11:25 Ben 10: Alien Force 15:30 Auction Kings 01:45 Charly’s Cake Angels 22:55 Nick Baker’s Beautiful Freaks 20:00 BBC World News 11:50 Ben 10: Alien Force 16:00 Fast N’ Loud 02:10 Charly’s Cake Angels 23:50 Animal Cops Houston 20:30 BBC Focus On Africa 12:15 Hero 108 16:55 Gold Rush 02:35 Unique Sweets 21:00 World News Today With 12:40 Hero 108 17:50 Mythbusters 03:00 Unique Sweets Zeinab Badawi 13:05 Mucha Lucha ! 18:45 Sons Of Guns 03:25 Food Wars 21:30 World News Today With 13:30 Angelo Rules 19:40 How Machines Work 03:50 Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives Zeinab Badawi 14:20 Evil Con Carne 20:05 How It’s Made 04:15 Unique Eats 00:40 Come Dine With Me 22:00 World News Today With 15:10 The Amazing World Of 20:35 Auction Hunters 04:40 Chopped 01:30 Masterchef: The Professionals Zeinab Badawi Gumball 21:00 Storage Hunters 05:30 Iron Chef America 02:15 Gok’s Fashion Fix 22:30 World Business Report 15:35 Adventure Time 21:30 Sons Of Guns 06:10 Food Network Challenge 03:05 To Build Or Not To Build? 22:45 Sport Today 16:00 Regular Show 22:25 Amish Mafia 07:00 Guy’s Big Bite 03:30 Cash In The Attic 16:30 Johnny Test 23:00 Business Edition With Tanya 23:20 Amish Mafia 07:25 Guy’s Big Bite BEWARE THE GONZO ON OSN CINEMA 04:15 Bargain Hunt Beckett 17:00 Ben 10: Omniverse 07:50 Reza, Spice Prince Of India 05:00 House Swap 23:30 Hardtalk 17:25 Dreamworks Dragons Riders 08:15 Kid In A Candy Store 05:45 Gok’s Fashion Fix Of Berk 08:40 Unique Sweets 10:00 Melinda And Melinda-PG15 17:40 Bondi Rescue 12:00 Emmerdale 06:35 To Build Or Not To Build? 17:50 Gormiti New 09:05 Barefoot Contessa - Back To 12:00 Madagascar 3: Europe’s Most 18:10 Danger Beach 12:30 Coronation Street 07:00 Baking Mad With Eric Lanlard 18:15 Young Justice 00:05 How Tech Works Basics Wanted-PG 18:35 The Ride: Alaska To Patagonia 13:00 The Ellen DeGeneres Show 07:25 New Scandinavian Cooking 18:40 Ben 10: Ultimate Alien 00:30 Sci-Fi Science 09:30 Food Network Star 13:45 The Conspirator-PG15 With Andreas Viestad 19:05 Lonely Planet: Roads Less 14:00 C.S.I. New York 00:30 Grim Adventures Of... 19:05 Total Drama Island 01:00 Bad Universe 10:20 Extra Virgin 15:45 Rio-FAM 07:55 Homes Under The Hammer Travelled 15:00 Eureka 01:20 Johnny Test 19:30 Total Drama Island 01:50 Sport Science 10:45 Extra Virgin 17:30 The Avengers-PG15 08:50 Bargain Hunt 20:00 The Frankincense Trail 16:00 Emmerdale 02:10 Ben 10: Ultimate Alien 19:55 Mucha Lucha ! 02:45 Stephen Hawking’s Grand 11:10 Cooking For Real 20:00 Damsels In Distress-PG15 09:40 Antiques Roadshow 21:00 Gone to save the planet 16:30 Coronation Street 02:35 Ben 10: Ultimate Alien 20:20 Ben 10: Omniverse Design 11:35 Food Crafters 22:00 21 Jump Street-18 10:35 Extreme Makeover: Home 21:30 Market Values 17:00 The Ellen DeGeneres Show 03:00 The Amazing World Of 20:45 The Amazing World Of 03:35 Bad Universe 12:00 Ultimate Recipe Showdown Edition 22:00 Long Way Down 18:00 The Finder Gumball Gumball 04:25 Superships 12:50 Grill It! With Bobby Flay 11:20 Masterchef: The Professionals 22:55 Graham’s World 19:00 Switched At Birth 03:25 Regular Show 21:10 Adventure Time 05:15 The Gadget Show 13:15 Barefoot Contessa - Back To 12:10 Come Dine With Me 23:20 David Rocco‚Äôs Dolce Vita 20:00 Fairly Legal 00:30 HSBC Sevens World Series 03:50 Ben 10: Omniverse 21:35 Regular Show 05:40 How Tech Works Basics 13:00 Baking Mad With Eric Lanlard 23:50 David Rocco‚Äôs Dolce Vita 21:00 Suits 03:30 Trans World Sport 04:15 Scooby-Doo! Mystery 22:00 Ben 10 06:05 Meteorite Men 13:40 Barefoot Contessa - Back To 13:30 New Scandinavian Cooking 22:00 The Hollow Crown 04:30 NRL Premiership Incorporated 22:25 Ben 10 07:00 James May’s 20th Century Basics With Andreas Viestad 06:30 ICC Cricket 360 04:40 Powerpuff Girls 22:50 Mucha Lucha ! 07:25 James May’s 20th Century 14:05 Food Wars 13:55 Bargain Hunt 07:00 HSBC Sevens World Series 05:05 Evil Con Carne 23:15 Mucha Lucha ! 07:50 Finding Bigfoot 14:30 Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives 14:40 Cash In The Attic 23:40 Powerpuff Girls 08:40 The Gadget Show 14:55 Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives 10:00 Inside The PGA Tour 05:30 Cow & Chicken 00:00 The Last Exorcism-18 00:00 Burning Bright 15:25 Antiques Roadshow 09:05 How Tech Works 15:20 Guy’s Big Bite 10:30 PGA European Tour 06:00 Casper’s Scare School 02:00 Imago Mortis-PG15 02:00 The Last Exorcism 16:15 Extreme Makeover: Home 09:30 Da Vinci’s Machines 15:45 Chopped Highlights 06:30 Angelo Rules 04:00 The Ring-PG15 04:00 Imago Mortis Edition 10:25 What’s That About? 16:35 Barefoot Contessa - Back To 11:30 PGA PGA European Tour 07:00 Dreamworks Dragons Riders 06:00 Vengeance-PG15 06:00 The Ring 17:00 Homes Under The Hammer 11:20 Superships Basics Weekly Of Berk 08:00 Iron Sky-PG15 08:00 Vengeance 17:55 Baking Mad With Eric Lanlard 12:10 Meteorite Men 17:00 Barefoot Contessa - Back To 12:00 Live PGA European Tour 07:25 Johnny Test 00:00 Amanpour 10:00 Hide And Seek-PG15 10:00 Iron Sky 18:20 The Roux Legacy 13:00 Finding Bigfoot Basics 20:00 Inside The PGA Tour 07:45 Scooby-Doo! Mystery 00:30 World Sport 12:00 Mission: Impossible-PG15 12:00 Hide And Seek 19:00 The Hairy Bikers USA 13:50 Sci-Fi Science 17:25 Food Wars 20:30 Trans World Sport Incorporated 01:00 Piers Morgan Live 14:00 Iron Sky-PG15 14:00 Mission: Impossible 19:20 New Scandinavian Cooking 14:20 The Gadget Show 17:50 Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives 21:30 Inside The PGA Tour 08:10 Evil Con Carne 02:00 CNN Newsroom Live From 16:00 Deadly Hope-PG15 16:00 Iron Sky With Andreas Viestad 14:45 How Tech Works 18:15 Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives 22:00 Live PGA Tour 08:55 Adventure Time Hong Kong 18:00 Mission: Impossible-PG15 18:00 Deadly Hope 19:50 Come Dine With Me 15:10 James May’s 20th Century 18:40 Guy’s Big Bite 09:45 Regular Show 03:00 Anderson Cooper 360 20:00 Sultanes Del Sur-PG15 20:00 Mission: Impossible 20:35 Extreme Makeover: Home 15:35 James May’s 20th Century 19:05 Reza, Spice Prince Of India 10:35 Angelo Rules 04:00 Piers Morgan Live 22:00 Get Rich Or Die Tryin’-18 22:00 Sultanes Del Sur Edition 16:00 Scrapheap Challenge 19:30 Chopped 11:25 Ben 10: Alien Force 05:00 Quest Means Business 21:20 Antiques Roadshow 16:55 Future Weapons 20:20 Chopped 00:00 Inside The PGA Tour 11:50 Ben 10: Alien Force 06:00 The Situation Room 22:15 Bargain Hunt 17:45 Engineered 21:10 Food Network Caters Your 00:30 PGA European Tour Weekly 12:15 Hero 108 07:00 World Sport 01:00 NRL Full Time 23:00 Homes Under The Hammer 18:35 Meteorite Men Wedding 01:00 Beware The Gonzo-PG15 12:40 Hero 108 07:30 Talk Asia 00:00 Girl Walks Into A Bar-PG15 01:30 Futbol Mundial 23:55 Cash In The Attic 19:30 James May’s 20th Century 22:00 Food Network Challenge 03:00 The Lincoln Lawyer-PG15 13:05 Mucha Lucha ! 08:00 World Report 02:00 The Janky Promoters-18 02:00 Super League 20:20 Finding Bigfoot 22:50 Food Network Caters Your 05:00 Golden Christmas 3-PG15 13:30 Angelo Rules 09:00 World Report 04:00 Sorority Wars-PG15 03:30 AFL Premiership 21:10 The Gadget Show Wedding 07:00 Encounter With Danger-PG15 14:20 Evil Con Carne 10:00 World Sport 06:00 Wayne’s World 2-PG15 06:00 Trans World Sport 21:35 How Tech Works 23:40 Food Wars 09:00 Beware The Gonzo-PG15 15:10 The Amazing World Of 10:30 Sanjay Gupta MD 08:00 Arthur-PG15 07:00 Futbol Mundial 22:00 James May’s 20th Century 11:00 Sammy’s Adventure: The Gumball 11:00 World Business Today 10:00 Scrooged-PG15 07:30 Super League 00:00 BBC World News America 22:25 James May’s 20th Century Secret Passage-FAM 15:35 Adventure Time 12:00 World One 12:00 Sorority Wars-PG15 09:00 Premier League Darts 00:30 BBC World News America 22:50 Sport Science 13:00 No Surrender-PG15 16:00 Regular Show 12:30 Winning Post 14:00 Police Academy 3: Back In 12:30 Futbol Mundial 01:00 Newsday 23:40 The Gadget Show 15:00 Dangerous Flowers-PG15 16:30 Johnny Test 12:45 The Gateway 00:30 Dr G: Medical Examiner Training-PG15 13:00 HSBC Sevens World Series 01:30 Asia Business Report 17:00 Ike: Countdown To D-Day- 17:00 Ben 10: Omniverse 13:00 Amanpour 01:20 A Haunting 16:00 Scrooged-PG15 16:00 Super Rugby 01:45 Sport Today PG15 17:25 Dreamworks Dragons Riders 13:30 CNN Newscenter 02:05 Nightmare Next Door 18:00 The Wish List-PG15 17:00 Trans World Sport 02:00 Newsday 19:00 Leaves Of Grass-PG15 Of Berk 14:00 Piers Morgan Live 02:55 Nightmare Next Door 20:00 The Giant Mechanical Man- 18:00 Live Dubai Duty Free Darts 02:30 Asia Business Report 21:00 Cowboys & Aliens-PG15 17:50 Gormiti New 15:00 News Stream 03:45 I Almost Got Away With It PG15 Masters 02:45 Sport Today 23:00 Paranormal Activity 3-18 18:15 Young Justice 16:00 World Business Today 00:00 Hannah Montana 04:30 Dr G: Medical Examiner 22:00 Girl Walks Into A Bar-PG15 21:30 WWE NXT 03:00 Newsday 18:40 Ben 10: Ultimate Alien 05:20 A Haunting 03:30 Asia Business Report 17:00 International Desk 00:20 Hannah Montana 22:30 PGA European Tour 19:05 Total Drama Island 18:00 Global Exchange 00:45 Brandy & Mr Whiskers 06:10 Nightmare Next Door 01:05 Brandy & Mr Whiskers 07:00 Mystery Diagnosis 01:30 Emperor’s New School 07:50 Street Patrol 00:30 The Daily Show With Jon 01:30 Toast-PG15 01:50 Emperor’s New School 08:15 Street Patrol Stewart 03:15 The Flowers Of War-PG15 00:30 ICC Cricket 360 02:15 Replacements 08:40 Real Emergency Calls 01:00 The Colbert Report 05:30 Krach-18 01:00 Golfing World 02:35 Replacements 09:05 Who On Earth Did I Marry? 01:30 Weeds 07:15 An Invisible Sign Of My Own- 02:00 World Pool Masters 03:00 Brandy & Mr Whiskers 09:30 On The Case With Paula Zahn 02:00 It’s Always Sunny In PG15 03:00 World Cup Of Pool 03:20 Brandy & Mr Whiskers 10:20 Murder Shift Philadelphia 09:00 Nomads-PG15 04:00 Super Rugby 03:45 Emperor’s New School 11:10 Disappeared 02:30 The Big C 10:45 Paws-PG 06:00 Trans World Sport 04:05 Emperor’s New School 12:00 Mystery Diagnosis 03:00 Ben And Kate 12:45 Roger And Me-PG15 07:00 Golfing World 04:30 Replacements 12:50 Street Patrol 03:30 The Simpsons 14:30 Nomads-PG15 08:00 PGA European Tour Weekly 04:50 Replacements 13:15 Street Patrol 04:00 Seinfeld 16:15 Tora! Tora! Tora!-PG15 08:30 Total Rugby 05:15 Brandy & Mr Whiskers 13:40 Forensic Detectives 04:30 The Tonight Show With Jay 18:45 Moneyball-PG15 09:00 World Pool Masters 05:35 Brandy & Mr Whiskers 14:30 On The Case With Paula Zahn Leno 21:00 Roadie-18 10:00 World Cup Of Pool 06:00 Prankstars 15:20 Real Emergency Calls 05:30 Hope & Faith 23:00 Woodstock-18 11:00 Super Rugby 06:25 Suite Life On Deck 15:45 Who On Earth Did I Marry? 07:00 Late Night With Jimmy Fallon 13:00 Total Rugby 06:45 Cory In The House 16:10 Disappeared 08:00 Seinfeld 13:30 Trans World Sport 07:10 A.N.T Farm 17:00 Murder Shift 08:30 Hope & Faith 14:30 Marathon 07:35 Austin And Ally 17:50 Forensic Detectives 09:00 Ben And Kate 01:00 Coriolanus-PG15 17:30 Total Rugby 07:55 Jessie 18:40 On The Case With Paula Zahn 09:30 Modern Family 03:15 Love Will Keep Us Together- 18:00 HSBC Sevens World Series 08:20 Good Luck Charlie 19:30 Disappeared 10:00 The Mindy Project PG15 21:00 Super Rugby Highlights 08:45 Doc McStuffins 20:20 Nightmare Next Door 11:00 The Tonight Show With Jay 05:00 Take Shelter-PG15 22:00 AFL Premiership Highlights 09:05 Mickey Mouse Clubhouse 21:10 Couples Who Kill Leno 07:00 Brave-PG 23:00 Trans World Sport 09:30 A.N.T Farm 22:00 On The Case With Paula Zahn 12:00 Arrested Development 09:00 Puss In Boots-PG 09:55 Jonas 22:50 I Escaped Death 12:30 Seinfeld 10:45 Mission: Impossible - Ghost 10:15 So Random 23:40 I Almost Got Away With It 13:00 Hope & Faith Protocol-PG15 10:40 Hannah Montana 14:00 The Simpsons 13:00 Boy-PG15 00:00 UFC Countdown 11:05 Sonny With A Chance 14:30 The Mindy Project 15:00 Diary Of A Wimpy Kid: Rodrick 01:00 NHL 11:25 Kim Possible 15:00 Modern Family Rules-PG 03:00 Ping Pong World 11:50 Shake It Up 15:30 The Daily Show With Jon 17:00 Puss In Boots-PG 04:00 US Bass Fishing 12:15 Shake It Up 00:45 Around The World For Free Stewart 18:45 The Best Exotic Marigold 05:00 NHL 12:35 Wizards Of Waverly Place 01:40 Deadliest Journeys 16:00 The Colbert Report Hotel-PG15 07:00 WWE SmackDown 13:00 Wizards Of Waverly Place 02:05 The Best Job In The World 16:30 Arrested Development 21:00 Project X-18 09:00 Ping Pong World 13:25 Wizards Of Waverly Place 02:35 Bondi Rescue 17:00 Late Night With Jimmy Fallon 23:00 The Grey-18 10:00 US Bass Fishing 13:45 Jessie 03:00 Bondi Rescue 18:00 New Girl 11:00 NHL 14:10 A.N.T Farm 03:30 Danger Beach 18:30 Friends 13:00 WWE Vintage Collection 14:35 Suite Life On Deck 03:55 The Ride: Alaska To Patagonia 19:00 Community 14:00 WWE Bottom Line 14:55 So Random 04:25 Lonely Planet: Roads Less 20:00 The Tonight Show With Jay 01:15 Princess Sydney: The Three 15:00 Mass Participation Ironman 15:20 Good Luck Charlie Travelled Leno Gold Coins 16:00 Mass Participation Ironman 15:45 Jessie 05:20 Long Way Down 21:00 The Daily Show With Jon 02:45 The Nimbols: Part II 17:00 UIM Powerboat Champs 16:10 Shake It Up 06:15 Graham’s World Stewart 04:15 Emperor’s Secret 17:30 UFC Prelims 16:35 A.N.T Farm 06:40 Market Values 21:30 The Colbert Report 06:00 A Monster In Paris 20:30 UFC 17:00 Austin And Ally 07:10 The Frankincense Trail 22:00 The League 08:00 Supertramps 22:30 Prizefighter 17:20 Suite Life On Deck 08:05 Around The World For Free 23:00 The Big C 10:00 The Pirates! Band Of Misfits 17:45 Suite Life On Deck 09:00 Deadliest Journeys 23:30 Late Night With Jimmy Fallon 11:30 Emperor’s Secret 18:10 Cory In The House 09:25 The Best Job In The World 13:00 Arrietty 09:55 Bondi Rescue 18:30 Wizards Of Waverly Place 14:30 A Monster In Paris 01:25 Telefon-PG 10:20 Bondi Rescue 18:55 That’s So Raven 16:00 Ploddy Police Car 03:10 3 Godfathers-FAM 10:50 Danger Beach 19:20 A.N.T. Farm 00:00 Eureka 18:00 The Pirates! Band Of Misfits 04:55 The Clock-FAM 11:15 The Ride: Alaska To Patagonia 19:40 Good Luck Charlie 01:00 The Client List 20:00 Flicka 3 07:00 Texas Carnival-FAM 11:45 Lonely Planet: Roads Less 20:05 Wizards Of Waverly Place 02:00 Castle 22:00 Arrietty 08:15 Rebel Without A Cause-PG Travelled 20:30 Wizards Of Waverly Place 04:00 Bones 23:45 Supertramps 10:05 Robin And The Seven Hoods- 12:40 Long Way Down 20:50 Wizards Of Waverly Place 05:00 Castle FAM 13:35 Gone to save the planet 21:15 So Random 06:00 Eureka 12:05 They Drive By Night-FAM 14:00 Market Values 21:40 Hannah Montana 07:00 Emmerdale 13:45 The Prize-PG 14:30 The Frankincense Trail 22:00 Jonas 07:30 Coronation Street 00:00 Prime Mover-PG15 16:00 The Honeymoon Machine-FAM 15:25 Around The World For Free 22:25 Sonny With A Chance 08:00 C.S.I. New York 02:00 Last Holiday-PG15 17:25 Quo Vadis-PG 16:20 Deadliest Journeys 22:50 Sonny With A Chance 09:00 Bones 04:00 Chronicle-PG15 20:10 Roberta-FAM 16:45 The Best Job In The World 23:10 Suite Life On Deck 10:00 Castle 06:00 Butter-PG15 22:00 The V.I.P.S-FAM 17:15 Bondi Rescue IRON SKY ON OSN ACTION HD 23:35 Suite Life On Deck 11:00 Touch 08:00 Rio-FAM 23:55 The Dirty Dozen Classifieds

THURSDAY, MAY 23, 2013

Kuwait KNCC PROGRAMME FROM THURSDAY TO WEDNESDAY (23/05/2013 TO 29/05/2013)

SHARQIA-1 PHANTOM (DIG) 7:15 PM STAR TREK INTO DARKNESS (DIG-3D) 7:00 PM PHANTOM (DIG) 1:00 PM STAR TREK INTO DARKNESS (DIG) 9:15 PM STAR TREK INTO DARKNESS (DIG-3D) 9:45 PM PHANTOM (DIG) 3:00 PM PHANTOM (DIG) 12:05 AM IRON MAN 3 (DIG-3D) 12:30 AM AT ANY PRICE (DIG) :00 PM NO SUN+ TUE+WED NO SUN+ TUE+WED AT ANY PRICE (DIG) :00 PM AT ANY PRICE (DIG) 9:00 PM MARINA-2 AL-KOUT.2 AT ANY PRICE (DIG) 11:00 PM FAST & FURIOUS 6 (DIG) 12:30 PM AT ANY PRICE (DIG) 12:30 PM PHANTOM (DIG) 1:00 AM SAMEER ABOO ELNEEL (DIG) 3:00 PM AT ANY PRICE (DIG) 2:30 PM NO SUN+ TUE+WED FAST & FURIOUS 6 (DIG) 5:15 PM SAMEER ABOO ELNEEL (DIG) 4:30 PM SAMEER ABOO ELNEEL (DIG) 7:45 PM AT ANY PRICE (DIG) 6:45 PM SHARQIA-2 FAST & FURIOUS 6 (DIG) 10:00 PM SAMEER ABOO ELNEEL (DIG) 8:45 PM FAST & FURIOUS 6 (DIG) 12:30 PM FAST & FURIOUS 6 (DIG) 12:30 AM AT ANY PRICE (DIG) 11:00 PM DINO TIME (DIG-3D) 3:00 PM NO SUN+ TUE+WED AT ANY PRICE (DIG) 1:00 AM CHANGE OF NAME THE GREAT GATSBY (DIG-3D) 5:00 PM NO SUN+ TUE+WED FAST & FURIOUS 6 (DIG) 7:45 PM MARINA-3 FAST & FURIOUS 6 (DIG) 10:15 PM DINO TIME (DIG-3D) 1:30 PM AL-KOUT.3 I, Shri. DONATO BEVINDO FAST & FURIOUS 6 (DIG) 12:45 AM DINO TIME (DIG-3D) 3:30 PM FAST & FURIOUS 6 (DIG) 2:00 PM MORAIS residing at Bencleam NO SUN+ TUE+WED AT ANY PRICE (DIG) 5:30 PM FAST & FURIOUS 6 (DIG) 5:00 PM Vaddo, Cuncolim, Salcete- THE GREAT GATSBY (DIG-3D) 7:30 PM FAST & FURIOUS 6 (DIG) 7:45 PM Goa have changed my name SHARQIA-3 AT ANY PRICE (DIG) 10:15 PM FAST & FURIOUS 6 (DIG) 10:15 PM LOST THE CALL (DIG) 12:30 PM AT ANY PRICE (DIG) 12:15 AM FAST & FURIOUS 6 (DIG) 12:45 AM from DONATO MARAES to SAMEER ABOO ELNEEL (DIG) 2:30 PM NO SUN+ TUE+WED NO SUN+ TUE+WED DONATO BEVINDO MORAIS. STAR TREK INTO DARKNESS (DIG) 4:45 PM Hereafter, in all my dealings & Original document Policy SAMEER ABOO ELNEEL (DIG) 7:30 PM AVENUES-1 BAIRAQ-1 documents, I will be known No. 633002599 of LIAQAT SAMEER ABOO ELNEEL (DIG) 9:45 PM FAST & FURIOUS 6 (DIG) 12:45 PM DINO TIME (DIG-3D) 12:30 PM ALI by the state Life STAR TREK INTO DARKNESS (DIG) 12:05 AM FAST & FURIOUS 6 (DIG) 3:30 PM FAST & FURIOUS 6 (DIG) 2:30 PM by the name DONATO BEVIN- DO MORAIS. (C 4423) Insurance Corporation of NO SUN+ TUE+WED FAST & FURIOUS 6 (DIG) 6:15 PM DINO TIME (DIG-3D) 5:00 PM Pakistan, Gulf Zone is FAST & FURIOUS 6 (DIG) 9:00 PM FAST & FURIOUS 6 (DIG) 7:00 PM 22-5-2013 MUHALAB-1 FAST & FURIOUS 6 (DIG) 11:45 PM FAST & FURIOUS 6 (DIG) 9:45 PM reported to have been lost. THE GREAT GATSBY (DIG) 1:30 PM NO SUN+ TUE+WED FAST & FURIOUS 6 (DIG) 12:30 AM Anyone finding the same or AT ANY PRICE (DIG) 4:15 PM NO SUN+ TUE+WED claiming any interest in it AT ANY PRICE (DIG) 6:15 PM AVENUES-2 FOR SALE should communicate with AT ANY PRICE (DIG) 8:15 PM STAR TREK INTO DARKNESS (DIG) 1:00 PM BAIRAQ-2 the Manager, Kuwait State AT ANY PRICE (DIG) 10:15 PM STAR TREK INTO DARKNESS (DIG) 3:45 PM AT ANY PRICE (DIG) 1:30 PM Life office - Ph: 22452208. STAR TREK INTO DARKNESS (DIG) 6:30 PM AT ANY PRICE (DIG) 3:45 PM KIA Mohave jeep, full MUHALAB-2 STAR TREK INTO DARKNESS (DIG) 9:15 PM THE GREAT GATSBY (DIG) 6:00 PM option, silver color for sale. (C 4424) SAMEER ABOO ELNEEL (DIG) 12:30 PM STAR TREK INTO DARKNESS (DIG) 12:05 AM AT ANY PRICE (DIG) 8:45 PM (2011 model - 47,000 kilo- PHANTOM (DIG) 2:45 PM NO SUN+ TUE+WED AT ANY PRICE (DIG) 11:00 PM meters). Please contact Original document Policy SAMEER ABOO ELNEEL (DIG) 4:45 PM AT ANY PRICE (DIG) 1:00 AM 66399051 No. 633004170-3 of MR. AVENUES-3 NO SUN+ TUE+WED 112 SAMEER ABOO ELNEEL (DIG) 7:00 PM 23-5-2013 MOHAMMAD ATIF SULTAN STAR TREK INTO DARKNESS (DIG) 9:15 PM SAMEER ABOO ELNEEL (DIG) 1:30 PM by the state Life Insurance SAMEER ABOO ELNEEL (DIG) 3:45 PM BAIRAQ-3 Corporation of Pakistan, MUHALAB-3 SAMEER ABOO ELNEEL (DIG) 6:00 PM THE CALL (DIG) 1:00 PM Mitsubishi Jeep Pajero, Prayer timings DINO TIME (DIG-3D) 12:45 PM SAMEER ABOO ELNEEL (DIG) 8:15 PM SAMEER ABOO ELNEEL (DIG) 3:00 PM model 2012, engine v6 3.5L, Gulf Zone is reported to FAST & FURIOUS 6 (DIG) 2:45 PM SAMEER ABOO ELNEEL (DIG) 10:30 PM SAMEER ABOO ELNEEL (DIG) 5:15 PM brown color, done km have been lost. Anyone DINO TIME (DIG-3D) 5:15 PM SAMEER ABOO ELNEEL (DIG) 12:45 AM THE CALL (DIG) 7:30 PM finding the same or claim- Fajr: 03:21 FAST & FURIOUS 6 (DIG) 7:15 PM NO SUN+ TUE+WED SAMEER ABOO ELNEEL (DIG) 9:30 PM 19,000, registration till 15-2- Shorook 04:52 15, alloy rim, fog lamp, CD, ing any interest in it should FAST & FURIOUS 6 (DIG) 9:45 PM SAMEER ABOO ELNEEL (DIG) 11:45 PM communicate with the Duhr: 11:45 360º- 1 NO SUN+ TUE+WED wooden interior, shaded Manager, Kuwait State Life Asr: 15:20 FANAR-1 FAST & FURIOUS 6 (DIG) 12:30 PM roof sahallah etc. (install- office - Ph: 22452208. Maghrib: 18:38 SAMEER ABOO ELNEEL (DIG) 1:00 PM FAST & FURIOUS 6 (DIG) 3:30 PM PLAZA ment possible). Cash price SAMEER ABOO ELNEEL (DIG) 3:30 PM FAST & FURIOUS 6 (DIG) 6:00 PM FAST & FURIOUS 6 (DIG) 5:45 PM (C 4425) Isha: 20:06 THE CALL (DIG) 5:45 PM FAST & FURIOUS 6 (DIG) 8:45 PM SAMEER ABOO ELNEEL (DIG) 8:15 PM KD 5,250/-. Contact: SAMEER ABOO ELNEEL (DIG) 7:45 PM NO THU FAST & FURIOUS 6 (DIG) 10:45 PM 66507741 (C 4421) SAMEER ABOO ELNEEL (DIG) 10:00 PM Special Show “FAST & FURIOUS 6 (DIG)” 8:45 PM 21-5-2013 SAMEER ABOO ELNEEL (DIG) 12:15 AM THU LAILA No: 15817 NO SUN+ TUE+WED FAST & FURIOUS 6 (DIG) 11:30 PM IRON MAN 3 (DIG) 5:30 PM NO SUN+ TUE+WED FAST & FURIOUS 6 (DIG) 8:00 PM SITUATION VACANT FANAR-2 FAST & FURIOUS 6 (DIG) 10:30 PM PHANTOM (DIG) 1:30 PM 360º- 2 IRON MAN 3 (DIG) 3:30 PM STAR TREK INTO DARKNESS (DIG) 2:00 PM AJIAL.1 Required English speaking PHANTOM (DIG) 6:00 PM STAR TREK INTO DARKNESS (DIG) 4:45 PM LADIES & GENTLEMAN (DIG) (MALAYALAM) nanny / maid. Contact: IRON MAN 3 (DIG) 8:00 PM STAR TREK INTO DARKNESS (DIG) 7:30 PM 6:30 PM 99824597. (C 4422) PHANTOM (DIG) 10:30 PM STAR TREK INTO DARKNESS (DIG) 10:15 PM LADIES & GENTLEMAN (DIG) (MALAYALAM) IRON MAN 3 (DIG) 12:30 AM PHANTOM (DIG) 1:00 AM 9:30 PM 21-5-2013 NO SUN+ TUE+WED NO SUN+ TUE+WED AJIAL.2 FANAR-3 360º- 3 AT ANY PRICE (DIG) 6:00 PM STAR TREK INTO DARKNESS (DIG) 1:15 PM DINO TIME (DIG-3D) 2:15 PM SAMEER ABOO ELNEEL (DIG) 8:30 PM MATRIMONIAL AT ANY PRICE (DIG) 4:00 PM DINO TIME (DIG-3D) 4:15 PM AT ANY PRICE (DIG) 10:45 PM STAR TREK INTO DARKNESS (DIG) 6:00 PM DINO TIME (DIG-3D) 6:15 PM I am an American Muslim AT ANY PRICE (DIG) 8:45 PM DINO TIME (DIG-3D) 8:15 PM AJIAL.3 AT ANY PRICE (DIG) 10:45 PM DINO TIME (DIG-3D) 10:15 PM ISHKQ IN PARIS (DIG) (HINDI) 5:30 PM man looking for a Muslim AT ANY PRICE (DIG) 12:45 AM SAMEER ABOO ELNEEL (DIG) 12:15 AM ISHKQ IN PARIS (DIG) (HINDI) 7:45 PM woman from ages of 23 to NO SUN+ TUE+WED ISHKQ IN PARIS (DIG) (HINDI) 10:00 PM NO SUN+ TUE+WED 33. Please only Muslim MARINA-1 AL-KOUT.1 AJIAL.4 woman reply. My email is: PHANTOM (DIG) 12:30 PM IRON MAN 3 (DIG-3D) 1:00 PM FAST & FURIOUS 6 (DIG) 5:30 PM [email protected] PHANTOM (DIG) 2:30 PM DINO TIME (DIG-3D) 3:30 PM FAST & FURIOUS 6 (DIG) 8:00 PM STAR TREK INTO DARKNESS (DIG) 4:30 PM DINO TIME (DIG-3D) 5:15 PM FAST & FURIOUS 6 (DIG) 10:30 PM (C 4417) 18-5-2013

DIAL 161 FOR AIRPORT INFORMATION

Arrival Flights on Thursday 23/5/2013 UAE 857 DUBAI 16:55 Departure Flights on Thursday 23/5/2013 ABY 122 SHARJAH 15:05 Airlines Flt Route Time ABY 127 SHARJAH 17:10 Airlines Flt Route Time KAC 673 DUBAI 15:05 BBC 43 DHAKA 00:05 GFA 215 BAHRAIN 17:20 AIC 976 GOA/CHENNAI 00:05 ABY 124 SHARJAH 15:30 QTR 148 DOHA 00:15 SVA 510 RIYADH 17:20 AXB 490 MANGALORE 00:15 KNE 473 JEDDAH 15:30 SAI 441 LAHORE 01:30 UAL 982 WASHINGTON DC DULLES 17:25 JAI 573 MUMBAI 00:20 OMA 646 MUSCAT 15:40 THY 764 SABIHA 01:40 TAR 327 TUNIS 18:00 UAL 981 WASHINGTON DC DULLES 00:25 KAC 617 DOHA 15:45 JZR 267 BEIRUT 00:20 QTR 144 DOHA 18:25 DLH 637 FRANKFURT 00:30 KAC 773 RIYADH 16:00 JZR 539 CAIRO 00:40 FDB 63 DUBAI 18:55 BBC 44 DHAKA 01:30 KNE 471 JEDDAH 16:00 ETH 620 ADDIS ABABA 01:45 NIA 251 ALEXANDRIA 19:00 JZR 502 LUXOR 01:30 SVA 505 JEDDAH 16:00 GFA 211 BAHRAIN 01:55 GFA 219 BAHRAIN 19:05 THY 773 ISTANBUL 02:20 JZR 188 DUBAI 16:00 UAE 853 DUBAI 02:25 AXB 393 KOZHIKODE 19:15 SAI 442 LAHORE 02:30 KAC 613 BAHRAIN 16:35 ETD 305 ABU DHABI 02:30 JAI 572 MUMBAI 19:35 THY 765 ISTANBUL 02:40 FDB 8058 DUBAI 16:40 FDB 67 DUBAI 03:10 RBG 553 ALEXANDRIA 19:40 ETH 621 ADDIS ABABA 02:45 RJA 641 AMMAN 16:55 MSR 612 CAIRO 03:15 OMA 647 MUSCAT 20:00 UAE 854 DUBAI 03:45 JZR 238 AMMAN 17:05 RBG 555 ALEXANDRIA 03:15 FDB 61 DUBAI 20:00 FDB 68 DUBAI 03:50 JZR 512 SHARM EL SHEIKH 17:15 QTR 138 DOHA 03:30 KAC 542 CAIRO 18:15 RBG 556 ALEXANDRIA 03:55 QTR 135 DOHA 17:15 THY 770 ISTANBUL 04:35 KAC 618 DOHA 19:10 MSR 613 CAIRO 04:15 ETD 304 ABU DHABI 17:20 DHX 170 BAHRAIN 05:10 JZR 257 BEIRUT 14:30 ETD 306 ABU DHABI 04:20 JZR 538 CAIRO 17:40 FDB 69 DUBAI 05:50 JZR 777 JEDDAH 17:50 QTR 139 DOHA 04:25 ABY 128 SHARJAH 17:50 BAW 157 LONDON 06:30 JZR 535 CAIRO 16:10 QTR 149 DOHA 05:15 UAE 858 DUBAI 18:15 FDB 53 DUBAI 07:45 JZR 177 DUBAI 17:30 FDB 70 DUBAI 06:30 GFA 216 BAHRAIN 18:20 JZR 529 ASSIUT 06:40 JZR 125 BAHRAIN 16:25 GFA 212 BAHRAIN 07:00 SVA 511 RIYADH 18:20 JZR 503 LUXOR 07:40 JZR 787 RIYADH 16:15 THY 771 ISTANBUL 07:10 JZR 184 DUBAI 18:30 JZR 555 ALEXANDRIA 06:20 JZR 189 DUBAI 20:10 JZR 240 AMMAN 07:10 JZR 266 BEIRUT 18:40 KAC 332 TRIVANDRUM 07:55 ABY 129 SHARJAH 20:05 KAC 545 ALEXANDRIA 07:20 UAL 982 BAHRAIN 18:40 MEA 402 BEIRUT 20:15 KAC 412 MANILA 06:15 JZR 164 DUBAI 07:25 TAR 328 TUNIS 18:50 KAC 206 ISLAMABAD 07:25 AFG 415 KABUL 20:20 BAW 156 LONDON 08:25 QTR 145 DOHA 19:25 KAC 302 MUMBAI 07:50 MSC 405 SOHAG 20:25 FDB 54 DUBAI 08:25 FDB 64 DUBAI 19:35 KAC 382 DELHI 07:30 MSR 618 ALEXANDRIA 20:30 JZR 256 BEIRUT 08:50 UAE 855 DUBAI 08:25 KNE 474 JEDDAH 20:50 GFA 220 BAHRAIN 19:50 JZR 534 CAIRO 09:10 NIA 252 ALEXANDRIA 20:00 IRA 605 ISFAHAN 08:40 MSC 401 ALEXANDRIA 21:05 KAC 671 DUBAI 09:25 IZG 4161 MASHAD 08:45 ALK 229 COLOMBO 21:10 AXB 394 KOZHIKODE 20:15 KAC 561 AMMAN 09:25 RBG 554 ALEXANDRIA 20:20 ABY 125 SHARJAH 08:50 UAE 859 DUBAI 21:15 ABY 126 SHARJAH 09:30 QTR 132 DOHA 09:00 ETD 307 ABU DHABI 21:30 JAI 571 MUMBAI 20:35 KAC 787 JEDDAH 09:35 FDB 62 DUBAI 20:40 IRA 617 AHWAZ 09:10 QTR 136 DOHA 21:35 IRA 606 MASHHAD 09:40 FDB 55 DUBAI 09:15 FDB 8057 DUBAI 15:50 ABY 120 SHARJAH 20:45 IZG 4162 MASHHAD 09:45 KAC 331 TRIVANDRUM 20:50 ETD 301 ABU DHABI 09:30 ABY 123 SHARJAH 14:50 UAE 856 DUBAI 09:50 KAC 562 AMMAN 14:40 KAC 343 CHENNAI 20:55 SYR 341 DAMASCUS 10:10 FDB 56 DUBAI 09:55 KAC 788 JEDDAH 15:00 OMA 648 MUSCAT 20:55 GFA 213 BAHRAIN 10:40 IRA 616 AHWAZ 10:10 MEA 404 BEIRUT 10:55 KAC 774 RIYADH 19:25 KAC 351 KOCHI 21:05 ETD 302 ABU DHABI 10:15 MSC 403 ASSIUT 12:40 KAC 786 JEDDAH 18:30 MEA 403 BEIRUT 21:15 QTR 133 DOHA 10:25 UAE 871 DUBAI 12:45 KAC 176 GENEVA 17:45 AFG 415 JEDDAH 21:20 KAC 101 LONDON 10:25 MSR 610 CAIRO 13:00 KAC 614 BAHRAIN 19:35 MSC 404 ASSIUT 21:25 THY 766 ISTANBUL 13:10 KAC 674 DUBAI 19:25 KAC 501 BEIRUT 11:10 SYR 342 DAMASCUS 11:10 MSR 619 ALEXANDRIA 21:30 KNE 480 TAIF 13:20 KAC 546 ALEXANDRIA 14:15 KNE 475 JEDDAH 21:45 QTR 140 DOHA 13:45 KAC 502 BEIRUT 18:50 GFA 214 BAHRAIN 11:25 KAC 541 CAIRO 11:30 DHX 171 BAHRAIN 21:50 FDB 57 DUBAI 13:50 KAC 104 LONDON 18:45 MSC 402 ALEXANDRIA 22:05 JZR 165 DUBAI 11:35 JZR 513 SHARM EL SHEIKH 23:20 KAC 165 ROME 11:45 MEA 405 BEIRUT 11:55 ETD 308 ABU DHABI 22:15 JZR 241 AMMAN 12:35 JZR 185 DUBAI 22:40 ALK 230 COLOMBO 22:20 UAE 4987 DUBAI 10:35 JZR 239 AMMAN 22:30 UAE 4988 BEIRUT 12:00 JZR 776 JEDDAH 12:25 UAE 860 DUBAI 22:25 KAC 352 COCHIN 8:05 GFA 217 BAHRAIN 21:45 QTR 137 DOHA 22:35 KAC 362 COLOMBO 8:45 QTR 146 DOHA 22:00 JZR 786 RIYADH 12:50 KAC 785 JEDDAH 13:00 KAC 301 MUMBAI 22:40 KAC 284 DHAKA 12:05 JAI 576 COCHIN 22:05 GFA 218 BAHRAIN 22:45 FDB 59 DUBAI 22:20 JZR 176 DUBAI 13:20 KAC 672 DUBAI 13:40 FDB 60 DUBAI 23:00 ABY 121 SHARJAH 14:25 THY 6512 ISTANBUL 22:20 JZR 124 BAHRAIN 13:30 SVA 500 JEDDAH 14:30 AIC 981 CHENNAI 22:25 MSC 406 SOHAG 13:40 KAC 205 ISLAMABAD 23:00 KNE 472 JEDDAH 14:35 UAL 981 BAHRAIN 22:40 MSR 611 CAIRO 14:00 JAI 575 KOCHI 23:05 OMA 645 MUSCAT 14:40 DLH 636 FRANKFURT 23:10 THY 767 ISTANBUL 14:10 QTR 147 DOHA 23:15 KNE 470 JEDDAH 15:05 JAI 574 MUMBAI 23:20 KNE 481 TAIF 14:10 JZR 554 ALEXANDRIA 23:20 QTR 134 DOHA 15:45 KLM 411 AMSTERDAM 23:40 UAE 872 DUBAI 14:15 KAC 411 BANGKOK 23:40 RJA 640 AMMAN 15:55 THY 772 ISTANBUL 23:45 FDB 58 DUBAI 14:30 KAC 283 DHAKA 23:45 ETD 303 ABU DHABI 16:35 KAC 118 NEW YORK 23:30 QTR 141 DOHA 14:55 JZR 528 ASSIUT 23:55 Directorate General of Civil Aviation Home Page (www.kuwait-airport.com.kw) stars34 THURSDAY, MAY 23, 2013

CROSSWORD 198 STAR TRACK

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

Your determination to accomplish some project today may be inter- This marks a time when you enjoy good relations with co-workers. Plans preted as a sign of stubbornness. Others may not realize that you desire for a camping trip or plans for a summer get-together are great ways to build good co- perfection. You may have to read instructions or ask advice before you can really get into worker relations. Your thinking process is invigorated and you are able to clearly express action. Patience will win out and you will be able to plan your method of operation, so to your ideas to your work partners or to customers. If you are honest with others, you should speak. Be aware of your words and maintain low tones if possible, because there will be expect the same in return. Outside of work, your financial position improves because of interruptions. Considering the current general feelings—it may be best to take mental your association with a relative. You should work hard at this time to keep close relatives, notes of other things you want to accomplish and save those projects for a day over just that—close. You are a caring spirit and may also feel great sympathy for friends; many which you know you will have more control. An artist has your attention this evening, people turn to you for psychological help. You may be of great help to someone today perhaps Norman Rockwell’s works. without even realizing it. Romance is present.

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

You cherish personal freedom and may have the urge to go exploring You seem automatically motivated to be productive—one thing you may sometime today. Perhaps you work at home or, if you happen to work in an office, a walk concentrate on the most today could be on reorganizing and making files thinner and more would do you a lot of good—invigorating. You will feel much more like working after you accessible, perhaps by putting part of the files on a computer file in some way. Your optimism is have moved around a bit. You may channel your energies in the direction of friends later not an illusion; you build your life strong and solid, just like you appear to others. People would this afternoon. You have a great desire to understand the motivation of a special friend. benefit by your way of thinking and you may want to consider giving to the community You may be moved to help this friend through giving advice—trust your instincts. You through teaching young people. These could be called financial smarts, fast links to an organ- possess a penetrating mind that will attempt to sway others to positive outcomes. This is a ized life or a life well lived. Teachers will many times teach what they need to learn, yet your nice day that should just flow along well. In particular, you will do well in activities that abilities will lead to many accomplished subjects. Going home this early evening, you may include children, young people and your home. enjoy a visit with neighbors or friend.

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

The more creative you are, the better able you will be to come up with a few You have a strong urge to work through some internal changes and you problem-solving ideas. Take some time now to do some writing on what makes may have found a mentor to help you learn and acclimate yourself to some new you happy and how you can reach this goal of being more creative. Your creative ideas lift your working equipment or method or attitude. Push too hard, however, and you could be too spirits and bring your thinking to a max in most work situations, particularly if you deal with dif- bothersome to yourself. Give yourself some credit; you are smart and quick and can learn as ACROSS after pressing. ficult people. This is a good day and you should receive some good insights. Phone calls, letters well as the next person. Go ahead and move forward at your own understanding; if you make a and visiting neighbors are an important part of building your circle of relationships and you mistake, consider it a learning tool—just learn the safety rules. Create peaceful situations as 1. The month following February and pre- 2. Title for a civil or military leader (espe- much and as possible. Groups of friends just magically seem to gather around you after work; ceding April. cially in Turkey). enjoy bringing out the best in another person. You would make a good teacher or a volunteer with young people. You show your charming side this evening and a romance or marriage is perhaps a pizza party is in order. You find yourself appreciating what is quite ordinary. You and 4. Type genus of the family Macropodidae. 3. Show a response or a reaction to some- very possible soon. your mate are happy when life is simple. 12. A white linen liturgical vestment with thing. sleeves. 4. The lean flesh of a saltwater fish found it 15. How long something has existed. warm waters (especially Hawaii). 16. Weaponry used by military or naval 5. A unit of surface area equal to 100 Cancer (June 21-July 22) Capricorn (December 22-January 19) force. square meters. CAPRICORN 17. The former capital and 2nd largest city 6. A metric unit of length equal to one hun- Your relationship with others is usually most harmonious. A young person or fam- An instinctive urge to get serious about taking care of yourself at many levels of Brazil. dredth of a meter. ily member would do well to use you as a mentor in his or her relationships. This is is emphasized now. This may mean an early morning exercise program, as well 18. A ridge that forms a seam between two 7. Climbing palm of Sri Lanka and southern also a good time to effect subtle changes in your profession. If you are observant today, you will be as some vitamin regimen. You encourage good health and positive thinking to others. Being parts. India remarkable for the great length of able to find little non-outstanding chores that will bring positive attention as you complete them involved in helping your loved ones can bring you a great deal of satisfaction. Professionally without fanfare. You are dependable and you will discover this is a quality that is hard to find within speaking, this is the type of day with lots of questions and answers. After work, there is talk of 20. Brief and to the point. the stems which are used for Malacca learning how to blend with others and have others blend with you. Although this could prove 21. A barrier constructed to contain the the position you hold. You go out of your way to understand what is bothering a friend or relative this canes. afternoon. This is a great time to get to know the goals and dreams of your loved ones. Learn to ask to be a learning time, much is accomplished and you are able to create some positive ideas for flow or water or to keep out the sea. 8. A sign of something about to happen. questions that will culminate in truthful answers. You are in a festive spirit this evening. future changes in the production line. Tonight is healthy and fun. By the way, this is one of your 22. A mountain in the Andes in Argentina 9. Disturb in mind or make uneasy or cause best days for love. (22,047 feet high). to be worried or alarmed. 23. Explosive consisting of a yellow crys- 10. A transuranic element that has not talline compound that is a flammable toxic been found in nature. Leo (July 23-August 22) Aquarius (January 20- February 18) derivative of toluene. 11. The function or position properly or Many little chores seem to block your progress this morning but there is 24. Sour or bitter in taste. customarily occupied or served by another. You have made some real headway with regard to healing any disgrun- something about today that brings with it good luck. These slowdowns may have been meant 26. An analgesic for mild pain. 12. A unit of dry measure used in Egypt. tled type of individual. Additional responsibilities may be placed on you in the workplace to be, so to speak. A project needs one more person and it would be best to draw straws, par- 27. Give a nickname to. today but you are able to achieve a positive end. You have plenty of time to complete what- 13. A person who has lied or who lies ticularly if this project comes with good pay or overtime and you are in charge of the decision 28. (informal) Being satisfactory or in satis- ever you feel you need to accomplish. You have a tremendous drive to create a positive repeatedly. making. You could find that you are appreciated or valued for your ability to act and get things atmosphere at work and home. Doing just about anything with friends or family will create factory condition. 14. An explosive device fused to denote done. This is not, however, a good time for you to try out new things or break away from the good memories and an opportunity to take a few pictures. You may find yourself being 30. A silvery soft waxy metallic element of old routine. Your passion is high and you may feel as though you could conquer the world. under specific conditions. entertained by a young child or attending an art show. Careful however, money seems to the alkali metal group. There is an opportunity to partake in some group get-together this afternoon. Other people 19. Any of a class of weakly acidic organic escape your grasp, even when you are not aware. Hold cash carefully, the wind is strong. pay for the food—yum. 31. (British) An informer or spy working for compounds. Smile, someone has you in a camera lens. the police. 25. Shackle that consists of a metal loop 36. A unit of resistance equal to one million that can be locked around the wrist. ohms. 29. Cubes of meat marinated and cooked Virgo (August 23-September 22) Pisces (February 19-March 20) 39. A dark-skinned member of a race of on a skewer usually with vegetables. people living in Australia when Europeans 32. An association of people to promote arrived. This is a fundamental day with much passion and lots of action. You have The behavior of another person may have you completely surprised the welfare of senior citizens. today. You have a lot of mental drive. In trading and speculating, your choices are good 40. A form of magnetic resonance imaging lots of physical vigor today and it would not be a bad idea to take your breaks out-of-doors; 33. A city in central Lithuania. perhaps the noon break you could take a swift walk and then come back and eat a good lunch. and will gain good results in a short period. It is time to skim a bit of funds off the top and of the brain that registers blood flow to 34. United States evangelical preacher Working off the excess enthusiasm or anticipation will help you to focus this afternoon. You make some new investments. A little animal gains your attention after the workday and functioning areas of the brain. famous as a mass evangelist (born in 1918). could find yourself in the limelight this afternoon—everyone wants your attention. After work you may spend some time in helping to make decisions about animal control or finding 42. Any of various deciduous or evergreen 35. A member of the Siouan people of you may want to spend some time riding a bicycle or some other similar activity, perhaps with lost animals. Some political office may become available and this is a good time to think ahead about ways you think you might be able to instigate some positive changes. This ornamental shrubs of the genus Abelia southeastern Mississippi. friends or family. You may feel very radiant. There may be a little time to do things around the having opposite simple leaves and cymes house or with family tonight. There is an open door to some relationship healing which could evening is a great time to reflect on your own situation, just how you feel about yourself 37. Footwear usually with wooden soles. include a parent or other relative. and your future goals. Expect money soon. of small white or pink or purplish flowers. 38. Celebes megapode that lays eggs in 44. Relating to or using sight. holes in sandy beaches. 45. Headdress that protects the head from 41. Black-and-white diving bird of northern Word Search bad weather. seas. Yesterday’s Solution 46. Mentally sluggish. 43. An independent ruler or chieftain 48. The 17th letter of the Greek alphabet. (especially in Africa or Arabia). 49. A unit of current equal to 10 amperes. 47. Goddess of fate. 52. A drug (trade names Atarax and Vistaril) 50. (physics) Of or pertaining to a meson. used as a tranquilizer to treat anxiety and 51. Be earlier in time. motion sickness. 53. Australian evergreen shrubs. 55. Worn away as by water or ice or wind. 54. A city in northwestern Syria. 57. Fragrant resin obtain from trees of the 56. An official prosecutor for a judicial dis- family Burseraceae and used as incense. 58. Lower in esteem. trict. 61. A disorderly crowd of people. 59. Be in contradiction with. 64. A tricycle (usually propelled by ped- 60. A city in southern Turkey on the Seyhan alling). River. 66. Type genus of the family Alopiidae. 62. English monk and scholar (672-735). 70. Situated in a particular spot or position. 63. The sound of sheep or goats (or any 73. Gone by. sound resembling this) v 1. 74. Belonging to or on behalf of a specified 65. (Babylonian) God of storms and wind. person (especially yourself). 67. The United Nations agency concerned 75. Small family of usually tropical butter- with atomic energy. flies. 68. Large sweet juicy hybrid between tan- 77. An extension at the end and at right gerine and grapefruit having a thick wrin- angles to the main building. kled skin. 78. A unit of length of thread or yarn. 69. Disposed of to a purchaser. 79. Order of mammals having few or no 71. Airtight sealed metal container for food teeth including. or drink or paint etc.. 80. A resource. 72. A successful stroke in an athletic con- test (especially in baseball). DOWN 76. A colorless odorless gaseous element 1. Made from residue of grapes or apples that give a red glow in a vacuum tube. Yesterday’s Solution

Daily SuDoku Yesterday’s Solution THURSDAY, MAY 23, 2013 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 Djibouti 00253 Nicaragua 00505 PRIVATE CLINICS Dominica 001767 Nigar 00227 Dominican Republic 001809 Nigeria 00234 Ecuador 00593 Niue 00683 Egypt 0020 Norfolk Island 00672 El Salvador 00503 Northern Ireland (UK) Plastic Surgeons Paediatricians Ophthalmologists Endocrinologist England (UK) 0044 0044 Dr. Abidallah Al-Mansoor 25622444 Dr. Mohammad Al-Khalaf 22547272 Dr. Khaled Hamadi 25665898 Equatorial Guinea 00240 North Korea 00850 Dr. Abd Al-Naser Al-Othman 25339330 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 Ethiopia 00251 Pakistan 0092 Family Doctor Dr. Sohail Qamar 22621099 Dr. Mohsen Abel 25757700 Dr. Kamal Al-Shomr 25329924 Falkland Islands 00500 Palau 00680 Dr Divya Damodar 23729596/23729581 Dr. Snaa Maaroof 25713514 Faroe Islands 00298 Panama 00507 Dr Adnan Hasan Alwayl 25732223 Physiotherapists & VD 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 French Guiana 00594 Philippines 0063 Dr. Abdallah Al-Ali 25644660 Gynaecologists & Obstetricians Dr. Abdul Mohsin Jafar, 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. Verginia s.Marin 2572-6666 ext 8321 Dr. Adel Al-Awadi 25330060 Gambia 00220 Puerto Rico 001787 Dr. Mohammad Al-Daaory 25731988 Dr. Fozeya Ali Al-Qatan 22655539 Dr Anil Thomas 3729596/3729581 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 Ghana 00233 Russian Federation 007 Dr. Ahmad Al-Khooly 25739272 Dr. Anesah Al-Rasheed 22562226 Internist, Chest & Heart General Practitioners Gibraltar 00350 Rwanda 00250 Dr. Salem soso 22618787 Dr. Abidallah Al-Amer 22561444 Dr. Mohamme Y Majidi 24555050 Ext 123 DR.Mohammes Akkad 24555050 Ext 210 Greece 0030 Saint Helena 00290 Dr. Faysal Al-Fozan 22619557 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 Guam 001671 Saint Vincent 001784 Dr. Abdallah Ahmad Eyadah 25655528 Internists, Chest & Heart Head, Division of Cardiology Dr. Nabeel Al-Ayoobi 24577781 Neurologists Mubarak Al-Kabeer Hospital Guatemala 00502 Samoa US 00684 Dr. Adnan Ebil 22639939 Guinea 00224 Samoa West 00685 Dr. Dina Abidallah Al-Refae 25333501 Dr. Sohal Najem Al-Shemeri 25633324 Consultant Cardiologist Dr. Mousa Khadada 22666300 Guyana 00592 San Marino 00378 Urologists Dr. Jasem Mola Hassan 25345875 Dr. Latefa Al-Duweisan 25728004 Dr. Farida Al-Habib 2611555-2622555 Haiti 00509 Sao Tone 00239 Dr. Ali Naser Al-Serfy 22641534 Gastrologists MD, PH.D, FACC Holland (Netherlands) 0031 Saudi Arabia 00966 Dr. Fawzi Taher Abul 22639955 Dr. Nadem Al-Ghabra 25355515 Dr. Sami Aman 22636464 Inaya German Medical Center Honduras 00504 Scotland (UK) 0044 Dr. Khaleel Abidallah Al-Awadi 22616660 Dr. Mobarak Aldoub 24726446 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 Iceland 00354 Singapore 0065 Psychologists [email protected] Tel: 2290-1677 Kaizen center 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 THURSDAY, MAY 23, 2013 Gossip

scar winner Ang Lee canceled his plans to direct the Middle Eastern nation, and Lee was slated to begin filming pilot of new US television series “Tyrant,” saying on the pilot this summer. It would have been the Taiwanese- OTuesday that he needed to rest after spending four born director’s first foray into television. “Tyrant” is produced years working on 3D fantasy-adventure film “Life of Pi.” Lee, by Howard Gordon and Gideon Raff, who also are producers 58, signed on to direct the pilot of the drama series for cable on Showtime’s Emmy-winning counter-terrorism thriller network FX in March, shortly after winning the Best Director “Homeland.” FX, which did not immediately reply to messages Oscar for “Life of Pi.” “It is one of the most brilliant ideas for a seeking comment, is owned by Fox Entertainment Group, a series that I’ve seen and one about which I was very excited,” subsidiary of News Corp. Lee said in a statement. “However, after spending over four years making and promoting ‘Life of Pi,’ I have recently real- ized that I need some rest.” “Tyrant” tells the story of an American family that is pulled into the workings of a restive

Franklin taking June off, postponing shows retha Franklin is taking off the month of June. A spokesman for the 71-year-old singer says Franklin will reschedule two Ashows and resume her touring schedule in July. Publicist David Brokaw provided no other details Tuesday. Franklin announced earlier this month that she would cancel scheduled performances in Chicago and Connecticut this week to undergo medical treatment. She did not specify what type of treatment she was receiving. Franklin appeared on the season finale of the TV ara Delevingne has had her initials tat- by Bang Bang, a lion on her right index finger. singing competition “American Idol” last week via satellite, singing tooed onto her hand. The 20-year-old The New York-based artist often allows his a medley of her hits with the show’s female finalists. Cmodel went back under the needle of celebrity clientËle to tattoo him and he now celebrity tattoo artist Bang Bang on Monday has designs on his body created by Rita, Cara, for the second time in a week to have the let- Justin Bieber and Katy Perry among others. ters ‘CJD’, including her middle name Jocelyn, etched on the side of her right hand in italic writing. Sharing a photo of the design on her Instagram account, Cara wrote: “My new CJD (Cara Jocelyn Delevingne) tattoo by @BangBang (sic)” The catwalk beauty also tried out her own tattooing skills on Bang Bang - whose other A-list clients include Rihanna, Demi Lovato and Cara’s best friend Rita Ora - and left a permanent reminder of her visit on the artist’s leg. In another picture showing the party girl holding the needle, she added: “Me tattooing a tattoo legend!! You must be crazy @BangBang (sic)” Cara’s new design is located close to her first inking obert Pattinson was left “angry and upset” after dis- covering texts from Rupert Saunders on Kristen RStewart’s phone the morning of his birthday. The ‘Water For Elephants’ actor was looking at his on/off girl- friend’s phone when he saw the messages from the direc- tor - who Kristen had an affair with when the pair shot ‘Snow White and the Huntsman’ leaving him heartbroken on his 27th birthday on May 13. He decided to leave right away, end their four-year relationship and told his ‘Twilight’ co-star to leave him alone. A source told The Sun newspaper: “Rob was looking at her phone on the ustin Bieber’s monkey has become the property of morning of his birthday as he wanted to take a picture of Germany. The ‘Beauty and a Beat’ hitmaker’s beloved something when she was in the shower. “Suddenly this Jpet Mally was seized by authorities in March when the message flashes up and it’s not what he wanted to see. singer failed to provide proper vaccination and import doc- He got straight up and left. Despite Kristen’s pleas, he told uments when he arrived in Munich to perform a concert as her not to come to his birthday party at his friend’s that part of his ‘Believe Tour’. German authorities have now filed night. “He’s extremely angry and upset. No matter how legal documents to transfer ownership of the capuchin many times she calls or texts, friends say he’s had monkey after Justin failed to meet a deadline set for enough.” Despite the couple managing to patch things Tuesday to provide the required documents. Mally is now up after a two-month break following Kristen’s “momen- expected to be sent to an unspecified zoo in Germany. tary indiscretion” with Rupert last year, it is thought their Germany’s environmental minister Peter Altmeier said: relationship is over for good this time after Rob was spot- “Monkeys are very sociable animals. That’s why we’re going ted moving his belongings out of her home in Los Feliz to take Mally to a place where he can live safely and in the on Sunday where they both lived over the last few company of others.” German officials had been housing the months. The source added: “After everything that hap- 20-week-old pet at an animal shelter in Munich and have pened and the hurt she caused, he’s furious she’d be back revealed they will attempt to bill the 19-year-old pop star in touch with him, even if she is saying it’s completely for its care, which is thought to have exceeded several innocent. “It does look like this it’s over for good. He sim- thousands of dollars. The shelter also criticized the ‘Baby’ ply can’t trust her.” singer for keeping Mally as a pet, claiming the newborn shouldn’t have been taken away from his mother until he was at least a year old.

annii Minogue says fame made her feel “awful”. The former ‘X Factor’ judge was crippled eather Graham won’t marry unless with anxiety when she launched her pop career in the 90s after constantly being compared she’s sure she’s making the “right Dto her older sister Kylie and being dubbed her sibling. Dannii - who started her career as a Hchoice”. The 43-year-old actress has child actress in the 80s, just like Kylie did - said: “I think it’s because if you build something up in your dated a string of famous men - including head you get a fear of it. It was just like having a fear of heights - it’s all in your head. I’m better now, but when the late Heath Ledger and singer Adam Ant I started it was awful.” The 41-year-old star will soon step back into the spotlight as a judge on ‘Britain and - but admits she has never been in a rush to Ireland’s Next Top Model’, and she admits she finds it hard to act natural on camera and believes most celebri- wed because she is content with her own ties have a different persona in public. Dannii confessed to life and doesn’t need a guy to validate her Ponystep magazine: “The microphones on stage, the existence. She said: “I want to make the camera pointing at you, the lights. It’s not the easiest right choice. I feel I have a happy, good life, thing in the world to walk into a room full of so someone would have to make my life strangers and act natural. “You can say it’s almost better. “We’re not economically dependent like stepping into a superhero suit. The Lady on men. We’re free. You can choose to be Gaga you see - I don’t think that’s the real per- with someone or to be on your own and son at all. She’s amazing.” Dannii recently this is great.” The ‘Hangover Part III’ star - revealed she would love to have more chil- who shot to fame with roles in films such as dren in the future in order to give her two- ‘Boogie Nights’ and cult TV show ‘Twin year-old son Ethan - who she has with her Peaks’ - is ecstatic to reprise her role as for- former boyfriend Kris Smith - a brother or mer call girl Jade in the comedy sequel, but sister. She said: “I’d like to have more kids, she worries about the amount of movie but we’re into the terrible twos with roles available to women in Hollywood. Ethan so we’ll see. He requires a lot of Heather plans to make her own movie as a time, which is why I changed result, blasting the “sexist system” in the my schedule to be with movie industry. In an interview with The him more.” Sun newspaper, she said: “There aren’t so many good parts for women. I think that in any given movie, 75 per cent of the roles are for men. Overall, I think it’s a very sexist sys- tem. “I just wrote a script that I want to act in and also produce. It is about how hard it is to make movies about women. It’s all about my own frustration in the business, I guess.” — Bang Showbiz lifestyle THURSDAY, MAY 23, 2013

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An artwork by Marnie Weber titled ‘Log Lady and Dirty Bunny’. An artwork titled ‘State of Being Sliver Buddha 2013’ by Japanese artist A piece of art entitled ‘Man Loses History’ by South African artist Clive Van Chiharu Shiota, front, is displayed at the first Art Basel in Hong Kong yes- Den Berg. terday. — AP/AFP photos

he first Art Basel fair to be hosted by Hong Kong boasts a prestigious array of international art, highlighting the city’s Tnew role as a global arts hub amid an explosion of personal wealth in mainland China. The four-day annual show is the world’s premier art fair and has until now only been held in Switzerland and the United States. Yesterday wealthy VIPs flocked to the waterfront exhibition centre hosting the fair, which opens A man sits at a booth displaying paintings by Fernando Botero. to the wider public on Thursday. Dressed in glamorous outfits and against a backdrop of popping drinks corks, they perused an eclectic mix of works from more than 3,000 international artists exhibiting through 245 of the world’s leading galleries. The main section showcases work from an international group of 171 modern and contemporary art galleries, with selections of paintings, sculptures, drawings, photographs and video. In one room a Volkswagen Beetle had been compressed into a giant sphere. Another installation drawing crowds featured a disheveled human-sized rabbit sitting on a log, created by the American artist Marnie Weber. Internationally renowned artists whose work is on display include Britain’s Damien Hirst, French An artwork titled: ‘Dollar Sign’ by US artist Andy Warhol. artist JR and the German photographer Andreas Gursky. Other sections feature selections from the Asia-Pacific region curated for the show, large-scale sculptures and a section with solo and two-person exhibitions from emerging international artists. The boom in Hong Kong’s international art market is large- ly a result of the fast-growing wealth of mainland Chinese, some of whom are investing heavily in art. “Having seen the high quali- ty and vast range of presentations from galleries across the globe, A visitor walks near an artwork titled ‘Van Gogh’ by South Korean artist I can assure you that the first edition of Art Basel in Hong Kong Hyung Koo Kang. promises many discoveries and delights,” Art Basel director Marc Spiegler told reporters. Art Basel also exhibits in the Swiss city of Basel and in Miami Beach in the US, but the Hong Kong show will emphasise works from Asia, Spiegler said. Hong Kong is “a place where all Asia feels at home and with many bridges to the west”, he said. “Here in Hong Kong, we will provide a global stage of international expo- sure for galleries and artists in Asia.” There is also a growing inter- est among Asian collectors in different types of art aside from tra- ditional works. The Art Basel Hong Kong fair logo is seen in Hong Kong. Gagosian, White Cube, Acquavella, Lehmann Maupin and Galerie Perrotin are just some of the big-name galleries to have Basel franchise, which has been showcasing modern and con- arrived in the city in the past two years despite sky-high rents. “Art temporary art since 1970. “This is a truly historic moment for the Basel in Hong Kong is evidence that Asia is becoming paramount art scene in Hong Kong and in Asia”, Art Basel Asia director to the international art world,” Pearl Lam, who runs galleries Magnus Renfrew told reporters. “The arrival of Art Basel in Hong based in the southern Chinese city and in Shanghai by the same Kong strengthens the city’s position as the leading art hub in name, said in a statement for Art Basel’s opening. Art Basel Asia.” — AFP replaces Art HK, Hong Kong’s former art fair which was set up in 2008. It was recently taken over by the high-profile Swiss Art An artwork titled ‘Sakuhin, 1978’ by Japanese artist Sadamasa Motonaga.

alking the red carpet of the world’s most famous gown. “There’s always a lot of pressure. Girls have lots of film showcase is a test of nerves for celebrities, pressure. But I felt great and comfortable. Apart from the Wnot helped by wind, rain and the chaos of hun- rain it was all pretty smooth,” she said. dreds of photographers shouting their names. From An actress who can smile, wave to the cameras and sign choosing the perfect dress and hairdo, to trying not to trip autographs while battling wet feet, goosebumps and on the famous red steps, the pressure is on for movie stars mussed hairdos deserves an acting award. “I’m going to and glitterati at the 12-day Cannes film festival on the blow away! I feel like Mary Poppins!” joked jury member swanky French Riviera which wraps up on May 26. Nicole Kidman, wearing a spring-like floral gown, also by “It’s always scary and I’m always intimidated by these Dior, on opening night. In the latest celebrity wardrobe things,” actress Carey Mulligan told Reuters TV after her malfunction, “Desperate Housewives” star Eva Longoria entrance in the pouring rain at the festival’s premiere of inadvertently exposed herself as she hiked up her gown to Baz Luhrmann’s “The Great Gatsby” in a pale pink Dior avoid red carpet puddles on Saturday.

French actress Marion Cotillard US actress Jessica Biel

The foul weather has meant local stores have done brisk Dior, with its full skirts and elegant appeal, appeared to sales of jackets, sweaters, closed-toe shoes and umbrellas. be the favorite of the fashion set this year as new designer Some stars still managed to stay immaculately groomed. Raf Simons has made wooing the A-listers a priority. French actress Marion Cotillard arrived at Monday’s pre- Cotillard and actress Jessica Biel attended Dior’s cruise col- miere of “Blood Ties” by director Guillaume Canet and co- lection fashion show in Monaco on Saturday night. It was starring Clive Owen with a high beehive hairdo that would marked by bold colors and pointy-toed shoes. have been impossible without a girl’s best friend - hair- But some opted for Chanel, such as “Harry Potter” spray. Even less-glamorous dealmakers who head to the actress Emma Watson who chose a pink and black festival to buy and sell new films have been affected by the sequined dual-tone dress for the premiere of Sofia weather. “If this Cannes market turns out to be slower than Coppola’s “The Bling Ring”. Model and actress Milla usual, I will blame it entirely on wet socks,” tweeted Jovovich chose a black and white floral sequined Chanel Magnolia Pictures executive Peter Van Steemburg. in one of the few bold prints to hit the red carpet. An even more striking choice was made by “Baywatch” actor Clashing pink David Hasselhoff, in town to promote his new movie With all eyes in the entertainment industry on Cannes, “Killing Hasselhoff”, who wore a fuchsia pink shirt under making a memorable red carpet entrance is a must for his tuxedo. “Red carpet, pink shirt ... I know, sorry,” he stars, and brands from Swarovski to L’Oreal also seek to quipped. — Reuters benefit. “Now the movies, and especially the red carpet, are becoming the new fashion catwalks,” said Swarovski’s pub- lic relations director Francois Ortarix. “As a brand, we had to be here also.” Stars managed to keep the fashion stakes high, with fashionistas like China’s Fan Bingbing showing off new outfits at a series of parties.

US actor and singer David Hasselhoff and his partner British model Actress Milla Jovovich Hayley Roberts — AFP/AP photos lifestyle THURSDAY, MAY 23, 2013 Music & Movies

Singer-songwriter Carole King performs during an event to honor her with the Gershwin Prize for Popular Song at the Library of Congress. — AP photos

arole King isn’t done with music - not yet anyway. The 71-year-old singer-songwriter known for such hits as C“(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman” and “You’ve Got A Friend” was awarded the nation’s highest prize for popu- lar music in a concert Tuesday. She received the Gershwin Prize for Popular Song at the Library of Congress and will be hon- ored today by President Barack Obama at the White House King told The Associated Press it’s a tremendous honor to be recognized at such an historic place with a place in history that she never would have expected. King is the first woman to receive the Gershwin Prize. Previous honorees include Paul McCartney, Stevie Wonder and Paul Simon. “It is yet another of the many important messages to young women that women matter, women make a difference,” King said. “That popular music is recognized by the Library of Congress as being worthy of a place in history is especially sig- nificant to me.” A concert in King’s honor Wednesday at the White House will include performances by Gloria Estefan, Billy Joel, Jesse McCartney, Emeli Sande, James Taylor and Trisha Yearwood. It will be broadcast May 28 on PBS. Last year, King hinted that she would like to retire from music as her memoir, “A Natural Woman,” began to sell. But Louise Lynn Goffin, the daughter of Carole King, performs. Gian Marco from Peru performs. since then, she’s gone on tour in Australia and plans to sing at a benefit concert to support victims of the Boston Marathon constantly asking her mother, “what’s that note?” Barbra Streisand and many others. That’s in part what makes she doesn’t try too much. She just lets it be what it is.” bombings. Now she plans to introduce a new song during the The piano, she said, brought a “magical connection” for her King so remarkable, said Librarian of Congress James Producers aim to replay King’s rise to fame next year on Gershwin Prize concert that she wrote with Hal David, entitled innate interest in music. She was hooked from the start, she Billington. “When the Beatles got off the plane, the first person Broadway with “Beautiful: The Carole King Musical.” But King is “I Believe in Loving You.” She told the AP she plans to release it said. “I think I was drawn to it and it was drawn to me. they wanted to meet was Carole King when they first came to keeping her distance. Her daughter and manager, Sherry as a single next month as a tribute to David, who won the prize Whatever it was, it was not something I tried to manipulate,” America,” he said. “She was kind of a phenomenon among the Kondor, is shepherding the project. King said she went to a and died last year. “I’m hoping that this will become a song that King said. “The only thing I did do was seek to have the songs performers themselves. That’s an important endorsement.” reading for the production but couldn’t stay through the end. people will want to play at their weddings,” she said. “It’s so heard.” King wrote her first No. 1 hit at age 17 with “Will You In 1990, King and Goffin were inducted into the Rock and It was just too painful. The story focuses on the 1960s when romantic. Hal is such a great writer, and his words live on forev- Love Me Tomorrow” for the Shirelles with her then-husband Roll Hall of Fame. Singer Colbie Caillat, who performed “Will King was married to Goffin and her rise to become a musical er.” Gerry Goffin. Her breakout 1971 album “Tapestry” remains one You Love Me Tomorrow” in King’s honor Tuesday night, told the icon, as well as their personal difficulties along the way. “I love King said she’s staying too busy to retire. This month she of the best-selling records of all time. It is the first female solo AP she grew up listening to King’s records, especially “Tapestry,” the idea. I support it. I think it’s a wonderful story in many ways received an honorary doctorate from the Berklee College of album to reach Diamond status, surpassing 10 million copies at home with her parents. She said she most admires the hon- that will have resonance for people,” she said. “Maybe there are Music along with Willie Nelson and Annie Lennox. There’s even sold. esty in King’s music and the simple chords that allow melodies things people can learn from my mistakes and also what I did a Broadway musical in the works based on King’s life. “I still feel The album included No. 1s “It’s Too Late” and “I Feel the and vocals to soar. “When I think of her, my heart just has a right.” — AP that it would be lovely to retire, but that time is not yet here Earth Move, as well as “You’ve Got a Friend” recorded by James warm spot because her songs just inspire me to be better as a apparently,” she said. King got her start in music from the time Taylor. Hundreds of artists have recorded her songs, including songwriter and to be genuine and honest and open in my she could barely reach the piano growing up in Brooklyn, NY, The Beatles, Mary J Blige, Cher, Phil Collins, Aretha Franklin, lyrics and melodies,” Caillat said. “With the tone of her voice,

revor Bolder, the bass guitarist in David Bowie’s Spiders From Mars band, has died at the age of 62 following a Tbattle with cancer, it was announced yesterday. Bolder joined the British rock star’s backing group in 1971, appearing on classic albums including “Hunky Dory” and “Aladdin Sane”. “Trevor was a wonderful musician and a major inspiration for whichever band he was working with. But he was foremostly a tremendous guy, a great man,” Bowie said. Bolder went on to join Uriah Heep in 1976 and only stopped playing with the hard rock band a few months ago due to his health. “It is with great sadness that Uriah Heep announce the passing of our friend, the amazing Trevor Bolder, who has passed away after his long fight with cancer,” the band said in a statement. “Trevor was an all-time great, one of the out- standing musicians of his generation, and one of the finest and most influential bass players that Britain ever produced. “His long time membership of Uriah Heep brought the band’s music, and Trevor’s virtuosity and enthusiasm, to hundreds of thousands of fans across the world. “Prior to joining Heep he was a founder and ever-present member of David Bowie’s leg- endary Spiders From Mars band, performing on all of their key albums and at countless shows.” — AFP Trevor Bolder

wo emotionless prison guards watch Ai vidual rights. The Chinese-language lyrics are Weiwei as he eats, sleeps, paces, show- full of obscene insults, and the video images Ters - and even sits on the toilet - in the include animals that have become Chinese artist’s new obscenity-filled, euphemisms for defiantly circumventing metaphor-rich music video mocking state strict censorship. “This video was not shot for power. The video accompanying the visual me, and this song, I am not singing for artist’s single “Dumbass” - released yesterday myself,” Ai said. “This is dedicated to all those but blocked online in mainland China - is people who do not have the opportunity to ountry singer Kellie Pickler won the 16th sea- the winner along with Monday’s scores and votes. meant to reconstruct his 81-day detention in raise their voice, who will never be able to son of ABC’s “Dancing With the Stars” on All three remaining contestants earned perfect 2011, which was part of an overall crack- raise their voices. This is not just one genera- CTuesday night, winning over judges and TV scores in the instant round, but fan votes and strong down on dissent. Ai’s subsequent conviction tion. In the past 60 years there have been audiences with her graceful style and high-jumping scores from Monday’s show pushed Pickler over the for tax evasion has been seen as punishment innumerable amounts of people who have jives with partner and professional dancer Derek top. She and her partner were also selected by audi- for his activism. been killed or sent away from their homes, Hough. Pickler, who first grabbed attention as a con- ences via Twitter to do an encore performance of “People who are detained suffer traumas, even tortured to death.” testant on “American Idol” in 2006, screeched and their Monday freestyle dance. Judge Carrie Ann and those who detain us know this very well,” However, web surfers in China are unlike- jumped up and down when she learned she had Inaba called Pickler’s freestyle performance “one of Ai said at a video premiere ceremony in ly to see it. During the premiere, Ai and his won. “This is amazing! Oh, my God!” she exclaimed, the most beautiful things I have ever seen.” Beijing. “This is why we are secretly detained, assistants posted links to the video on social before fellow finalist and NFL player Jacoby Jones The barefoot routine was meant to tell the story blindfolded, cuffed, not allowed to meet media and file-sharing sites that are blocked hoisted her on his shoulders to celebrate. of a tormented couple, and was noted for its focus with lawyers and relatives. “I had been think- in China, including Twitter and YouTube. Pickler beat out Jones, former Olympic gymnast on grace and simplicity instead of flashy tricks. ing about how to recover from the trauma. They also tried - in front of reporters - to post Aly Raisman, and Disney Channel star Zendaya, who Pickler and Hough brought back the energy on And I came up with the idea of using music to Chinese sites including tudou.com, but goes by her first name. The show began with 12 Tuesday with their upbeat jive to the song “Rockin’ to convey a sentiment that is tremendously those attempts weren’t successful, apparent- celebrity contestants including singer Wynonna Robin,” which included lifts and spins but was secret, and private, to the public,” Ai said. ly because censors who review the content Judd and former Olympic skater Dorothy Hamill, praised by judges for its precision. The finale also After his release, Ai’s design firm was slapped before it becomes public rejected the video. who were paired with the show’s professional featured musical performances by former contestant with a $2.4 million tax bill, which he fought The music video has Ai himself singing the dancers. Judd, Korean pop star Psy, and recent American Idol unsuccessfully in the Chinese courts. Ai has song’s explicit lyrics. “Dumbass” is the first Raisman and her dance partner Mark Ballas were runner-up Jessica Sanchez. —Reuters irked Beijing by using his art and online pro- single from Ai’s forthcoming music album eliminated early in the two-hour finale after failing file to draw attention to injustices in China “The Divine Comedy.”—AP to garner enough judge points and audience votes and the need for greater transparency and for their performances on Monday night’s show, rule of law. leaving Pickler, Jacoby, and Zendaya to compete in His music video, screeching with heavily an instant dance round. The instant round, which Singer Kellie Pickler attends the Maxim allowed less than an hour for preparation, was distorted guitars, depicts an insensitive, over- Hot 100 Party at Vanguard. — AFP bearing state power that tramples on indi- scored by the show’s judges, and helped determine lifestyle THURSDAY, MAY 23, 2013

Music & Movies

aring” isn’t a word you would use very cautious and neurotic dentist and Doug is the much to describe 2011’s “The Hangover bland and stable voice of reason. “DPart II,” the disappointingly lazy, beat- In theory, this should be a pretty innocuous trek for-beat rehash of the wild and wildly successful through the desert. But this is a “Hangover” movie. original “Hangover” from 2009. And yet, here we So, naturally, they get run off the road by masked are with “The Hangover Part III,” which runs a differ- thugs who work for crime boss Marshall (John ent sort of risk by going to darker and more dan- Goodman, who improves everything merely by gerous places than its predecessors, both artistical- showing up). Turns out, some of their actions in Las ly and emotionally. It dares to alienate the very Vegas four years ago have tied them to the evil, audience that made “The Hangover” the highest- effeminate gangster Leslie Chow (Jeong) and put grossing R-rated comedy of all time because, well, them in trouble with some powerful, volatile peo- it isn’t exactly a comedy. Sure, there are some out- ple. (Chow, we see in the prologue, has escaped a rageous lines and sight gags, mostly courtesy of Bangkok prison, sparking an epic riot captured in Zach Galifianakis and Ken Jeong, who function as dramatic, visceral detail by Phillips’ frequent cine- central figures this time when, previously, a little bit matographer Lawrence Sher.) of them went a long way. (This was also a poten- Now, they must make things right by finding tially alienating decision.) Chow. And of course, there’s a deadline, with Doug But director and co-writer Todd Phillips signals serving as collateral. Their assignment takes them early and often that he’s much more interested to Tijuana and the rolling hills of northern Mexico than ever before in exploring matters of real conse- until, inevitably, they must end up back in Vegas. In quence, rather than simply mining them for brash keeping with the tone of part three, this depiction laughs. Phillips and co-writer Craig Mazin have of the city isn’t sparkly and full of promise, but placed the unusual challenge on themselves of try- rather seedy and foreboding. Las Vegas does, how- around. He’s clearly a sociopath, and the group’s expectations - and keeping them in check - are a ing to create something bold and new while simul- ever, serve as the location for some rare moments association with him is more than just a nuisance. crucial factor here. This isn’t a party: This finally, tru- taneously remaining true to the trilogy and wrap- of heartfelt emotion. One comes courtesy of Jeong gets a bit more room to explore the role and ly is the hangover. And it’s also the recovery. “The ping it all up in a satisfying way. They succeed Melissa McCarthy, in typical scene-stealing fashion, finds a bit more shading, but if you hate this char- Hangover Part III,” a Warner Bros. Pictures release, is somewhat; simply trying to be creative marks a as the pawn-shop clerk who turns out to be Alan’s acter, you might just hate this entire movie, as well. rated R for pervasive language including sexual ref- huge improvement from part two. This time, trashy, mulleted soul mate. The guys also revisit Similarly, Galifianakis gets way more screen time erences, some violence and drug content, and brief Galifianakis’ insufferable, inappropriate man-child Stu’s first wife, ex-stripper Jade (Heather Graham), here; he’s essentially the star of “The Hangover Part graphic nudity. Running time: 100 minutes. Three Alan has gone off his meds and is out of control. and find that she’s living a happy suburban life with III,” with Cooper and Helms fading into reliable sup- stars out of four .— AP His family and friends - including fellow “Wolfpack” her son, who’s now 4. porting roles. members Phil (Bradley Cooper), Stu (Ed Helms) and The child actor who plays him, Grant Holmquist, (Bartha once again misses out on the adven- Doug (Justin Bartha) - stage an intervention and was one of several infants used in the original tures.) The character of Alan is still odd and off- offer to drive him to a treatment center in Arizona. “Hangover” as Baby Carlos and is the one featured putting, unorthodox and unpredictable. But his And so the four venture off on yet another journey, prominently in that film’s posters. It’s a nice touch. loneliness and neediness shine through, which once again assuming their familiar roles: arrogant On the opposite end of the spectrum, Chow is makes one of the more out-there figures in the English teacher Phil is the de facto leader, Stu is the more than just a silly, bisexual cokehead this time “Hangover” universe unexpectedly relatable. Your

apper Pitbull has taken his blend of American pop music fused with Latin beats from theclubs of Miami to international pop charts, but he now is crossing into film with his first acting role as an animated character Rin the upcoming movie, “Epic.” Pitbull, whose real name is Armando Perez, has become a staple in the pop music field with lively dance-floor tracks including recent chart hits “Feel This Moment” with Christina Aguilera and “Live it Up” with Jennifer Lopez. The rapper, 32, plays street-smart frog Bufo in “Epic,” due to be released on Friday and which explores a secret universe where the natural world is battling evil forces. Pitbull talked to Reuters about his film debut, working with Lopez and the origins of his numerous nicknames.

Q: What do you make of this whole animation A: Pitbulls are misunderstood and that’s the same world you got a chance to work in? thing with me when I first came into the music A: Before I didn’t understand what it meant to put a business. Being Cuban-American made me politi- voice to animation and see it come to life. But I’m cally incorrect. My whole life was trying to make always game for trying new things. I love how people understand that we all come from the those artists could see my voice on the character same place. It’s the same with the dog. The pit- before it was even drawn up. bull is a very loyal, very loving dog that doesn’t understand the concept of losing. I believe in Q: How did the animators bring your influence to fighting hard for what you believe in and never the character of Bufo the frog? Did they cap- giving up. ture your essence? A: They captured a piece of my essence, absolutely. Q: How important is your Cuban heritage? The suits, the business/hustler, knowing how to A: It’s very important. I’m Cuban-American, first gen- navigate his way through the good and bad. Bufo eration. The Latin culture is everything. But I’m knows how to play the middle. It’s business, not very careful to not let that box me in. I want to Q: How so? Recording artist Pitbull personal for him. I think they captured about 75 represent (my heritage) and I’m proud of who I A: It’s a different side of me. It’s going to show every- onstage during the 2013 percent of my essence. The gestures, the hand am, but it’s about letting others know that we are thing that we’ve been speaking about here - Billboard Music Awards at movements, the way he walks - I think they just like everybody else. We don’t want people to motivation, believing in yourself, not giving up. the MGM Grand Garden watched me a lot in the studio when I was there. judge us, we want people to understand us, to With this record, I wanted to come out of Arena in Las Vegas, see that we’ve gone through the same things nowhere, which is why the name is perfect. Nevada. — AFP he Cannes Film Festival is missing one Q: Many musical artists have made their way to everybody else has gone through and suffered of its biggest stars of this year’s festi- film. Why haven’t you transitioned sooner? the same struggles. Q: “Live It Up” is your third collaboration with val: Ryan Gosling. The 32-year-old A: It’s all about timing. I’ve had projects on the table T Jennifer Lopez, following “On The Floor” and Canadian actor was unable to attend the but I didn’t have the time to do them. This caught Q: What were some of the pivotal moments in “Dance Again.” What’s your partnership like? premiere yesterdayof director Nicolas me at the right time ... I hope there’s a sequel your career that really changed things for A: Jennifer is a hard worker, very professional, gor- Winding Refn’s film “Only God Forgives.” because I would love to see more of Bufo in num- you? geous and she’s a walking empire. Anytime I’m Gosling stars in the Bangkok noir about a ber two. I have a lot of good ideas for them, ideas A: The record that took it global was “I Know You around her, I’m watching, learning, studying. It’s a boxing club owner pressured by his mother that would capture the rest of that 25 percent of Want Me” (in 2009). Before that, I lived in the natural combination, like a student and teacher. to his avenge his brother’s murder. At a the essence they may have missed. clubs and in the streets as far as my music. But I’m a student all day. I think it would be an honor press conference yesterday, Cannes direc- that song took it to the next level. “Give Me for Jennifer to watch me grow and say, ‘That kid tor Thierry Fremaux read, in French, a letter Q: Your stage moniker ‘Pitbull’ is named after a Everything” (in 2011) was a turning point. This did learn.’ from Gosling apologizing for his absence. dog that tends to get a lot of bad press unfor- record coming out (on May 28) called “Outta The actor is currently in Detroit shooting tunately. Nowhere” will be another turning point I think. his directorial debut, “How to Catch a Monster.” “I can’t believe that I’m not in Cannes with you,” Gosling wrote. “I was hoping to be coming but I am in the third week of shooting my movie. I miss you all. “Nicolas, my friend, we really are the same, simply in n auction of items belonging to late Swedish filmmak- sold the pawn shop receipt to an antique dealer who picked different worlds and I am sending you er Ingmar Bergman has been cancelled, the auction up the items and brought them to Bukowskis,” added Alm. good vibrations. I am with you all.” His Ahouse said yesterday, after police said the objects were Daniel Bergman and Linda do not have the same father. absence is a blow to the festival, which likely stolen from the family. Photos, letters-most of them Police said they had launched an investigation into the sus- depends on top stars like Gosling to walk addressed to his fourth wife, pianist Kaebi Laretei, now 90 — pected theft and planned to interrogate suspects. “We have its red carpet and draw the world’s media and a sketch from a 1944 draft manuscript were to have gone previously worked with the family and we reacted as soon as attention to the annual French Riviera under the hammer at Bukowskis auction house in Stockholm we were informed of the situation,” Bukowskis curator extravaganza. on May 28. But Bukowskis chief curator Carl Barkman said the Barkman said. He stressed the decision to cancel the sale was Fremaux said he was sad that Gosling auction had been scrapped after “irregularities concerning taken together with the family and the seller. Ingmar couldn’t make it.”He is not with us physical- the origin of the items.” Bergman died on July 30, 2007, at the age of 89 after directing ly, but as he stated, his thoughts are with Police officer Lars Alm said one of Bergman’s sons, Daniel, more than 40 films during a career that spanned the second us,” said Fremaux.”Only God Forgives” is had filed a complaint after seeing an article about the auction half of the 20th century. — AFP Gosling’s second collaboration with Refn in Swedish daily Dagens Nyheter. “He was very surprised following 2011’s “Drive.”“Only God Forgives” because he thought these objects were in the possession of was screened for the media early yesterday his mother, Kaebi Laretei,” said Alm. “It turned out that it was at Cannes, where it drew mixed reviews for Kaebi’s daughter, Linda, who took them, pawned them, and its extreme violence and nightmarish treat- ment of such a Greek tragedy. — AP

he problem with New York these days is there’s just not and evokes “Mean Streets” - Martin Scorsese’s breakout 1973 dra- enough litter. At least, that’s French director Guillaume ma - and other films of the era, such as director Jerry Schatzberg’s TCanet’s experience. He had to supply his own garbage to junkie drama “The Panic in Needle Park.” Canet refers to recreate the grubby streets of 1970s Brooklyn for his debut English- Schatzberg’s movie as a touchstone and screened it for his cast and language feature “Blood Ties.” “Every day,” the director laughed dur- crew so they could understand where he was coming from. ing an interview at the Cannes Film Festival, where his movie is But it was only once he started making the movie that he screening out of competition. “We had a big truck with garbage grasped how much things have changed in New York. “When they and we were throwing papers and stuff all the way.” were shooting ‘Panic in Needle Park’ you can see that they were The lack of litter was just one of the logistical and cultural hur- stealing shots in the streets, and you cannot do this in New York dles that Canet had to overcome to make the tale of sibling ten- now,” he said. “You can’t shoot without permission, without author- sions in which two brothers - one a straight-arrow cop played by ization. It’s really difficult.” Permits were one problem; another was Billy Crudup, the other a charismatic criminal played by Clive Owen U.S. cinema’s working practices, which struck the Frenchman as - find themselves on a collision course. Canet, a 40-year-old French both foreign and hierarchical. screen heartthrob-turned-successful director, had several offers of “Not being able to talk with the extras was very frustrating for work in the US after his 2006 French film “Tell No One” - a taut me,” Canet said. “You have to go through your first assistant, who is adaptation of a Harlan Coben novel - became a surprise hit in the going to - in front of you - talk to the extras. “When you have some- US. He said he turned down the chance to do big-budget pictures one in front of you, you want to talk to him directly, you don’t want in favor of the independently produced and modestly budgeted to have someone repeating what you just said. So it’s just weird.” “Blood Ties.” The movie is a remake of the 2008 French thriller “Les He got used to it, but audiences at Cannes have been divided on Liens du Sang” (literally Blood Ties, but titled “Rivals” in English), how well his trans-Atlantic hybrid of a film succeeds. The ‘70s look which starred Canet as the policeman brother. He collaborated on of the film is powerfully evocative - all polyester, vast cars and even the script with American director James Gray, whose own Big vaster moustaches - and the soundtrack is chock-full of killer Apple saga “The Immigrant” screens at Cannes on Friday. Gray was tunes.—AP (From Left) actors Billy Crudup, Noah Emmerich, director Guillaume Canet, actors Clive Owen, Marion Cotillard, the one who helped translate Canet’s dialogue into fluent New Jamie Hector and Lili Taylor pose for photographers as they arrive for the screening of Blood Ties at the 66th inter- Yorkese. The film is steeped in Canet’s love of ‘70s American movies national film festival, in Cannes, southern France. — AP Library honors Carole King with US pop music prize

THURSDAY, MAY 23, 2013 38

File photo shpws Muppets Fozzie Bear, left, a Whatnot, center, and Kermit the Frog make a television appearance in New York. — AP photos Muppets Bert, left, and Ernie, from the children’s program ‘Sesame Street.’

he Muppets may have taken Manhattan, but they’re not be represented is the Muppet that they made of me,” getting a spiffy new home in Queens. Kermit the Mayor Michael Bloomberg joked at the news conference, TFrog, Miss Piggy, Bert and Ernie of “Sesame Street” where he bantered with Miss Piggy about the city’s film fame, the stars of “Fraggle Rock” and other puppets, cos- and television industry and reminisced about their joint tumes and items from throughout Muppets creator Jim work in the 2008 TV special “A Muppets Christmas: Letters Henson’s career have been donated to the Museum of the to Santa,” which featured Bloomberg as himself. Moving Image, which is building a new gallery to house “You were wonderful - almost lifelike,” the porcine pri- them, the institution announced Tuesday. Encompassing ma donna quipped Tuesday. (For the record, Bloomberg’s almost 400 items ranging from original puppets to personal Muppet has a nice home of its own, in a reading behind-the-scenes footage, the gift is a boon for the 25- room at the mayor’s Manhattan town house.) A pup- year-old museum, which saw attendance skyrocket in peteer, screenwriter and producer, Henson introduced a 2011 and 2012 during a temporary exhibit of Henson’s raft of beloved and familiar characters during a career that work. And it fulfills a cherished goal for Henson’s widow spanned from the 1950s until his death in 1990, at 53. and collaborator, Jane Henson, who died last month at 78. Some, including his Muppets and Fraggles, appeared in “She loved the Muppet characters as though they both television shows and movies, among them the 1984 were part of her own family,” and the actual puppets film “The Muppets Take Manhattan,” which depicted the themselves were special to her, one of the couple’s daugh- fuzzy crew striving to stage a Broadway musical. ters, Cheryl Henson, said at a news conference. “It was her While being a shrewd and innovative businessman, dream to have these dear friends find a good home where “Jim Henson created indelible, memorable characters that they could be seen and enjoyed, and where new audi- live with us throughout a variety of media,” said Carl ences could learn about the many facets of my father’s Goodman, executive director of the Museum of the work.” The exhibit is to open next year at the museum in Moving Image. Henson’s career showed “that you can the Long Island City neighborhood, across the East River march to the beat of a different drummer and succeed in from midtown Manhattan. The city is chipping in $2.75 this world,” Goodman said. Ten Henson puppets from the Miss Piggy arrives at the million toward the $5 million cost for a project it sees as 1950s TV show “Sam and Friends,” including the original 2010. The Smithsonian already had a Kermit puppet from premiere of The Muppets at Jim Henson, creator of the Muppets, poses furthering its goal of persuading more tourists to venture version of Kermit the Frog, were donated to the the “Sesame Street” and “The Muppet Show” era. — AP the El Capitan Theater. with Kermit the Frog. beyond Manhattan. “The only major item that I know will Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History in

Japanese artist Takashi Murakami poses in unique first edition of “Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone” front of one of his annotated by author JK Rowling has sold for a record 150,000 sculptures during a pounds ($227,421) at a London charity auction, Sotheby’s said on A press preview of his Tuesday. The 1997 book, featuring handwritten notes, 22 original illus- solo exhibition at trations and a 43-page “second thoughts” commentary by the author, Galerie Perrotin in fetched the highest price to date for a printed book by Rowling, Hong Kong. The exhibi- Sotheby’s said in a statement. tion, which runs from The auction house said the sale room fell silent on Tuesday as buyers 21 May to 6 July 2013 engaged in a bidding war for the coveted book, which eventually went will display in particu- to a unidentified buyer bidding over the telephone. The full sale fea- lar a set of new paint- tured 51 first editions, all unique one-offs featuring annotations and ings featuring commentary from authors, as part of the “First Editions, Second Murakami’s alter-ego Thoughts” sale to benefit charity organization English PEN, which pro- Mr Dob and self-por- motes freedom of expression. traits of the artist sur- Other top sellers included Roald Dahl’s “Matilda” with new illustra- rounded by characters tions by Quentin Blake for 30,000 pounds ($45,470), Kazuo Ishiguro’s including ‘Kaikai’ and “The Remains of the Day” for 18,000 pounds ($27,278) and Julian Barnes’ ‘Kiki’ with back- “Metroland” for 14,000 ($21,216). grounds of skulls pat- The total sale fetched 439,000 pounds ($665,410). “Harry Potter and terns.—AFP the Philosopher’s Stone” was the first in a series of seven novels by Rowling, about the adventures of a boy wizard living in a world of “mug- gles” and magic. Only 500 first editions of “Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone” exist, making them the rarest of the series, which has become the best-selling book series ever and was adapted into a multibillion-dollar film franchise. — Reuters

he pants worn by actor Mark Hamill in the first Oscar-winning “Star Wars” film went under the hammer Tuesday for $36,100, according to Tauction house’s website. The young Jedi Knight wore the sand-col- ored regular Levi’s pants throughout the 1977 movie, which launched the world-beating franchise by director George Lucas. The pants had a pre- sale estimate of $70,000-$100,000, said Los Angeles auctioneer Nate D Sanders, who called the film “one of those rare cinematic experiences that most people remember their whole lives.” There were 13 bids. The original movie, which launched the career of a young Harrison Ford, was soon followed by the equally popular “The Empire Strikes Back” (1980) and “Return of the Jedi” (1983). In the late 1990s, Lucas drew mixed This image courtesy reviews when he resurrected the blockbuster series with a prequel trilogy: of Nate D Sanders “The Phantom Menace” (1999), “The Attack of the Clones” (2002) and “The Auctions shows the Revenge of the Sith” (2005). Walt Disney Company announced plans to pants worn by Luke revive the series in October, when it bought Lucasfilm for $4 billion. Sci-fi Skywalker as a Jedi and action filmmaker JJ Abrams will direct “Episode VII,” scheduled for Knight in ‘Star Wars’. A member of staff poses holding a first edition copy of ‘Harry Potter and release in 2015. — AFP the Philosopher’s Stone’ by British author J K Rowling annotated by — AFP Rowling that will form part of the ‘English PEN First Editions, Second Thoughts Sale’ at Sotheby’s auction house in central London. — AFP