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www.kuwaittimes.net NO: 16479- Friday, April 3, 2015 Sandstorm blankets Dubai and GCC cities

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DUBAI: A woman and two children wear medical masks as they cross a street amid a sandstorm that engulfed the city yesterday. — AFP

Local FRIDAY, APRIL 3, 2015

Local Spotlight Sweet names for street drugs Health check A Kuwaiti drug user opens up for visit visa By Dave Torres hey are known by sweet names like chocolate, farawlah (strawber- Try), ice, crystal or vanilla. You can find them easily in Kuwait but they are By Muna Al-Fuzai far from afterschool treats. These are popular street names for hard core drugs now commonly found in Kuwait. Kuwait Times spoke to a male [email protected] Kuwaiti drug user who readily answered some queries on the condition of anonymity. In Kuwait, according to him, drugs like heroin, cocaine or metham- omprehending the system for obtaining a phetamine (meth) and marijuana or visa in Kuwait is a little difficult because there hashish are all easily accessible and go Care several types of visas and each of them by a variety of street names. has different requirements. I won’t speak about the Hashish is often called chocolate, types of visas and the required paperwork, but I hash, sh*t, zet or dukkah. Tramadol are want to focus on a specific type of visa - the visit traded under the street synonyms visa - which seems devoid of health supervision farawlah (strawberry). Cocaine is blow, without a clear reason. We must call for protecting snow or bodrah (powder) and remark- the country from infectious diseases and epidemics ably, an increasingly popular array of Drugs like heroin, cocaine or methamphetamine (meth) and marijuana or by newcomers, especially those who come from methamphetamines, known locally as hashish are all easily accessible and go by a variety of street names. warzones. shabu, is often called by junkies names are protected,” he said. to the garbage bin they found the A visit visa holder can enter the country without like ice, crystal or chemical. The incredi- In order to avoid police detection, packages contained heroin. a medical examination, while vaccination certifi- bly addictive and dangerous drug hero- drug users and dealers will use people Heroin is readily available in Kuwait, cates are not necessary to be granted entry to in goes by the names pissa, vanilla, soda they don’t know. “Transactions are done as is hashish. Cocaine is more expensive Kuwaiti for this category. For those who enter the or balabel. cautiously. Usually, the middlemen due to the fact that it originates in Latin country on a short-term period that doesn’t exceed involved in the transaction have no American and often transits other a month, this should not be an issue. But some Druglord networks knowledge about the drugs. The eyes of countries in Africa, Asia and other parts enter the country on a visit visa and keep going in Unless you are a dealer or a user or a the authorities are very sharp, so we are of the Middle East before reaching and out for long periods. Some people get a job member of the police, you likely won’t really very careful in every transaction. Kuwait. Tramadol is a new favorite, here on a ‘consultancy’ agreement and every three hear these names much. But though still It’s very difficult, but there is always a often brought in by the thousands from months they go to Bahrain for the night and then largely underground, the drug culture way,” he said. Lebanon and Egypt. Methamphamines in Kuwait flourishes with much of it come back to Kuwait for a visit, which is wrong. “What we do is we pay people to are also growing in popularity. Another emanating from Kuwait’s central jail. Such a person is manipulating the system to avoid deliver something. But the end user illicit substance now popular in Kuwait Druglords with networks throughout and the delivery person will not meet, is called ‘spice’ or chemical. These are a medical checks. the country and abroad control much of but we monitor their movements. class of manufactured drugs known in A Kuwaiti visit visa must be sponsored by a the trade though they are sitting in There will be no exchange of bags - the some countries as legal highs. They are Kuwait company or by a resident staying in the prison. bags containing the money and the prohibited in Kuwait though increas- country. The visitor can have his visa processed and “These drugs mostly come from the drugs will be left in various places, so ingly available. passport stamped at a Kuwait embassy. It takes jail. Although there are other people you cannot know who’s using it,” he “Heroin and hashish are sold for approximately 2 working days to obtain a visit visa. operating from Lebanon, Iran, Iraq and said. about KD 40 to 100 per gram, while Hotels can arrange visit visas for businesspeople Pakistan, the majority of the drugs are cocaine, which is commonly used by and it takes around 7 days. directed from the jail. I don’t want to say Increasingly available rich people, is sold for KD 100 to KD 250 Some turn their visit visas into permanent resi- the authorities are complicit, but they In a recent example, a drug delivery per gram. I have tried these drugs and dence visas and only then the medical examination are coming from people inside. We person was spotted in Mishref near the am not an addict, but I know many in becomes mandatory. But this may occur after have contacts and those contacts will park. The man was seen by police leav- Kuwait. But I won’t tell anyone who months and this person has possibly interacted use people whom we don’t know, and ing a few small packages near a they are. I use drugs once in a while,” with many people here and violated the protective they will deliver it to a place we agree garbage bin. When police approached he said,” because they keep me awake health system. Everyone should have a medical upon,” he explained. “Drugs are all the man took off running. He was even- 24 hours and I feel that I can do almost exam in their home country before getting a visa - around us; they are kept by people and tually caught and when police returned anything.” even a visit visa - and it must be coupled with the entry request. HIV and hepatitis are infectious diseases and must be taken seriously. We in Kuwait need a national security plan for all. Help Wanted Some expatriates come from countries with very poor national vaccination programs, so they need to be checked even if their visit is temporary. In order to protect expats and Kuwaitis, we must do it with more efficiency. We cannot risk allowing peo- Copy editor ple who come from countries with inefficient health medical services to spread diseases in our country just because they are on a visit visa. Kuwait is a disease-free country, and checkups & Proofreader and vaccinations should be compulsory for all. Why not for example ask those who wish to come to Q Must be fluent in English Kuwait on visit visas to be vaccinated in their home countries before they arrive here? Our embassies QMust have transferrable Visa18 around the world can verify whether applicants have been medically examined and vaccinated, QPrevious experience required before allowing them to travel to Kuwait. I know some may claim that such a decision will QOnly candidates in Kuwait will shut down the country. Those who need to come be considered. here for meetings or short businesses will not mind any move to safeguard their health and possibly of their families if they decide to settle here, but those Email CV and writing sample to who reject it may have a reason to hide something and do not want to be exposed. A photo of the Kuwait Towers taken from Kuwait City. — Photo by Joseph Shagra [email protected] Local4

FRIDAY, APRIL 3, 2015

struggle to stay afloat

By Nawara Fattahova Home-based businesses hile small businesses like call centers, Internet cafes and watch Wrepairers are disappearing due to technological advances, other ‘trendy’ small businesses riding the technological wave are also failing due to inexperi- ence, lack of business acumen and other obstacles. Starting a small business, mostly operated from home, has become a trend during the past few years, especially with the increasing number of fairs and exhibitions held all over Kuwait, in addition to the role of social media, which has simplified doing business and cut expenses for advertising and promotion. Both these factors encouraged many individuals to start their own businesses. Unfortunately, not all of them succeeded and grew - many had to close down as they didn’t make the profits their owners expected.

Fatma, 27, designed gift sets for newborns and sold them for about six months, but failed to sustain her business. “I came up with this idea as I had many friends and relatives who gave birth in a year, and I was confused every time what to buy for them, especially since I was busy. Also, I noticed that some of the mothers were not always completely prepared for the delivery, and sometimes forgot to bring some necessary things to the hospital, so their families had to bring them later,” she told Kuwait Times. She designed special gift packs for both genders in various col- ors and sizes. “In addition to pink and blue, I was also doing purple, yellow and green packs. Each pack included all items a baby needs at an affordable price. I prepared my first package and presented it to my friend who had just given birth. She liked it very much as well as her guests, who praised my work, and this encouraged me to start this business,” added Fatma. After selling a few packages to her friends, she participated in a fair with her cousin. “At the first fair, I sold four sets out of 10, Local5

FRIDAY, APRIL 3, 2015

which wasn’t amazing, but was good as it was my health, but they don’t know about the obstacles first fair. So I decided to participate again in an- we face. As customers can’t complain against us, other one, especially since I was using part of my we on the other hand can’t complain when they cousin’s booth and wasn’t paying for it. There I only place an order and don’t honor it. It happened sold two packs, yet I took it as opportunity for pro- with me many times when customers ordered moting myself. The next two exhibitions were not food for 10 or 15 people and I spent the whole day very well attended, and this work was taking up cooking, and they ended up not taking it. They too much of my time. On the other hand, I wasn’t stopped answering my calls and simply didn’t feel making enough money that could replace my sal- any responsibility as I’m not a restaurant. This re- ary, and about two months later, I got married. So I sulted in making me quit my business after about didn’t have time at all for this activity which needs three months,” she noted. attention, so I quit,” Fatma stated. Many people who start a business often aren’t aware of the time and effort necessary to develop Online businesses it, to build a brand and reputation and to develop Tahani, a 30-year-old Arab expat, started a a customer base. Though the rise of social media business that failed after a very short period. “With and the local fair and market culture has encour- the frequent use of social media and particularly aged a new generation of small business owners Facebook, more people are doing business online, and made entry into small business owning easier, especially women, who sell handicrafts and ac- it did not change the fundamental reality. Small cessories. So I decided to try a business as well, businesses require lots of time, dedication, persis- especially since it didn’t involve a license, rent- tence in the face of many challenges and a strong Lack of ing a place and big capital. As I only had limited customer and support base to succeed. ‘ resources, it sounded good for me as there wasn’t a big risk,” she pointed out. But cultural and religious sentiments opposed seriousness her products. “I offered cigarette boxes with different designs from different materials that I made myself. When I made about 30 designs, I posted them on Facebook...Unfortunately, I was disap- pointed at the negative reactions that I received. of customers Many people posted comments saying that smoking is haram and that my work will encourage people to start smoking. So even those who would have considered buying one refrained. I was behind only sold one box after a few weeks although the price wasn’t high, so I stopped this business,” said Tahani. ending my Lack of awareness Huda, 41, is another example of an unsuccessful small business owner who operated from home. She cooked Jordanian and Arabian dishes and delivered to houses upon request. She only survived business’ in this business for three months before quitting. “Lack of seriousness of customers was behind ending my business. Some people think our business is easy and they complain that we are not inspected by the municipality or the ministry of

Local FRIDAY, APRIL 3, 2015 Running for redemption

For Bo Shuaib, a crippling accident was not the end of the road

By Faten Omar agreed even if it was only 1 percent,” Bo Shuaib said. “I do not remember how many hile having a late breakfast at one of times I signed papers that I was solely respon- the seaside restaurants or driving sible for the operation,” he added. Walong the long stretch of Gulf Road, you may have definitely seen Bo Shuaib, a Determined spry man who has sparked many people’s After three years of treatment and 4 surger- curiosity. This elderly man runs daily, come ies, he moved back to Kuwait in 1985, weigh- rain or shine, and if you do not see him ing 120 kg and able to walk only short dis- jogging, you can see him at McDonald’s tances. But he challenged himself to prove the reading the newspaper with 5 extra- doctors wrong. Without a crutch less than a large sodas and 4 bars of chocolate. year after treatment and after unbearable Bo Shuaib is a healthy 66-year-old pain, Bo Shuaib started to walk and run daily. Bahraini born and raised in Kuwait. “I live “When I compare myself to disabled people alone here. I’m a widower with two mar- who have been heroes in various kinds of ried children and married grandchil- sports, I feel that I have to work harder. And dren, but they are in the US and this is what pushes me,” Bo Shuaib said. Switzerland,” he told Kuwait Times. Bo “The fall of man is not a failure, but failure is Shuaib starts his run at 11:30 am from to remain where you fell. This is my advice to Bneid Al-Gar to Sabah Al-Salem and back, anyone who has had a similar incident. alternatively walking and jogging. “I’m Perhaps God takes something dear from you, home by 4 pm, watching the news on but that’s not the end - you have to stand television and asleep by 7:30 pm. If I’m again,” he asserted. Bo Shuaib told Kuwait awake at 8 pm, you may see a news- Times that he feels immense joy when people flash on Al-Jazeera or Al-Arabia that Bo acknowledge him. “When I get back home, Shuaib is still awake - it is a miracle!” he under the shower I recall my day, and when I quipped. see how many people - foreigners or Arabs - Bo Shuaib worked for the Ministry of talked and waved to me, I smile all over Defense, and was a football player at again.” Kuwait Club since he was 12. In 1982, he Bo Shuaib thanked all the restaurants on had a serious car accident that left him Gulf Road that offer him food and drinks for in a wheelchair for three months. The free, specially TGI Fridays that has been cele- accident resulted in serious spinal cord brating his birthday with cake and candles for problems and he still has difficulty see- 6 years now. But Bo Shuaib cannot eat ing and hearing because of the acci- because he does not have teeth, so he only dent. drinks beverages and eats chocolate. After he was told by doctors in “Sometimes I feel I’m an ant! Sweets are my Kuwait that he will never walk again love, and I adore chocolate,” he exclaimed, and would remain wheelchair-bound beaming toothlessly. for the rest of his life, his father footed While his daily jog keeps him busy, the the cost of his treatment in lonely Bo Shuaib has one wish - to die run- Barcelona as a last hope. “Doctors ning, because if he were to die at home, he told me that the success rate of the fears he would rot for days and nobody operation was only 5 percent, but I would know. Local8 FRIDAY, APRIL 3, 2015 An exemplary role model in humanitarian work ‘Kuwait plays major role aiding countries in distress’: Abdul Ahad

KUWAIT: “Kuwait plays a major role in aiding and assisting countries in distress through its Kuwait Red Crescent Society”, said UNFPA’s Arab organizations regional director, Mohammed Abdul Ahad. Speaking to reporters following a meeting with a del- egation from KRCS headed by chairman, Dr Hilal Al-Sayer, Abdul Ahad said that Kuwait is an exemplary role model in humanitarian work and that it never hesitates in lending a helping hand to humanity calls around the globe. Abdul Ahad along with Al-Sayer dis- cussed humanitarian activities and means to enhance them. He also praised the role played by KRCS who provides distressed people with various relief aids in many countries worldwide. Abdul Ahad also said that the meeting included discussions on the possible means of cooperation to help Syrian refugees displaced in Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq, Turkey and Egypt. The focus was on mothers and pediatric health care since millions of Syrian women at a child- bearing age needed urgent health care Abdul Ahad and Dr Hilal Al-Sayer along with the delegates from UNFPA and KRCS. services including ambulant clinics, health centers and hospitals funded by UNFPA. to a variety of entertainment, recreational Jordan and Lebanon and that the relief ple by providing humanitarian relief aids Moreover, Abdul Ahad said that UNFPA and other specialized activities and services. aids it provides would continue till the and medical needs. Concluding the meet- had established special centers for women On his part, KRCS’ chairman, Dr Hilal Al- causes leading to those people in distress ing, Al-Sayer honored Abdul Ahad hailing in Syria, Egypt, Jordan, Iraq and Lebanon Sayer stressed that the society was fully were over. Both sides also reviewed possi- his constructive efforts in helping Syrian where women and girls could have access committed to helping Syrian refugees in ble cooperation to support the Libyan peo- refugees. —KUNA Crime Kuwait donates 25k sterling Report to UK Gulf War memorial Egyptian ladies LONDON: Kuwait has donated 25,000 ster- hairdresser arrested ling to build a memorial in Lichfield city. The memorial is being made to honor the 47 British soldiers who were killed in the By Hanan Al-Saadoun war to liberate Kuwait during the Gulf War in 1991. Kuwait had previously made a KUWAIT: The tripartite security committee (comprising of elements from donation of 10,000 sterling towards the Ministry of Interior, Ministry of Social Affairs and Labor and the same memorial two years ago, Dean of Municipality) recently arrested an Egyptian male working as a ladies’ hair- Diplomatic Corps, Kuwaiti Ambassador in dresser, said security sources. Case papers indicated that security forces London Khaled Al-Duwaisan told Kuwait had been tipped off about the suspect’s activity when he posted ads on News Agency (KUNA) on Thursday. social media websites. He was arrested when he escorted an undercover The donation represents Kuwait’s female agent to his residence that he had been using as a salon. appreciation for the UK’s efforts and role in forming an international alliance to end the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait, said Al- Abandoned bag alerts security Duwaisan. The Kuwaiti ambassador also Security sources were on full alert at dawn yesterday when stressed the depth of historical and close a report was made about an abandoned bag left outside relations between the State of Kuwait and the Central Bank of Kuwait in Kuwait City. A bomb squad Britain, appreciating its relentless political was immediately dispatched to the scene and took the bag and military support for Kuwait. to the bank’s empty parking lot to check its contents. To For his part, the assistant chairman of everyone’s surprise, the bag contained another smaller bag the memorial project set in Lichfield city and a pair of shoes. Further investigations are in progress. Kerry Filler thanked Kuwait for contributing to the memorial, noting that the project will be launched on 28 February, 2016, Kuwait’s ambassador to UK, Khalid Al-Duwaisan handing over a dona- Brothers apprehended for threatening officer coinciding with Kuwait’s Liberation Day tion cheque to assistant chairman of the memorial project, Kerry Filler. A citizen and two of his brothers were recently arrested for celebrations next year. —KUNA threatening a police officer and facilitating a suspect’s escape, said security sources. According to case papers, a police detec- Minister of Information says Bahrain keen to bolster ties tive was heading to a wanted suspect’s house to apprehend him when the suspect came out and pulled a gun on the detective MANAMA: Bahraini Minister of Information Isa Al- and threatened to kill him. The suspect then ran into the house Hammadi praised the strong and deeply-rooted ties with and two of his brothers delayed the officer until he escaped. Both Kuwait yesterday, affirming that both countries were eager brothers were arrested and the main suspect was arrested later. to further bolster relations on all possible domains. Al-Hammadi’s statement came during his reception of Drunk citizen saved from suicide Kuwait’s Ambassador to Bahrain Sheikh Azzam Al-Sabah. The Bahraini Minister stressed the importance of boost- A drunken citizen was saved from committing suicide in ing ties within the media sphere as part of the two his apartment, said security sources. The man was threat- nation’s quest for stronger relations. On his part, Sheikh ening to jump off his Abu Halifa apartment window. Azzam underlined the significance of boosting bilateral However, firemen managed to enter the man’s residence, media cooperation, while commending democratic, eco- distract him and pull him back away from the window before he leaped to this certain death. Bahrain’s media affairs minister receiving Sheikh nomic and social achievements in the Kingdom of Azzam Al-Sabah. Bahrain. —KUNA Local FRIDAY, APRIL 3, 2015 9 KIA lost £108m in European real estate ‘MP wants court verdict before power cuts’

By B Izzak Al-Sabah for reasons to reduce the percentage of cit- Failure to meet these percentages will subject izen manpower in certain companies and if the gov- companies to a series of penalties by the govern- KUWAIT: Head of the national assembly public funds ernment plans to change the percentages. In a bid to ment including imposing hefty fines, barring the committee MP Abdullah Al-Turaiji said yesterday that encourage Kuwaitis to take up jobs in the private companies from recruiting foreign manpower. the panel was unconvinced by the justifications stated sector which reducing pressure on the public sector Kuwaitis who accept jobs in the private sector are by the director of Kuwait Investment Authority about - the government has set up a set percentage for given monthly financial aid from the government on the losses of real estate owned by Kuwait in Europe. companies and sectors to employ Kuwaitis. top of their salaries in order to make their total The lawmaker said KIA, the country’s sovereign wages equal to their peers in the government sector. wealth fund, lost around 108 million pounds in its MP Jamal Al-Omar asked the minister of health real estate projects in Europe. He provided no further about the cause for death of a Kuwaiti citizen at details about the issue. MP Askar Al-Enezi meanwhile Mubarak Al-Kabeer Hospital and asked if medical proposed that authorities should not cut power for examinations have been conducted on the deceased. consumers without a court ruling ordering the con- The ministry of health has already ordered an investi- sumers to pay. The lawmaker said that in a bid to gation into the death of middle-aged Abdulaziz Al- force consumers to pay their power bills, the electrici- Kundari who died in the hospital in a mysterious cir- ty ministry resorts to cutting the service thus putting cumstances a few days ago. consumers under extreme hardship. Accordingly, the In the other news, the public prosecution yester- ministry should not resort to such action before the day interrogated Shiite activist Khaled Al-Shatti for court issues a verdict. tweets deemed critical to the Saudi-led Gulf airstrikes on Shiite Houthi rebels in Yemen. Shatti, a former MP Private sector Kuwaitis MP Abdullah Al-Turaiji speaks in the and a lawyer, was arrested on Wednesday. The prose- MP Saleh Ashour yesterday asked State Minister National Assembly. cution may keep him in detention or release him on for Cabinet Affairs Sheikh Mohammad Al-Abdullah bail.

Kuwait income plunges KUWAIT: Kuwait’s revenues dropped by one fifth in the first 11 months of the fiscal year due to the decline in global oil prices, according to figures released by the finance ministry yesterday. Revenues of the OPEC member reached KD23.2 billion until the end of February from to 28.9 billion dinars in the same period last year-a fall of 19.7 percent. The decline is mainly due to a 27.4 percent dive in oil revenues from 27 billion dinars last year to 21.2 billion dinars. Oil income still represented 91.4 percent of total public income. Oil lost around 60 percent of its value since June due to oversupply, with a strong dollar and a weak global economy dampening demand. Price of Kuwaiti oil averaged well above $100 a barrel last fiscal year but is currently hovering around $50. Kuwait’s fiscal year runs from April through March. Revenue figures for March have not yet been published. Despite the sharp drop in revenues, the Gulf state posted a provisional budget surplus of 9.9 billion dinars and it is expect- One of the Kuwaiti students who won ed to end the year with a windfall for the 16th consecutive the painting competition held at the year. Kuwait calculated the price of oil last fiscal year at $75 a Gulf Disability Forum. barrel but reduced the figure to $45 a barrel in the current 2015/2016 fiscal year, which began Wednesday. As a result, the emirate is projecting a deficit of $24 billion. Sustained sur- Kuwait presents to Gulf Disability pluses since 2000 have boosted fiscal reserves of the country’s sovereign wealth fund to around $550 billion, according to Forum on education, disabled unofficial estimates. DOHA: Quality of education services in line with PAD specifications and the paper blames the outdated tradition- Exports to China offered to the disabled is the main topic developing the human element involved al view of education, especially by econ- Meanwhile, Kuwait’s crude oil exports to China in February of two Kuwaiti working papers offered in the process as well as monitoring such omists, as non-profiting. It is better to more than tripled, or rose 263.8 percent from a year earlier to for discussions during the 15th bodies working under the lavish capital on economic projects, agri- 1.04 million tons, equivalent to around 273,000 barrels per day Forum of the Gulf Disability Authority’s umbrella, Al-Sahel cultural and industrial, with fast earnings. (bpd), government data showed. Kuwaiti shipments of crude Society held in Doha. The first added. Up to 11.4 percent of Kuwait’s budget oil to China exceeded 200,000 bpd level for the sixth consecu- paper gives an account of the Services have to be extend- for the FY 2014-2015 has been allocated tive month since September, according to the General Public Authority for the ed to all the disabled, the for education, the paper said. It also Administration of Customs. China’s overall imports of crude oil Disabled (PAD) expertise in paper stressed. The second referred to recommendations by a World rose 10.8 percent in February on the year to 25.53 million ton promoting criteria for endors- paper, submitted by the Bank (WB) team that visited the country (6.69 million bpd). ing and guaranteeing quality Kuwait Dyslexia Association, in 2012, urging a comprehensive devel- Saudi Arabia remained China’s top supplier in the report- of education institutions for tackles quality of services pro- opment of education indices as well as ing month, with its shipments slightly increasing 1.8 percent the disabled, PAD Deputy vided to people with special taking part in the world’s major assess- to 1.15 million bpd, followed by Angola with 812,000 bpd, Director General Rashed Al- and the related financial ment programs. down 16.6 percent. Russia became third but imports from the Sahel told KUNA. aspects. This includes govern- On her part, the head of GDS execu- country declined 1.5 percent to 703,000 bpd. Iraq ranked It aims to transfer Kuwait’s Kholoud ment spending on education tive office in Kuwait, Kholoud Ali Al-Ali fourth and Oman fifth, respectively. The State-run Kuwait experience in the field to Ali Al-Ali and the outcome besides the stressed that the forum aimed at setting Petroleum Corporation (KPC) signed a 10-year crude supply researchers and specialists impact of learning difficulties, new legislations and regulations to deal with China’s top energy trader Unipec in August, the from the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Association chairman of Mohammad make sure disabled people received the biggest-ever sales contract in KPC’s history by volume and rev- taking part in the Doha Forum, he Yusuf Al-Qattami told KUNA. best quality services. Notably, two enues in all regions. Under the landmark agreement, the KPC added. In addition to promoting services According to the paper, Dyslexia is a Kuwaiti students with disability won a supplies Unipec 300,000 bpd of crude oil, with a strong possi- to the disabled, the paper also deals with global problem, mounting to 10-20 per- painting competition held at the bility of increasing the volume to 400,000 bpd. —Agencies categorizing the education institutions cent worldwide. Al-Qattami noted that forum’s sidelines. —KUNA FRIDAY, APRIL 3, 2015 Qaeda frees Syria reels from At least 56 die as 300 inmates setbacks; rebels Russian trawler in11 Yemen score12 key wins sinks17 in icy seas

GARISSA: Students of the Garissa University College take shelter in a vehicle after fleeing from an attack by gunmen in Garissa, Kenya yesterday. — AP 15 die as Islamists storm Kenyan university Al-Qaeda-linked Shebab claims attack

GARISSA: Masked gunmen from Somalia’s Shebab Islamist said the “attackers have been cornered in one hostel”. Soldiers Wave of attacks group stormed a Kenyan university yesterday as students were with tanks were deployed around the campus. Interior Witness Ahmed Nur said he saw the bodies of two universi- sleeping, hurling grenades and shooting dead at least 15 peo- Minister Joseph Nkaissery said 15 people had been killed, and ty guards, shot by the attackers. Kenya Red Cross, quoting ple before taking Christians hostage. Scores of others were that “one suspected terrorist” had been arrested attempting local health officials, said that 30 people had been taken to wounded in the assault, still ongoing some 12 hours after the to flee. Kenya’s official National Disaster Operation Centre said hospital, “the majority” with gunshot wounds. Kenya has been first grenades were used to blast open the gates of the univer- a further 65 had been injured, many suffering from gunshot hit by a wave of grenade and gun attacks, often blamed on sity in the northeastern town of Garissa, near the lawless bor- wounds. sympathizers of the Shebab and sometimes aimed at police der with war-torn Somalia. targets, since the army crossed into southern Somalia in 2011 The Al-Qaeda-linked Shebab claimed the pre-dawn attack, ‘Gunmen shot indiscriminately’ to attack Islamist bases. the same insurgents who carried out the Westgate shopping The Kenya Red Cross, which is leading the medical A series of foreign travel warnings in response to the threat mall massacre in Nairobi September 2013, when four gunmen response to the attack, said there were “an unknown number have crippled Kenya’s economically important tourism indus- slaughtered at least 67 people in a four-day bloodbath. “We of student hostages” and that “50 students have been safely try. On Wednesday, just hours before the attack in Garissa were woken up by sounds of gunfire... no one knew exactly freed”. The town of Garissa is around 150 kilometers west of began, President Uhuru Kenyatta said Kenya “is as safe as any what was going on, ladies were screaming and people were Somalia and has in the past been targeted by militants from country in the world”. Yesterday, he offered condolences to running for their lives,” student Ungama John said. Other stu- the Shebab. Police chief Joseph Boinet said “the gunmen shot those killed, but said security forces had made the “appropri- dents said they saw up to four masked gunmen. Shebab indiscriminately” after storming the compound. The sprawling ate deployment to the affected area”. spokesman Sheikh Ali Mohamud Rage said the gunmen had campus, on the outskirts of the garrison town, has both teach- British High Commissioner Christian Turner condemned the taken non-Muslims hostage, but gave no numbers. ing areas as well as residential blocks. “cowardly” attack, while US Ambassador Robert Godec called “When our men arrived, they released the Muslims. We are The university has several hundred students from differ- the killings “heinous”. Kenya’s government has been under fire holding others hostage,” Rage said, describing those seized as ent parts of Kenya. The number of teachers and students since the Westgate attack. In June and July last year Shebab Christians. “Our people are still there, they are fighting and trapped inside the campus was unclear as gunfire and explo- gunmen killed close to 100 people in a series of attacks on the their mission is to kill those who are against the Shebab,” he sions were heard coming from the site. “Police... engaged the town of Mpeketoni and nearby villages. In November, Shebab said. “Kenya is at war with Somalia,” Rage said, referring to the gunmen in a fierce shootout, however the attackers retreat- claimed responsibility for holding up a bus outside Mandera thousands of Kenyan troops in Somalia as part of an African ed and gained entry into one of the hostels,” Boinet said, town, separating passengers according to religion and mur- Union military mission. Gunfire could still be heard sporadical- adding that reinforcements had arrived and were “flushing dering 28 non-Muslims. Ten days later 36 non-Muslim quarry ly 12 hours after the attack began, as Kenya’s interior ministry out the gunmen.” workers were also massacred in the area.— AFP International FRIDAY, APRIL 3, 2015

Heavy sandstorm descends onto Dubai, other GCC cities

DUBAI: A major sandstorm whipped through the Mideast’s commercial hub of Dubai and other Gulf cities yesterday, reducing visibility, diverting flights and making breathing outside a challenge. The storm kept fine dust hanging in the air for much of the day, evoking an eerie Martian-like atmosphere and leaving behind a film of sand on parked cars and other outdoor surfaces. Cafe patio tables were quickly packed away, while doors and windows were shuttered. Migrant construction workers and others whose jobs kept them outside donned surgical masks or wrapped scarves over their faces to help keep the dust out of their lungs. Hospitals reported an increase in patients complaining of breathing difficulties because of the sand. “In the US they have ‘snow days’ where schools and companies close due to heavy snowfall. So my question is, Sand Days anyone?” tweeted Emirati columnist and motivational speaker Khalid Al-Ameri. He later posted a photo of himself with his traditional white headscarf swaddled over his mouth and nose to brave the outdoors. Authorities in Qatar did indeed order schools in the country closed, citing “extreme weather conditions.” Some schools in Saudi Arabia were also shut. Dubai’s airport operator said four flights bound for Dubai International Airport, the world’s busiest hub for international air traffic, were diverted to nearby airports because of the inclement weather. Eight other flights were diverted to the alternate Al Maktoum International at Dubai World Central from other regional airports. Airport authorities said further delays were expected. Delays were reported too at Hamad International Airport, which opened last year in the Qatari capital, Doha. National carrier Qatar Airways urged passengers to check their flight status online. DUBAI: A Dubai metro train is seen driving amid a sandstorm that engulfed the city yesterday. — AFP In the Emirati capital of Abu Dhabi, police reported that a because of the weather. Ahmad Al-Haddabi, chief operations Center of Meteorology and Seismology warned of reduced visi- 24-year-old was airlifted to the hospital after being seriously officer at Abu Dhabi’s main airport said flights to Bahrain and bility due to blowing dust of as little as 500 meters (yards). injured in a traffic accident caused by the reduced visibility. the Saudi city of Dammam were delayed because of bad Dubai transit authorities stopped bus services to Abu Dhabi, They urged motorists to slow down and take extra precautions weather at those airports. The United Arab Emirates’ National citing “zero visibility” caused by the storm. — AP

Aden showdown Unidentified troops land in tests Saudi project Aden; Houthis seize centre to tame Yemen Al-Qaeda frees 300 inmates from Yemeni jail DUBAI: A week of bombing by a Saudi-led coalition has failed to force Yemen’s Houthis to the negotiating table or rupture their alliance with a powerful ex-president, and the defiant militia ADEN: Dozens of unidentified troops landed could now claim the second city of Aden as its next prize. The fall by sea in Aden in an apparent last-ditch of the southern port would be more than a symbolic blow to effort by a Saudi-led coalition to shore up a Riyadh: It would complicate Saudi efforts to persuade Yemeni foothold in the southern Yemeni port city tribal and army units to turn on the Iranian-allied Houthis. after Shiite Houthi fighters seized control of The operation by Saudi Arabia and other Sunni Muslim states its centre yesterday. The soldiers arrived in a aims to prevent the Houthis, who hold the capital, from winning single vessel a few hours after the Iran-allied control of the whole country and extending the regional influence Houthis and their supporters swept into the of their main foreign ally, Shiite power Iran. The Houthis have heart of Aden despite an eight-day air cam- momentum on the battlefield, in large part because of a tactical paign led by Riyadh to stem their advances. alliance with former president Ali Abdullah Saleh, who retains the The southern port city has been the last loyalty of much of the army. Much may depend on Riyadh’s ability major holdout of fighters loyal to the Saudi- to persuade tribes and Saleh army units to switch sides by playing backed President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi, on the fickleness of alliances in Yemen’s factionalized politics. who fled Aden a week ago and has watched “There’s still no country more influential in Yemen than Saudi from Riyadh as the vestiges of his authority Arabia,” said Farea Al-Muslimi, a Yemeni researcher at Carnegie have crumbled. It was not immediately possi- Middle East Center. “Tribes and local officials have been receiving ble to verify the nationality of the troops, but Saudi payments for years. If Saudi has an organized strategy and a the Saudi-led coalition says it is in control of desire to do so, it could activate these local connections to aid an the waters around Aden. If confirmed as a internal reconciliation. There’s no sign of that yet.” Saleh himself has coalition move, it would be the first reported called for an end to the Saudi bombardment, pledging in return deployment of ground forces since Saudi that neither he nor any member of his family would seek the presi- Arabia launched the campaign a week ago. dency. But his appeals to Riyadh have, in public at least, fallen on The Houthis, who took over the capital deaf ears. To date, the Houthis remain defiant. Sanaa six months ago in alliance with sup- ADEN: A Yemeni man carries a box of ammunition he took from a military porters of former president Ali Abdullah depot in Aden, Yemen. — AP Battlefield momentum Saleh, turned on Aden last month and have The dominance of the Houthis and their allies on the ground kept up their advances despite the Saudi-led deployed on the mountain overlooking American drone war against Al-Qaeda. could complicate the goal of coaxing Saleh loyalists to defect. intervention which aims to return Hadi to Crater and were firing on the streets below. Huge street demonstrations in 2011 linked John Jenkins, until last year British ambassador to Saudi Arabia, power. Residents of Aden’s central Crater dis- Several houses were on fire after being to wider Arab uprisings forced veteran told Reuters: “If the Houthis were to take over Aden completely, trict said Houthi fighters and their allies were struck by rockets, and messages relayed on leader Saleh to step down, but he has re- they have Sanaa, Ibb, Taiz, Hodaida, Aden. That’s pretty much the in control of the neighborhood by midday loudspeakers urged residents to move out to emerged as an influential force by allying full set of cities. What do you do then? “My assumption is they yesterday, deploying tanks and foot patrols (the Saudis) want to protect Aden and its government, because safer parts of the city, he said. himself with the Houthis, his former ene- through its otherwise empty streets after that then becomes the scene of the legitimate government, and mies. The Houthis are drawn from a Zaidi heavy fighting in the morning. they can then seek to detach Saleh from the Houthis,” said Al-Qaeda jailbreak Shiite minority that ruled a thousand-year Jenkins, now with the International Institute of Strategic Studies. It was the first time fighting on the The war on the Houthis is now the kingdom in northern Yemen until 1962. “How do you bring the Houthis to the negotiating table? You ground had reached so deeply into central biggest of multiple conflicts being fought Saleh himself is a member of the sect but have to push them back quite seriously I think. Have they suffered Aden. Crater is home to the local branch of out in the Arabian Peninsula’s poorest fought to crush the Houthis as president. enough? It doesn’t look like it.” So far the campaign has involved Yemen’s central bank and many commercial state, also grappling with a southern In the Arabian Sea port of Mukalla, 500 air strikes on military bases, depriving the Houthis of warplanes businesses. “People are afraid and terrified secessionist movement, tribal unrest and a km east of Aden, suspected Al-Qaeda and missiles, and naval bombardment of Houthi forces attacking by the bombardment,” one resident, Farouq powerful regional wing of Al-Qaeda. The fighters stormed the central prison and Aden, the symbolic southern seat of Saudi-backed President Abd- Abdu, told Reuters by telephone from Crater. fighting has forced Washington to evacu- freed 300 prisoners, some of them Al- Rabbu Mansour Hadi. — Reuters “No one is on the streets - it’s like a curfew”. ate US personnel from the country, one of Qaeda detainees, sources in the local Another resident said Houthi snipers had the main battlefields in the secret police and administration said. —Agencies International FRIDAY, APRIL 3, 2015 DHKP leftist Syria reels from group spreading fear in Turkey military setbacks ISTANBUL: Istanbul has in the last two days been rocked by two deadly shoot-outs blamed on an outlawed ultra-left group, with the Turkish security forces detaining dozens of its suspected mem- Rebels score key wins bers. The Revolutionary People’s Liberation Party-Front (DHKP-C), known until the mid 1990s as Devrimci Sol (Revolutionary Left), is a President Bashar Al-Assad’s regime was reeling yesterday mit significant forces or count on backing from ally Tehran or the deeply secretive group which goes quiet for periods before re- BEIRUT: emerging to stage attacks. With attention focused on peace talks from a series of military setbacks after rebels seized a major provincial Iranian-backed Lebanese Shiite Hezbollah movement. “The regime is with Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) Kurdish separatists and the risk capital and a key border post in less than a week. Experts said the loss- increasingly dependent on Hezbollah, foreign fighters and non-Syrian of attacks by Islamic State (IS) jihadists, the threat posed by the es were a reflection of the regime’s weariness after more than four militias facilitated by Iran to accomplish military objectives,” he said. DHKP-C had receded into the background. But after a deadly years of civil war and increasing regional efforts to counter Iran’s back- “So in places where you see Hezbollah and Iran willing to invest hostage-taking and an attempted attack on an Istanbul police ing for Assad. The taking by rebels late Wednesday of the last Syrian significant resources, the regime is able to gain or keep some headquarters, the group has again shown it remains a force. border crossing with Jordan in regime hands and of provincial capital ground,” as it has done in areas southwest of Damascus, he said. “But Idlib on Saturday have dealt major blows to the regime, experts said. in places like Idlib, Hezbollah and Iran are not willing to invest with Who are the DHKP-C? And Wednesday’s seizure of parts of a Palestinian refugee camp boots on the ground.” But increasing support for rebels from allied The group was founded in the late 1970s as Devrimci Sol (or inside Damascus by the Islamic State group has shown the increasing countries is another key factor behind recent gains, experts said. Dev Sol) by Marxist militant Dursun Karatas. He fled a jail sentence reach of a jihadist force already in control of large parts of Syria. “It’s “There has been a regional decision between Saudi Arabia, Qatar, in 1989 and died in 2008 in Amsterdam and thousands of support- indicative of a problem the regime has that has been increasingly Jordan and Turkey to stop the Syrian regime from advancing,” said ers turned out in Istanbul for his funeral when his body was repa- obvious-it has a manpower shortage,” said Noah Bonsey, a Syria Rami Abdel Rahman, the head of the Syrian Observatory for Human triated. Following infighting, the group changed its name to the expert at the International Crisis Group. “It has constraints on how Rights, a Britain-based monitoring group. DHKP-C. It has been outlawed as a terrorist group not only by much ground it can gain and how much it can hold outside of its core Abdel Rahman said the rebels had recently been supplied with Turkey but also the United States and European Union. “While the areas,” he said. new weapons from Jordan in the south and Turkey in the north. PKK, Al-Qaeda have drawn much public attention for many years, Rebels seized the border crossing with Jordan after heavy fighting “Regional powers want to retake the initiative. It’s a message that they as well as IS more recently, Turkey’s security services have been on Wednesday, leaving the regime with no presence on a key frontier. want to stop advances by Iran, the regime’s ally, in Syria but also else- confronted with violent actions by DHKP-C for more than twenty The loss was only the latest for the regime in the southern Daraa where like Yemen” where a Saudi-led coalition is bombing Tehran- years, often targeting foreign interests,” Marc Pierini, visiting schol- province, after rebels took the ancient town of Bosra al-Sham last backed rebels, he said. Assad’s regime has been battling a wide-rang- ar at the Carnegie Europe Center said. week and seized an important army base in January. In northwestern ing insurgency since an Arab Spring-inspired uprising in March 2011 Syria, meanwhile, the regime’s loss of Idlib to Syria’s Al-Qaeda affiliate, evolved into a full-scale civil war that has now left more than 215,000 What are its goals? Al-Nusra Front, made it the second provincial capital in rebel hands dead. Secular rebels have been increasingly pushed aside in the The DHKP-C, which is mainly active in Istanbul, seeks a Marxist after IS-controlled Raqa. After heavy street fighting and regime air opposition by jihadists, in particular IS, which has seized significant revolution in Turkey among the working classes but also espouses strikes that left at least 130 reported dead, Al-Nusra was able to con- territories in Syria and neighboring Iraq, declaring an Islamic a fiercely anti-Western agenda. It vehemently opposes Turkey’s solidate its hold over a large area of Syria bordering Turkey by taking “caliphate”. The IS threat to the regime was highlighted Wednesday membership of NATO and detests the Islamic-rooted government the city. when the group’s fighters for the first time seized territory inside of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Some-but by no means all-of Damascus itself at the Yarmuk Palestinian refugee camp. The jihadists its members are from the Kurdish minority who have a strong tra- ‘A message’ to Iran managed to capture most of the camp before being pushed to its dition of left-wing activism. It has said is seeking revenge for the Bonsey said the losses in Daraa and Idlib were part of “a larger pat- edges yesterday in a fightback by Palestinian militants loyal to Islamist deaths of protesters killed in 2013 anti-Erdogan protests, in partic- tern” of the regime being pushed out of areas where it cannot com- group Hamas and other rebel factions.— AFP ular teenager Berkin Elvan who died in March last year after spending 269 days in a coma. In their tactics and goals, the group has sometimes been compared to the Red Army Faction (RAF), the far- left German group that carried out a string of attacks in Germany in the 1970s and 1980s.

What attacks has it executed? In the early years of its existence, Dev Sol carried out targeted assassinations, notably killing former minister Gun Sazak in 1978, former premier Nihat Erim in 1980 and several retired military personnel. In 1991, it claimed the fatal shooting of John Gandy, a retired US air force officer working in Istanbul. Its most high profile attack was the murder of businessman Ozdemir Sabanci, from one of Turkey’s most important industrial dynasties, and two colleagues in January 1996. Since the 1990s however, it has carried out sporadic suicide bombings including an attack on the US embassy in Ankara in 2013 that left a Turkish security agent dead. Its activists have proved adept at escaping justice. An alleged assailant in the Sabanci murder, Fehriye Erdal, is still missing.

How dangerous is the group? The hostage-taking of a top prosecutor investigating the Elvan case on Tuesday appeared well-planned. However an attacker on Wednesday was rapidly gunned down before she could approach Istanbul police headquarters. “DHKP-C has mostly operated on a small scale compared to other terrorist groups but it has regularly demonstrated its operational capabilities, including in the largest cities,” said Pierini. However the group has also shown a capacity for mishaps. It apologized in 2004 when a bomb carried by one of its members exploded on an Istanbul bus, killing four people including the activist. In January, it claimed a suicide attack in Istanbul later that month but, amid a bizarre sequence of events YARMOUK: Photo shows residents of the besieged Palestinian camp of Yarmouk, queuing to receive food supplies, in then withdrew the claim, saying it had made a mistake. — AFP Damascus, Syria. — AP Tunisia to renew ties with Syria to help track fighters

TUNIS: Tunisia said yesterday it plans to reopen a consulate in is welcome to Tunisia, if Syria wishes so,” Foreign Minister Taieb ful transition to democracy but has struggled to clamp down on Syria and offered to invite the Syrian ambassador back to Tunisia Bakouch told reporters. He gave no dates. Islamist militants who have been carrying out regular attacks. in part to help track an estimated 3,000 Tunisian militants fighting The minister said a consular presence in Syria would help After withdrawing their envoys after the start of the uprising in Iraq and Syria. Last month, two Tunisians who trained with mili- Tunisia glean information on Tunisians fighting alongside Islamist against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in 2011, some European tants in neighboring Libya, stormed the Tunis Bardo museum and militants in Iraq and Syria and who officials fear will return to carry Union countries have started to privately support more communi- shot 21 foreign tourists, one of Tunisia’s worst such attacks. “We out attacks at home. Tunisia would also reestablish diplomatic cation with Damascus. Several countries including China, will not have an ambassador there, but Tunisia will open a con- relations with neighboring Libya, Bakouch said. In the four years Indonesia and top allies Russia and Iran have envoys or charge sulate or put in place a charge d’affaires, and a Syria ambassador since its Arab Spring uprising, Tunisia completed a mostly peace- d’affaires in Damascus. — Reuters International FRIDAY, APRIL 3, 2015 Fragile ceasefire Kiev fearful of Russia a dark joke to many in east Ukraine troops after defeats DONETSK: With heavily-armed men patrolling the streets, shootings in the dark of night and the echo of gunfire from KIEV: Ukraine’s beleaguered forces have faced lysts said Putin gambled on his men days. “The presence of large numbers of the airport, life is far from normal in the east Ukraine city of problems all of their own making as they’ve fomenting a rebellion to ensure the Russian troops... has since become a per- Donetsk weeks after the signing of a ceasefire. On a day like failed to retake separatist territories during a Kremlin’s influence in its ex-Soviet neigh- manent factor in the conflict,” said any other, huge trucks transporting armored vehicles ply the year of conflict-poor leadership, few supplies, bor. “Their role is to put into effect Putin’s Sutyagin, who was jailed in Russia on espi- streets, pro-Russian rebels tooled up with Kalashnikovs and bad coordination. But the main reason Kiev will which is at the very least to create a onage charges before being handed to the ammunition browse supermarket aisles and vehicles are has struggled to reclaim the rebel regions, buffer zone between Ukraine and Russia... West. A senior Ukrainian security official pulled up at checkpoints to be searched before entering some analysts in the West and Ukraine say, is and maybe to link up with Crimea,” said on condition of anonymity that Kiev town. This is the new reality. that it has been facing off against thousands Felstead said. The constant supply of estimated the number of Russian troops in Though the ceasefire between pro-Russian separatists and of regular Russian troops that Moscow poured weapons and ammunition over the Ukraine peaked at around 15,000 in the regular army came into force on February 15, traders in in to bolster the insurgency despite blanket Russian border has also allowed rebels to February during the fierce fighting for the the city’s central market are continuing to offer military uni- denials from the Kremlin. “We are not talking equip themselves better than their town of Debaltseve. Putin, however, claims forms in various shades of camel-brown camouflage to bottle about rebel forces, we are talking about Ukrainian opponents, said Felstead. that Ukraine’s poorly trained forces are green. Precautionary measures in case of bombing also Russian troops,” Peter Felstead, an editor at being beaten by a group of former “miners remain in place, with hotels handing customers explanatory the London-based IHS Jane’s Defence Weekly ‘Thousands’ of Russian troops and tractor drivers” who have captured notes on how to respond to any nearby “rockets, mines, pro- said. “This conflict would not be an issue were Although poorly equipped and trained, weapons abandoned by the Ukrainians. jectiles and the sound of automatic-weapon fire”. they not there. They are intrinsically involved after months of fighting the Ukrainian But those on the other side fiercely dis- Last Thursday unknown assailants shot dead a rebel offi- in what is going on.” armed forces did at one point seem to agree, saying Russia has sent in its latest cer and his two bodyguards as they drove on a city street, Over the past year Moscow has been come close to crushing the rebellion over weapons to bolster the rebels. The sepa- with the rebel’s wife and son both in the car. Three days earli- unrelenting in rejecting claims from the summer. They forced the rebels out of ratists now boast “a bigger army... (tanks, er, two people died in a shoot-out near a downtown restau- Ukraine, NATO and Washington that it has one key stronghold and nearly cut off the armored personnel vehicles, heavy rant that Ukraine media said involved Chechen mercenaries. sent troops across the unprotected border. main insurgent-held city of Donetsk from artillery, missiles) than some countries in Signs across the city still point citizens to the nearest bomb shelters, while bus shelters and shop windows carry crosses But Western and Ukrainian analysts back the Russian border. But suddenly, after NATO and Europe,” the US Embassy in of scotch tape stuck there to avoid passers-by being injured up Kiev’s allegations that Moscow orches- weeks of government advances, the tables Russia tweeted in February. Oleksiy by flying glass in case of explosions. trated the separatist rebellion of April turned. That, experts say, was down to the Melnyk, an expert from Kiev think-tank the As night falls, Donetsk becomes a ghost town as if the cur- 2014, and has been directly involved in arrival of thousands of Russian troops. Razumkov Center, alleged that at the few was still in place, its streets taken over by stray dogs, fighting that has claimed more than 6,000 Some 3,000 to 6,500 soldiers crossed over height of the fighting they “used up to 150 speeding cars and empty trolley-buses. In the Kievski district lives since. The start of the conflict in the the border, according to a report by tons of ammunition per day”. on the road to the Donetsk airport, where locals are subject- east came on the back of the ouster of Russian arms control expert Igor Sutyagin, Governments in the West also claim that ed to the daily sound of gunfire from skirmishes around the Kremlin-backed leader Viktor Yanukovych published by British think-tank Royal the separatist forces are using weapons ruins of the site, talk of peace is a dark joke. “It might be OK in by protestors in Kiev and Moscow’s United Services Institute for Defense and that have never been given to Ukrainian the centre of Donetsk, but here we’re still under fire! As soon deployment of unmarked troops to seize Security Studies (RUSI). troops. These include a new version of the as night falls they begin shooting,” said Kievski resident Ukraine’s Crimea peninsula. Ukraine claimed they then helped sur- Soviet T-72 tank and the Tornado multiple- Lyudmila Cherednik at the entrance to her conflict-scarred In the wake of these seismic events that round its soldiers trying to recapture the rocket launcher that was only delivered to apartment block. For several months now, her hands shake at saw Ukraine lurch towards Europe and city of Ilovaisk in the Donetsk region, trap- the Russian army in 2011, according to the times due to the fear. —AFP shattered Russia’s ties with the West, ana- ping them and killing hundreds over a few Ukrainian security official. —AFP International FRIDAY, APRIL 3, 2015 14

Watch out Westminster: Alex Salmond heads south

ELLON: Alex Salmond took Scotland to the brink of inde- an account of the referendum campaign, the small shop poised to take most of Scotland’s 59 seats in Westminster, pendence in last year’s referendum, and now the pugna- was swamped by fans wanting a word and a selfie. largely at the expense of the opposition Labor party. The cious nationalist firebrand is bringing the fight to London In the nearby village of Oldmeldrum, local SNP activist SNP is however offering to support the centre-left party in at the head of a “tartan” army. “The stars are moving into Lorraine Kelly, a 61-year-old childminder, said she used to government on a vote-by-vote basis as long as that keeps alignment,” Salmond said while out campaigning in the have a low opinion of Salmond. “I thought he was arro- Prime Minister David Cameron’s Conservatives out of town of Ellon in northeast Scotland, where he hopes to gant, I told him to his face,” she said, laughing, as she office. “Our first move if there’s a Tory minority govern- win a seat in the House of Commons in the May 7 general closed her coat against the bitter wind. “But I think it’s that ment will be to move to bring it down,” Salmond said, election. “Scotland has an opportunity to have decisive most likely by voting against its first budget. influence in the Westminster parliament. “So I thought Such combative statements are typical of Salmond, given these circumstances it would be foolish not to try and the idea of playing kingmaker appeals to many Scots and put my shoulder to Scotland’s wheel and push it on.” who complain that for too long they have been treated in The 60-year-old was leader of the Scottish National Westminster like England’s poor relation. Salmond has Party (SNP) for 20 years and first minister of the devolved successfully built a vision of a fairer, more equal Scotland government in Edinburgh for seven, before stepping in charge of its own destiny-even if critics say the SNP down after the independence referendum. Voters rejected failed to put its rhetoric into action while in office. A for- his long-cherished dream of an independent Scotland by mer bank economist who took over the SNP leadership in 55 percent to 45 percent. But anybody who thought that 1990, he can take much of the credit for the changing was the end of Salmond underestimates the ambition of political landscape, according to his biographer, David the man, viewed by his supporters and critics as one of the Torrance. most talented politicians of his generation. “The dream Alex Salmond “He rewrote the rules of the game,” said Torrance, will never die,” he told supporters after the results of the adding that there was little chance that Salmond will now September referendum came through. he’s passionate. Lots of people take it as ego hunting but take a back seat, even if his former deputy Nicola Sturgeon In the rural constituency of Gordon where Salmond is it’s not, he really does care.” is now SNP leader and first minister. Salmond is driven by standing for election, he certainly has many fans. “He’s “a love of the game, love of the joust” of politics, he said. one of the very best politicians in the UK today, in fact any- ‘Standing up for Scotland’ At an evening hustings in Ellon with the other candidates where in the world... He’s my man,” enthused Ian Salmond served as one of a handful of SNP members for Gordon, Salmond won cheers but also some heckling, Campbell, a senior manager in the oil and gas industry, a in Westminster between 1987 and 2010, and hopes to be which he brushed off without trouble. “A vast majority of major employer in the region. “He’s not necessarily every- part of a “large block of tartan MPs” holding the balance of the electorate like him, they think he’s standing up for body’s favourite, but he knows what we want,” added the power after a knife-edge election. Harnessing the strong Scotland,” Torrance said. “They like the fact that he’s a bit 63-year-old. At a signing in Ellon for Salmond’s new book, support built in the referendum campaign, the SNP is of chancer.” —AFP

Corruption, Boko Haram in With Jonathan, Africa’s list of good Buhari’s immediate sights losers gets longer In Nigeria, ‘Buharism’ will need to modernize fast ABUJA: Graciously conceding defeat is not something candidates in African elections have traditionally been very good at. In a macho political culture that sees a routing at the ballot box as a source of ABUJA: As Muhammadu Buhari sat in front of It is less clear what his victory means for response to a yawning trade gap and runaway shame, refusal to accept a result often leads to protracted battles in the TV watching his election victory unfold, Africa’s biggest economy, under pressure from inflation was to fix prices and ban “unnecessary” court, on the streets or in the worst cases a military crackdown. So Nigeria’s future president took care to be pho- the collapse in the oil price, but Dangote’s grin- imports, rather than let the currency depreciate, when Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan magnanimously threw tographed beside a Muslim elder and a bishop, ning, capitalist presence in the sandal-wearing under a disastrous economic program dubbed in the towel to challenger Muhammadu Buhari after the latter’s stun- a choreographed statement of unity in a reli- general’s inner circle at his moment of triumph ‘Buharism’. For good measure, he also cut ties ning victory in the weekend’s presidential election, he joined a grow- giously mixed nation. More importantly for looks reassuring. In the most glaring endorse- with the International Monetary Fund and ing list of African leaders for whom humbly admitting the game is up investors, over the left shoulder of the purple- ment of Buhari - as well as relief that the elec- ordered his soldiers to whip people who failed has become a cause for pride. robed bishop was a smiling figure in a sharp tions avoided the violence of previous polls - the to form orderly queues at the bus stop. Buhari’s “I thank all Nigerians once again for the great opportunity I was grey suit: Aliko Dangote, Nigeria’s most celebrat- stock market leapt more than 8 percent in the political views have mellowed since then, and given to lead this country,” a sombre Jonathan said in his concession ed business magnate and Africa’s richest man. immediate aftermath of his win. Bonds also his relationship with Dangote, whose business speech. “I have conveyed my personal best wishes to General empire stretches from cement to pasta, sug- Muhammadu Buhari.” Such speeches used to be rare on a continent gests his economic ones have gone the same still getting used to winner-takes-all electoral contests and where way. power has frequently changed hands at the barrel of a gun. But he faces many dark clouds on the hori- Academics have long pondered the reasons - it could be the empha- zon. From President Goodluck Jonathan, who sis in a traditional African societies on consensus over competition or stunned Nigeria’s 170 million people with a gra- that losing political office can mean the difference between sleeping cious concession speech, Buhari inherits an in a palace or a shack. The wide margin of Buhari’s win, enabling the economy decelerating sharply from the 7 per- first peaceful transfer of power at the ballot box in Africa’s most pop- cent annual growth to which it has become ulous nation, certainly helped. But the idea leaders need to know accustomed. Standard and Poor’s cut Nigeria’s when it is time to pack their bags has also gained ground over the credit rating two weeks before the vote and last five years. When former Ivory Coast President Laurent Gbagbo Fitch lowered its outlook on the eve of the polls - refused to concede to Alassane Ouattara in 2010, re-igniting a civil both moves that will increase Abuja’s borrowing war, one of Gbagbo’s most high profile campaigners, reggae star costs. Meanwhile, the oil price languishes at Alpha Blondy, publicly urged him to play fair and hand over. He failed around $55 a barrel, half its level of a year ago to listen and is now facing war crimes charges in The Hague. and a massive blow to a country that relies on Senegal’s former President Abdoulaye Wade in 2012 became the first crude sales for 80 percent of government rev- West African leader in a while to concede defeat when he was enues and 95 percent of foreign exchange. thumped by former protege Macky Sall, enabling Sall to proclaim Outside the capital, huge road-building proj- that “the big winner...is the Senegalese people”. ects lie deserted and half-finished and cranes In Southern Africa too, the time has come where a “big man” was stand idle across its skyline, testament to a con- told by voters he was no longer popular - and has had to accept their Nigeria’s President-elect Mohammadu Buhari struction sector pole-axed by the government’s verdict. Ex-Malawian president Bakili Muluzi, who observed Nigeria’s difficulty in paying its bills. Foreign reserves have elections for the Commonwealth, ran against dictator Hastings An ascetic former military ruler, Buhari built climbed, while the naira, which has lost 20 per- dropped by a third in the last year to below $30 Banda in 1994 and succeeded in ending his 33-year-rule. “He was his stunning electoral landslide on promises to cent of its purchasing power in two devalua- billion. Against such a backdrop, Buhari - now free unhappy. He said to me ‘You are like my son and now you are run- clean up Nigeria’s notoriously filthy politics and tions since November, gained 0.5 percent on the of the need to get elected - will have few options ning against me,’” he told Reuters outside a polling station on get tough on the Boko Haram insurgency raging black market to 217 to the dollar. It remained but to cut Nigeria’s cloth to a more appropriate Saturday. “But he couldn’t do anything about it.” Zambia’s Rupiah in the northeast. He returned to those themes in fixed at 197 in official interbank trade. size, analysts say. “Nigeria has been postponing a Banda drew more than a few tears when, on losing his presidency to his first official speech as president elect, stress- really important macro-economic adjustment Michael Sata in 2011, he told the nation: “I have no ill feeling in my ing a zero tolerance approach to corruption and ‘New Buharism’? because of the sensitivity of voters,” said Jan heart”. “I wish him well in his years as president,” he continued. “Now saying he would “spare no effort” to defeat the This is not to say all is set fair for the 72-year- Dehn, head of research at Ashmore Group, an is the time for a new leader. My time is done. It is time for me to say Islamist militants who have killed thousands in old, whose last time in office was 20 months as a emerging markets investment manager. “That’s good bye.” —Reuters the northeast. military dictator in the mid-1980s. Then, his really critical for investors.” —Reuters International FRIDAY, APRIL 3, 2015 Four killed in fiery blast at Mexico oil rig

MEXICO CITY: Eight firefighting vessels with water cannon battled a blaze on a Mexican offshore oil platform for hours Wednesday, an inferno that killed four workers and forced 300 to be evacuated. An explosion and fire erupted at 3:40 am the Abkatun A-Permanente platform operated by the Pemex state-run firm on the Gulf of Mexico’s Campeche Sound, the ASEA energy safety agency said. Some 16 hours later, Pemex reported that the fire was finally extin- guished off the coast of eastern Campeche state. The blaze had started in the dehydration and pump area of the platform. Pemex issued a statement saying that the fire “did not cause a spill into the sea” but that an oil leak occurred and was being contained by specialized ships. The company said 16 people were hospitalized, including two in serious condition. A total of 45 people received medical attention, but most were released with minor injuries. Some 300 workers were taken to other platforms in the area, while the injured were transported to Pemex’s general hospital in Ciudad de Carmen. AFP obtained a video taken from a boat showing huge flames and smoke engulfing much of the platform in the middle of the night. Pemex director Emilio Lozoya said there will be little impact to production as the fire occurred on an oil processing rig, not a producing facility, and that the crude would be shipped to other locations.

Investigation ordered Pemex said one of the dead was a company employee, while another one worked for Cotemar, a contractor. The two others had yet to be identified. President Enrique Pena Nieto expressed condolences to families of the victims and ordered an investigation, which ASEA said it would lead. The Campeche Sound, some 85 kilometers (53 miles) from the coast, contains the two biggest shallow-water oil deposits in Mexico, with 200 platforms extracting 78 percent of the CAMPECHE: View of the Abkatun A-Permanente platform on fire on the Gulf of Mexico’s Campeche Sound on April 1, 2015. An country’s crude. Analysts said the accident contributed to a rise in explosion and a fire erupted on an offshore oil platform operated by Mexico’s Pemex on Wednesday, killing at least four work- crude prices on Wednesday, with the US benchmark surging $2.49 ers, injuring 16 and forcing 300 to be evacuated. — AFP to close at $50.09 a barrel and London prices rising $1.99 to $57.10. workers and causing a large oil spill. In January 2013, a gas buildup to foreign investors to reverse falling production and modernize caused an explosion at the company’s Mexico City headquarters, aging infrastructure. Pemex, which provides a third of Mexico’s tax History of accidents killing 37 people. A natural gas plant explosion killed 30 people near revenue, posted a $17.7 billion loss in 2014. The government will The fire is latest incident to hit the state oil firm in recent years. In the northeastern state of Tamaulipas in September 2012. Mexico hold its first auction in July for shallow-water projects on the Gulf of 2007, two Pemex platforms collided in the Gulf of Mexico, killing 21 passed a sweeping energy reform bill last year, opening the sector Mexico. — AFP What Americans think US targets overseas cyber about gay rights, attackers with sanctions religious liberty WASHINGTON: Most Americans support allowing businesses to Order will allow Treasury Department to freeze assets refuse wedding-related services to same-sex couples on religious grounds, according to an Associated Press-GfK poll conducted ear- WASHINGTON: President Barack Obama launched a sanctions pro- Obama said in a statement that harming critical infrastructure, lier this year. But another recent poll suggests Americans’ sympa- gram on Wednesday to target individuals and groups outside the misappropriating funds, using trade secrets for competitive advan- thy for religious objectors may be limited to just that - wedding- United States that use cyber attacks to threaten US foreign policy, tage and disrupting computer networks would trigger the penal- related businesses. The issue has become a topic for heated debate after critics of Indiana’s recently adopted Religious national security or economic stability. In an executive order, Obama ties. Companies that knowingly use stolen trade secrets to under- Freedom Restoration Act charged that the law was intended to declared such activities a “national emergency” and allowed the US mine the US economy would also be targeted. “From now on, we permit discrimination against gays and lesbians. Here are five Treasury Department to freeze assets and bar other financial transac- have the power to freeze their assets, make it harder for them to do things to know about public opinion on religious beliefs and anti- tions of entities engaged in destructive cyber attacks. business with US companies, and limit their ability to profit from gay discrimination. The executive order gave the administration the same sanctions their misdeeds,” Obama said. The program was designed as a tools it deploys to address other threats, including crises in the Middle deterrent and punishment, filling a gap in US cybersecurity efforts Wedding-related exemptions East and Russia’s aggression in Ukraine. Those tools are now available where diplomatic or law enforcement means were insufficient, According to the recent AP-GfK poll, 57 percent of Americans for a growing epidemic of cyber threats aimed at US computer net- Michael Daniel, Obama’s cybersecurity adviser, told reporters. He think wedding-related businesses should be allowed to refuse works. “The Obama administration is really getting serious now. This said there was no timeline for determining an initial round of tar- services to gay and lesbian couples because of religious objec- order brings to bear the economic might of the United States against gets. tions, while 39 percent think that should not be allowed. That poll people who are robbing us blind and putting us in danger,” said Joel also found half of Americans think state and local officials who Brenner, who headed US counterintelligence during President Big bang issue marriage licenses in states where it is legal for gay couples to George W Bush’s second term. Under the program, cyber attackers or those who conduct com- marry should be exempt from issuing licenses to same-sex couples The effort to toughen the response to hacking follows indictments mercial espionage in cyberspace can be listed on the official sanc- if doing so would violate their religious beliefs. Slightly fewer (46 of five Chinese military officers and the decision to “name and shame” tions list of specially designated nationals, a deterrent long sought percent) said they should still be required to issue them. Another North Korea for a high-profile attack on Sony. Officials said they by the cyber community. “This sends a signal that the days of free- recent survey, conducted by the Pew Research Center in hoped US allies would follow suit. China, which routinely denies accu- range hacking are over,” said James Lewis, a cyber expert with the September of 2014, found Americans more closely divided, with sations by US investigators that hackers backed by the Chinese gov- Center for Strategic and International Studies. But Lewis said it 49 percent saying a business like a caterer or florist should be ernment have been behind attacks on US companies, said cyber would take time for the system of penalties to take hold. “People required to provide wedding services to same-sex couples and 47 attacks were generally cross-border incidents with origins hard to keep looking for a ‘Big Bang’ moment, but this will take years,” he percent saying the business should be allowed to refuse service for track. “China consistently does not approve of any one country using said. John Reed Stark, a former head of Internet enforcement for religious reasons. its domestic law to implement sanctions at every turn against the the Securities and Exchange Commission, expressed skepticism, people or entities in another country,” Chinese Foreign Ministry citing the high number of state-sponsored cyber attacks and the Other small businesses spokeswoman Hua Chunying told a daily news briefing. difficulty of identifying hackers. Americans’ support for refusing service, even on religious Senior US administration officials said the new program was Mark Rasch, a former Justice Department trial attorney and grounds, may not extend beyond weddings. A May 2014 Public focused on activities rather than countries or regions. US lawmakers former executive with defense contractor SAIC, said the breadth Religion Research Institute survey that did not specifically mention and security and legal experts welcomed the move as an encouraging of the order gave the executive branch vast new powers to wedding-related businesses found that only 16 percent of step after a steady stream of cyber attacks aimed at Target, Home respond to even routine criminal hacking. Even denial-of-service Americans said a small business owner should be allowed to Depot and other retailers, as well as military networks. But they said attacks that knock websites offline with meaningless traffic, refuse service to gay and lesbian individuals for religious reasons. the executive order was surprisingly broad, which could result in a which can be orchestrated over the Internet for a few hundred Eight in 10 said the business should not be allowed to refuse serv- compliance nightmare for companies, and warned that it remained dollars, could officially qualify for sanctions, he said. If used wide- ice. That was true even though 54 percent of Americans in the sur- difficult to definitively “attribute” hacking attacks and identify those ly, he said, the order could spell “a compliance nightmare for vey said they believed that the right of religious liberty is being threatened in America today.—AP responsible. companies.” —Reuters International FRIDAY, APRIL 3, 2015

Sanitary freedom keeps African schoolgirls in class

JOHANNESBURG: Sue Barnes had no problem of pads and panties. rate clients who donate money to produce school attendance, paying “particular atten- getting sanitary pads while she grew up in At 190 rands ($16, 15 euros) for a set of packs of the pads for different schools. “My tion to the needs of girls.” In Kenya, entrepre- South Africa. But not every girl, she came to three panties and nine clip-on pads, Barnes’ vision is to have every girl educated,” said neur Barclay Paul Okari is meanwhile produc- realize, is so lucky and their periods weigh over product is considerably cheaper than the Barnes. “Not only that, but give (them) dignity ing inexpensive, reusable pads for the east daily life. In 2010, Barnes learned that girls from drugstore equivalent because her product is and self-respect.” African market. In Rwanda, non-profit organi- poor families were skipping school each time reusable for years. In South Africa, a pack of zation Sustainable Health Enterprises is mak- they were menstruating, because they cannot 10 pads sells for R23 ($1.80), which adds up to ‘A useless government’ ing cheap pads from banana trunk fibre. afford sanitary pads. “I just couldn’t believe it, it an exorbitant sum for the average black The menstrual problem is widespread. The Uganda’s government, meanwhile, has blew my mind,” said Barnes, 49, wearing a employee in the country, who earns just UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) estimates that ordered schools to provide girls with what it black shift dress and a pearl necklace. “Girls R2,167 ($183) a month. “The girls were using one in 10 female African youngsters still “do calls “emergency” sanitary towels as well as were missing a week of school a month.” sand, leaves, plastic packets, newspapers to not attend school during menstruation”. But spare uniforms, underwear and pain killers. Since then, Barnes has dedicated her life to contain the blood,” said Barnes, shaking her in some countries like Uganda, the figure is But with no extra money to pay for the items, making sure that no young girl in South Africa head with disbelief. “One girl said her mother estimated to be more than 60 percent. Yet schools administrators say it is a cost they can- has to skip school just because she is menstru- told her to go sit on a cow patty.” Barnes is people like Barnes are starting to make a dif- not afford. Despite being Africa’s most devel- ating. “I realized there was a much bigger now manufacturing packs of panties and clip- ference, heading up a raft of initiatives across oped economy, South Africa struggles to pro- need,” Barnes said in a classroom with yellow on reusable pads for schools in neighboring the country-and the continent-to help girls vide basic services-including flush toilets and walls and a green chalkboard at a school in Lesotho and Swaziland. stay in school by providing economical sani- trash collection-to its schools. In 2011, Diepkloof, a poor suburb of Johannesburg. “I The pads, which are washable, attach onto tary pads. The African Water Facility in President Jacob Zuma promised free sanitary just don’t think people were aware of it. It’s the panties with snaps and last approximately February announced it is providing a million- towels to cash-strapped women, but teachers easy to say ‘Ah, shame,’ and walk in another five years. Barnes works through her non-prof- dollar grant to help improve sanitation and on the ground say that the government has direction.” Barnes, who previously worked in it organization, Project Dignity. She approach- menstrual hygiene in South Africa’s Eastern not seriously followed through on the under- the clothes industry, designed a reusable pack es non-governmental organizations or corpo- Cape province with the goal of improving taking. —AFP Afghan suicide bomber kills 16

KHOST: A suicide bomber killed at least 16 people yesterday and wounded 40 others, including a prominent lawmaker, at an anti- corruption rally in eastern Afghanistan, the latest casualties ahead of the Taleban’s expected spring offensive. The attack comes just a week after Washington announced it would not be halving the 9,800 US troops still in Afghanistan by the end of the year, backpedalling on previous plans. The Taleban, waging a deadly insurgency since they were ousted from power in late 2001, warned that the US troop announcement would damage any prospects of peace talks as they vowed to continue fighting. Yesterday’s attack targeted an anti-graft demonstration outside the residence of the acting governor of restive Khost province, sending terrified, blood-soaked victims fleeing for cover. Severed limbs and body parts lay strewn around the area after the powerful blast, according to an AFP reporter at the scene. The area was cor- doned off by security officials as yellow-helmeted firefighters used water hoses to douse the smouldering scene of the explosion. “Today morning, a suicide attack was carried out by the ene- mies of peace and stability of Afghanistan at a rally in the city of Khost, in which 16 people were martyred, and 40 others were wounded,” said Abduljabar Naeemi, the acting governor of Khost province, which borders Pakistan. Humayoun Humayoun, a well- known MP from Khost province, was wounded in the explosion, KHOST: A shoe belonging to a victim is seen at the site of a suicide attack in Khost yesterday. — AFP Naeemi added in his statement. The interior ministry in Kabul said 17 civilians were killed and 37 others were wounded in the explosion, adding that it “strongly condemns the terrorist attack”. Pakistan to buy eight ‘Cowardly attack’ President Ashraf Ghani also condemned the “cowardly attack during a peaceful protest-which is the civil right of our people”. Protesters accusing Naeemi of rampant corruption and land grab- Chinese submarines bing have staged demonstrations outside his residence for nearly a week. The Taleban denied responsibility for the blast, spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said on the group’s official Twitter account, but suicide bombings have long been a weapon of choice for the Pakistan’s Kashmir to expel 11,000 Afghans militants in their 13-year battle against the government and its foreign backers. The bombs often target Afghan security forces, but ISLAMABAD: Pakistan is close to agreeing a multi-billion dollar Islamabad imported in 2010-2014. they have also taken a heavy toll on civilians. deal to buy eight submarines from China, the Financial Times China has also surpassed Germany to become the world’s The number of civilians killed and wounded in Afghanistan reported yesterday, in what would be one of China’s largest over- third largest arms exporter, SIPRI said in a report last month. Little jumped 22 percent in 2014, a recent UN report said, as NATO seas weapons sales. The decision had been agreed “in principle”, is known about China’s arms exports because the country does troops withdrew from combat. The United Nations Assistance the newspaper said, citing a hearing in the Pakistani parliament’s not publish data on such sales. A senior Pakistani government Mission in Afghanistan attributed the rise to an intensification in ground fighting, resulting in a total of 10,548 civilian casualties last defense committee. Pakistani newspaper the Dawn said negotia- official, Muhammad Saleem Sethi, would leave for China on year. President Barack Obama last week reversed plans to with- tions with China were at an advanced stage. Thursday where the submarine deal was expected to be dis- draw around 5,000 US troops from Afghanistan this year, an over- Pakistani defense officials could not immediately be reached cussed, the Dawn newspaper said. The Pakistan navy was also in ture to the country’s new reform-minded leader, President Ashraf for comment. China’s Ministry of Defense declined to comment. A touch with Germany, Britain and France about the possible pur- Ghani. A large section of Afghan society welcomed the decision, former senior Pakistan navy officer with knowledge of the negoti- chase of used submarines, the Dawn quoted officials as telling the with many fearing that without continued international military ations told the Financial Times the contract could be worth $4 bil- defense committee. A top US Navy admiral said in February that support, Afghanistan-like Iraq could spiral into chaos. lion to $5 billion. It was unclear what type of submarine Pakistan though they were technologically inferior, China’s submarine Afghan forces are bracing for what is expected to be a bloody was looking to buy but China has poured resources into develop- fleet now outnumbered that of the US navy. summer push by the Taleban and the government has also raised ing diesel-and nuclear-powered submarines in recent years. the ominous prospect of the Islamic State jihadist group making China and Pakistan call each other “all-weather friends” and Illegal Afghan refugees inroads into Afghanistan. Taleban insurgents have already stepped up suicide attacks on government targets following an their close ties have been underpinned by long-standing wari- In another development, Pakistani Kashmir is set to expel some Afghan army offensive which began in southern Helmand ness of their common neighbor, India, and a desire to hedge 11,000 illegal Afghan refugees under a national anti-terror plan province more than two months ago. A roadside bomb killed against US influence across the region. President Xi Jinping will announced in the wake of the country’s worst ever militant attack, Hekmatullah Haqmal, the police chief of Gereshk district of opium- travel to Pakistan this month, the government in Islamabad has police said yesterday. There are an estimated three million Afghan rich Helmand late Wednesday, according to local officials. He was said. China has said Xi would visit this year but given no time- refugees living in Pakistan, either officially or unofficially, most of part of a convoy of reinforcements heading to a village to launch a frame. China is Pakistan’s top supplier of weapons, according to whom left their country to escape conflict in the 1980s and 1990s. retaliatory attack against Taleban insurgents after they struck the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), But they are viewed with deep suspicion inside Pakistan and rou- police checkpoints. — AFP which tracks global arms sales, selling 51 percent of the weapons tinely accused by authorities of harboring militants. —Agencies International FRIDAY, APRIL 3, 2015 17 Aliens have never invaded Japan: Defense minister

TOKYO: Alien spaceships have never fighter jets if necessary and makes visual house, Inoki had asked if aircraft were dis- firmed the existence of unidentified flying entered Japanese airspace, the country’s observation,” he said. patched to meet extra-terrestrial visitors objects believed to have come from any- defense minister has told parliamentari- “They sometimes find birds or flying and “whether studies (into them) are where other than Earth”. But the state- ans, after being questioned about a possi- objects other than aircraft but I don’t know going on”. Inoki, known for his outsized ment, formally endorsed at a cabinet ble aerial invasion by little green men. a case of finding an unidentified flying chin and trademark red scarf, said he did meeting at the time, prompted a surprise Gen Nakatani said the nation’s war planes object believed to have come over from not know whether or not aliens existed, rebuttal from the top government can be scrambled whenever there is a anywhere other than Earth,” he said. but he had once seen a mysterious flying spokesman. Nobutaka Machimura, chief report of an unidentified flying object Nakatani, a sober politician with a reputa- object rocket into the air on the horizon cabinet secretary at the time, said: (UFO) but, so far, they had not encoun- tion for thorough understanding of his and disappear. “Personally, I absolutely believe they exist.” tered visitors from space. “When the Air brief, was responding to a question from Wednesday’s exchange was not the Then-defense minister Shigeru Ishiba also Self Defense Force detects indications of flamboyant wrestler-turned-lawmaker first official Japanese pronouncement on said that in his personal opinion there an unidentified flying object that could Antonio Inoki. At a meeting Wednesday of spacemen and their aircraft. A 2007 state- were “no grounds” to deny that there are violate our country’s airspace, it scrambles the budget committee in Japan’s upper ment said the government “has not con- UFOs controlled by alien life-forms. —AFP

Germanwings’ crash families prepare for differing payouts BERLIN: Families of those killed aboard the Germanwings flight are likely to receive vastly different payouts depending on their nationality, where they bought the ticket, and how much they earned, even though they all shared the same fate, lawyers said. Claims can be made either where the ticket was purchased, in the home country of the airline, at courts in the passenger’s destination or in the passenger’s home country. But in air crashes, the amounts awarded for pain and suffering vary by country, with victims from the United States tending to receive higher payouts, followed by Europeans and Asians. Lawyer James Healy-Pratt at Stewarts Law LLP, which is advising families of those killed in the Malaysian Air disasters last year, said British parents who lose an adult child can expect compensation of around 20,000 pounds ($30,000), while American parents could expect 1.5 million pounds. “This is despite the obvious fact that each passenger has a shared and similar experience in the final minutes of the doomed flight,” Healy-Pratt, based in New York, said. For AT SEA: This undated picture shows a trawler the same type as The Dalny Vostok trawler. —AFP example, under the fatal accidents act, British families can claim a bereavement award of around 13,000 pounds. Further claims are awarded for the cost of funeral expenses and a variable amount based on how dependent others were on the deceased for income At least 56 die as Russian and services. In Germany, damages are calculated based on the victim’s lost earnings and other financial consequences of the loss, such as travel trawler sinks in icy seas costs, and there is typically no separate award for pain and suffering, said German lawyer Elmar Giemulla, who has been approached for help by families of the group of schoolchildren killed onboard the Rescuers search for missing crew, survivors flight. With many claims therefore likely to be based mainly on financial considerations, this means that revelations by Lufthansa that its MOSCOW: A fishing trawler sank in freez- tion. “Although they were wearing wet- tion plans to question members of the flight school knew of pilot Andreas Lubitz’s depression are unlikely to ing waters off Russia’s Far East yesterday, suits, they suffered hypothermia because crew and company management short- affect outcomes in many countries apart from the United States. killing at least 56 people and setting off a the water temperature is around zero ly,” the committee said in a statement. frantic search for survivors that led to degrees Celsius,” she said. The victims’ “Currently the investigation is looking Help for as long as needed dozens being rescued alive. In the worst bodies will be transported to the port of into a possible collision with an obstacle The 144 passengers on the plane came from 18 different coun- such accident in recent Russian history, Korsakov on the island of Sakhalin for damaging the ship’s hull near the tries, Germanwings has said. The majority were from Germany and some 132 people were on board the identification, but the journey will take machine room as the most likely reason Spain, while three were from the United States. “You can get the sit- trawler Dalny Vostok when it went down three days, RIA-Novosti agency reported. for the ship’s rapid sinking,” it said. uation where you have two passengers sat next to each other but at around 6:30 am in the Sea of Okhotsk But a collision is only one possibility, the value of their claims is radically different,” said Jim Morris, a off Kamchatka peninsula, possibly after a ‘Collision’ possible with as many as 10 possible scenarios lawyer at London-based Irwin Mitchell, which is assisting family collision. Sixty-three people were rescued The 1989-built vessel was operated by being considered, Emergencies Minister members of British and foreign nationals on board the alive while 13 were still missing as res- Magellan, a company based in Nevelsk, a Vladimir Puchkov said. Sakhalin’s acting Germanwings flight. cuers battled roiling seas. The emergency port city on Sakhalin in the Russian Far governor Oleg Kozhemyako said that the Morris said he expected it would be a very expensive crash for ministry put the death toll at 56. East. The Soviet-built trawler, a 5,700-ton, ship was in adequate condition and likely the airline’s insurers and that Lufthansa was unlikely to try and reject Survivors were waiting aboard rescue 104-metre long factory ship is designed capsized due to weight distribution viola- full liability. Insurance industry sources have said that insurers would boats for a ship with medics to arrive to carry dozens of sailors on fishing trips tions. “Most likely loading and ship bal- stick with their liability policies for Lufthansa and Germanwings, after a helicopter made a failed attempt lasting several months. It was purchased ancing rules were violated. Either they even though the airline said it was aware that Lubitz had gone to pick them up amid waves as high as only last year by Magellan and before had the lower decks empty or they didn’t through a period of severe depression. Lufthansa CEO Carsten two meters, an emergency ministry that was operated by Baltic marine fish- load the ballast on time,” he said in tele- Spohr said on Wednesday that the airline would provide assistance spokeswoman said. Those in the most ing company and was called Stende. vised remarks. “The vessel capsized,” he to the families of those killed “for as long as help is needed”. serious condition were to be airlifted to a Speculation mounted on the possible said. Germany’s Allianz, which is coordinating the insurance response, hospital in the city of Magadan, 250 kilo- reasons for the accident, in which the said on Wednesday that all claims arising from the crash would be meters to the north. Russian investigators ship apparently sank so quickly that the Illegal crew? handled fully, fairly and as quickly as possible. The insurer’s prelimi- said the trawler included 78 Russian citi- captain did not manage to make a dis- One expert questioned whether many nary estimate for the total cost of the crash is $300 million but it has zens, 42 Myanmar nationals, five from tress call. of the people on board were working said the figure could change as new information became available. Vanuatu, three Latvians and four Russia’s powerful Investigative legally. Pyotr Osichansky, who heads the Insurers often pencil in liability of $1 million per person killed on a Ukrainians, without elaborating on the Committee launched a probe into the Vladivostok-based centre for investiga- flight but Arthur Flieger, an Antwerp-based lawyer involved in nationality of those who died. possible violation of safety measures. tions of naval accidents, told Channel claims cases such as the Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 that disap- “Nine people are in grave condition, Investigators were seizing documenta- One television that when the ship depart- peared over a year ago, said victims’ families often accept a standard some are unconscious and some in a tion from the ship’s owners and conducted Vladivostok, it had just over 60 people award and are loath to pursue airlines in court. “It costs a lot of mon- state of shock,” said Tatyana ing searches in the ship’s home port in on it. “That means that most likely (other) ey and takes many years. People who have lost family, they just Yukhmanova, spokeswoman for the Nevelsk as well as in the far eastern port workers were taken on board in (South want to move on with their lives.” —Reuters emergency ministry in the Kamchatka city of Vladivostok from where the ship Korean port) Busan and are therefore ille- region, which is taking part in the opera- departed on January 3. “The investiga- gal,” he said. —AFP International FRIDAY, APRIL 3, 2015 Chequebook Buddhism offers Thais stairway to heaven

BANGKOK: In deeply religious Thailand, monks have long been revered. But badly behaved clergy, corruption scandals, and the vast wealth amassed by some temples has many asking if something is rotten at the heart of Thai Buddhism. From selfies on private jets to multi-million dollar donations from allegedly crooked businessmen, Thailand’s monks are coming under increasing fire for their embrace of commercialism. So much so that even the military junta is threatening to intervene. In Wat Hua Lumphong, a temple in downtown Bangkok, gar- lands of banknotes flutter in the breeze as trader Sakorn Suker slips a 20 baht note ($1) into an urn. “It makes me feel good, boosts my health and makes me do better business,” Suker said. His donation entitles him to take a “lucky” floating candle in the shape of a flower. Nearby, coin-operated machines-similar to juke- boxes, but with a Buddha statue on top-churn out “lucky numbers” for the faithful as kneeling devotees hand over envelopes stuffed with cash, many picking up a tax reduction certificate on their way out. In one corner of the temple complex sits a monk in an air-conditioned box. “Donation means sacrifice. You sacrifice your things, sacrifice your time, sacrifice your money, sacrifice your heart,” the monk, Pra Maha Noppadom, explains.

The gift of giving In contrast to the increasingly empty pews and coffers of many European churches, temples remain a boom business in Thailand. AYUTTHAYA: A Buddhist monks sweeps the stairs at the Mahachulalongkornrajavidyalaya Buddhist university in Ayutthaya The overwhelmingly Buddhist nation is one of the most generous province north of Bangkok. — AFP countries in the world, according to the 2014 World Giving Index. billion) every year. And that’s on top of their state funding. In 2015 robes, instant coffee and soap. Few have mastered modern It came third globally, behind Myanmar and Malta, with 77 percent the government has earmarked $113 million alone for renovating money collection techniques better than the Dhammakaya tem- of the population giving money to charity. Temples are under no temples. Donations have always formed the bedrock of Thai ple, one of the richest in the kingdom, with a dozens of outlets obligation to declare their assets, which makes guessing how deep Buddhism. Every morning barefooted monks make their daily alms worldwide and an enormous headquarters north of Bangkok. It this generosity runs difficult. rounds in their local neighborhoods. is renowned for its roster of wealthy patrons and even boasts a But last year the National Institute of Development But as the Southeast Asian nation has modernized, so have slick TV channel where-much like evangelical mega churches- Administration estimated the country’s 38,000-odd temples donation methods. Thai supermarkets now offer an impressive pleas for devotees to reach deep into their pockets are never far receive between 100 and 120 billion baht in donations ($3.07-3.62 array of pre-packaged hampers for monks including saffron away.—AFP

FBI confirms China influence in Cambodia death of top grows with army school, aid militant in Philippines raid

Beijing ‘nurturing regional ally’ MANILA: The FBI confirmed yesterday that a senior Malaysian militant believed to have THLOK TASEK: When Defense Minister Tea Banh ty of the institute’s construction and covers most ing.” “This aid has no political conditions been involved in the 2002 Bali bombings addressed graduates last month at Cambodia’s of the operating costs. About half of all attached, and will not harm the interests of any was killed in a January raid in the prestigious Army Institute, he directed his thanks Cambodia’s officer trainees now come through third party,” it said. Philippines that also left 44 police comman- to the guests who made it all possible: a group of the institute, according to an officer with close dos dead. Zulkifli Abdhir, who was on the crisply dressed officers from China’s People’s knowledge of the school, who also declined to be Splitting ASEAN? bureau’s most-wanted list with a $5-million Liberation Army (PLA). The institute, established named. According to Lao Mong Hay, an analyst and reward on his head, was killed in the in 1999 around 80 km (50 miles) from Phnom adviser to Cambodia’s opposition, China’s mili- January 25 operation that plunged Penh, is part of China’s rising military aid to Long term strategy tary largesse contributed to Cambodia, as chair of President Benigno Aquino’s administration Cambodia. Interviews with serving officers and a The institute appears to be China’s first the Association of Southeast Asian Nations into crisis and jeopardized efforts to end a senior Cambodian government official shed light attempt to build a large-scale facility of this kind (ASEAN) in 2012, playing spoiler in efforts by decades-long Muslim separatist insurgency, on how far the school’s influence has grown in in Southeast Asia, said Carl Thayer, a Southeast Southeast Asian states to create a maritime “code the FBI said. recent years. Asia security expert at the Australian Defense of conduct” with Beijing. “The strategic interest of “After a thorough review of forensic Military aid, alongside arms sales and billions Force Academy. “For China, it’s the beginning of China is also to split ASEAN, and Cambodia is data and information obtained from our of dollars of investment, have strengthened a long-term strategy of winning influence in the used for this purpose,” he said. Military aid also Philippine law enforcement partners, the China’s ties with Cambodia, and analysts see it as Cambodian military by cultivating these people. counterbalances the influence of Vietnam, Lao FBI has assessed that terrorism subject, part of a push to extend regional influence, And China keeps very, very deep intelligence files added. Vietnam, embroiled in a row with China Zulkifli Abdhir, also known as “Marwan,” is including in the disputed South China Sea. on everybody,” he said. last year over an oil rig Beijing parked in disputed deceased and has been removed from the During his speech at the institute in Kampong “Nowhere in Southeast Asia is the Chinese waters, has long provided training to Cambodian FBI’s list of Most Wanted Terrorists,” the FBI Speu province, Tea lavished praise on the “luxuri- influence as great as what you’re talking about.” soldiers and police, as well as military equipment. Los Angeles office said in a statement. The ous” facilities - a rarity for Cambodia’s often ram- The growth of the school comes amid a signifi- The neighbors’ navies conduct regular joint national police said the confirmation “vali- shackle armed forces. Addressing the Chinese, he cant rise in Chinese arms sales and military aid to patrols. dates” their earlier insistence that the added: “We are grateful to them for understand- Cambodia. China also invests billions into the Chinese aid dwarfs that of the United States, botched raid, which caused Aquino’s ing our difficulties.” country’s economy. which cancelled delivery of 200 surplus military approval rating to tumble to its lowest level Since 2009, roughly 200 cadets have been In 2013, Cambodia took delivery of 12 Harbin vehicles in 2010 after Cambodia deported a since he took office in 2010, was a success admitted annually to four-year courses devised Z-9 helicopters using a $195 million Chinese loan. group of Uighur asylum seekers to China in late despite the huge death toll. by China’s Defense Ministry and Chinese advisers The next year, it received a donation of 26 2009. Two days after that deportation, China and “We have got our man and (the opera- who oversee a local teaching staff, three officers Chinese trucks and 30,000 military uniforms. Cambodia signed deals worth an estimated $850 tion) was a success,” Philippine national said. This includes compulsory six month stints at Chinese-funded construction at the school has million. In 2013, Cambodia announced the sus- police spokesman Chief Superintendent military academies in China. The 190 students proceeded apace. Since an infusion of funds in pension of some military cooperation with the Generoso Cerbo said in response to the FBI who graduated in March were the third such 2002, more than 70 buildings have been erected United States after criticism by American law- confirmation. Poor planning and coordina- cohort from the school. “Graduates have already on the roughly 148 hectare site, according to an makers of Cambodia’s elections. Washington tion had been blamed for the deaths of the been put into influential positions, including the institute document seen by Reuters. Officials at made available around $1 million for military commandos sent to the troubled southern head of army brigades,” said the senior govern- Cambodia’s Defense Ministry did not respond to financing and training in Cambodia in 2014, island of Mindanao to get Zulkifli and a sen- ment official, who did not want to be named requests from Reuters for comment for this arti- according to the State Department, and 12 ior Filipino militant leader Abdul Basit because of the sensitivity of the subject. cle. China’s Defense Ministry said in a statement Cambodian military personnel received training Usman, who escaped. While the forces “They’re in fighting forces in positions where responding to questions from Reuters that it in the United States on human rights and “mar- were able to kill Zulkifli during the raid, they can make decisions.” The school also admits would “continue to increase its level of support itime capacity building.” Meanwhile, graduates they were later attacked by Muslim gun- about 200 students a year for a shorter six month for the institute, to help the Cambodian side raise of the Chinese-funded Army Institute are mov- men who killed 44 of them. —AFP course. The official said China paid for the majori- its teaching abilities and level of personnel training up the ranks. —Reuters FRIDAY, APRIL 3, 2015 APRIL FRIDAY, www.kuwaittimes.net

A model presents a creation by designer Abdul Samad at the Fashion Pakistan Week in Karachi.— AFP

Page 21 Lifestyle FRIDAY, APRIL 3, 2015 Cynthia, first wife of John Lennon, dies

he Beatles’ songwriter Cynthia Lennon, has died aged 75, the couple’s son TJulian said Wednesday. A message on the musician’s website said Lennon “passed away today at her home in Mallorca, Spain following a short but brave battle with cancer.” “Her son Julian Lennon was at her bed- Cynthia Lennon sits side throughout. The family are thankful for behind copies of your prayers,” it added. her newly released Julian Lennon wrote and sang a song of book entitled tribute to his mother that was posted on the ‘John’ during a site with a montage of family snapshots and book signing at footage. “You gave your life for me, you Foyle’s bookshop gave your life for love,” the song begins, in central London. then ends with the words “I know you’re safe above.” Cynthia met John Lennon at an art class in the British city of Liverpool when she was 18 and the couple married in 1962. “You couldn’t resist being around him,” Cynthia Lennon said in a In this July 2, 1964 file photo, singer John was a lovely lady who I’ve known since our Lennon and his then wife, Cynthia, at Luton early days together in Liverpool. airport. “She was a good mother to Julian and will be missed by us all but I will always have great memories of our times together.” British journalist Hunter Davies, who wrote the only official biography of The Beatles, remem- K-pop icons Big Bang bered Cynthia Lennon as a contrasting character to her husband. “She was totally differ- announce world tour ent from John in that she was quiet and reserved and calm,” Davies said. “John treat- ne of K-pop’s biggest boy bands, Big ed her appallingly. He slept with Yoko in their Bang, announced yesterday their first marital home and as we discovered later, he Oworld tour in three years, spanning also physically attacked her, but she was loyal Asia and the Americas to promote a much- to him,” he added. John Lennon was later anticipated new album. The five-members of murdered by a troubled fan in New York in the South Korean group are among the best- 1980. At the time John was reconciling with known faces of the K-pop phenomenon, Julian, the son he had had with Cynthia. whose popularity has swept Asia and beyond “Near the end, before his tragic death, of over the last 10 years. The upcoming tour course, they were getting close on the phone; kicks off with two concerts in Seoul on April 25 In this Aug 3, 1989 file photo the two wives and two sons of singer John Lennon, from they were connecting,” she said. “It was just and 26 and then moves to at least 15 coun- left Yoko Ono, Lennon’s second wife and widow; Julian Lennon; Sean Lennon, son coming back and it was wonderful. Then, of tries including China, Japan and the United with Ono; and Cynthia Lennon, first wife and mother of Julian pose together at the course, his life was cut very short.” After her States, the band’s agency YG Entertainment Hard Rock Cafe in New York City to celebrate Julian’s concert at the Beacon Theater, death was announced, The Beatles’ drummer said in a statement. New York. — AP photos Ringo Starr tweeted a tribute: “Peace and love A total of 70 concerts have been scheduled, grew to be the world’s biggest group. to Julian Lennon. God bless Cynthia.” with the agency promising new venues and 2005 interview with US television. “You Yoko Ono said she was “saddened” by well trodden K-pop stages in Southeast Asia. couldn’t resist watching what he was up ‘A lovely lady’ Cynthia Lennon’s death. “She was a great per- Popular rapper and the band’s leader G-Dragon to. I mean, he was a total rebel.” In her John left her after beginning an affair with son and a wonderful mother to Julian,” Ono earlier said Big Bang was planning to release a 2006 memoir of the relationship, “John”, Japanese artist Yoko Ono in 1968 and the wrote on her Facebook page. “She had such a new album along with the global tour. Their Cynthia said the pair had had an intense couple was divorced. The song, “Hey Jude”, strong zest for life and I felt proud how we last album, “Alive”, was released in 2012 and but turbulent relationship. “He was a very was later written by John’s fellow Beatle Paul two women stood firm in the Beatles family.” became the first Korean-language entrant in jealous young man at the time, and he McCartney to comfort Julian Lennon during After her split from John Lennon, Cynthia the US Billboard 200 album chart. Since then, had a lot of pain inside,” she said, his parents break-up, and was initially titled remarried three times, tying the knot for the the five members of the band have largely con- explaining that he had once hit her. They “Hey Jules.” “The news of Cynthia’s passing is fourth and final time in 2002 with nightclub centrated on individual projects. — AFP stayed together until 1968, as The Beatles very sad,” McCartney said Wednesday. “She owner Noel Charles who died in 2013. — AFP Kendrick Lamar hangs on to top spot on US album chart endrick Lamar’s “To Pimp a Butterfly” The last album to hold on to the top full-length studio debut “Mr Wonderful” proved that it still has plenty of wind spot for two weeks in a row was Taylor moved 48,000 units, good for No 7. “Kidz Kbeneath its wings by maintaining Swift’s smash “1989” when it dropped in Bop 28” arrived in 10th place with 40,000 the No. 1 spot on the Billboard 200 album November. If Lamar can follow Swift’s lead units. The new collection of KB covers sales chart for the week ending March 29, on the chart, he’s in for a long tenure in includes its share of amusingly cleaned-up according to data from Nielsen music. the top 10: “1989” remains at No 5 this lyrics. Lamar’s album moved 123,000 copies, week, down just 7% with 52,000 units Nick Jonas’ “Jealous,” for example, los- down 66% from the previous week’s moved. Swift’s latest has consistently es the line “You’re too sexy beautiful, and impressive debut. The rapper revealed to remained in the top five since debuting 22 everybody wants a taste,” for the more MTV that his album was originally titled “Tu weeks ago. The chart saw two new addi- kid-friendly “You’re too pretty beautiful, Pimp a Caterpillar” as a nod to Tupac, but tions this week, with debuts from Action and everybody likes you too.” A pair of in the end elected to swap in the Bronson and the children of Kidz Bop soundtracks continued to fare well on the “Butterfly” to evoke the “brightness of life.” entering in the top 10. Rapper Bronson’s top half of the chart. —Reuters Kendrick Lamar Lifestyle FRIDAY, APRIL 3, 2015 Jovovich welcomes second daughter merican actress Milla Jovovich gave birth Wednesday in Los Angeles to her second daughter Dashiel Edon, Awith British director and producer Paul WS Anderson. “Milla Jovovich delivered her second daughter Dashiel Edon early this morning. Both Mama and Baby are doing great,” a spokeswoman for the Ukrainian-born beauty told AFP. “Milla, her husband Paul and big sister Ever are overjoyed to welcome Dashiel into the their family and are all spending some quality bonding time together.” Jovovich, 39, was born in Kiev and started modeling at nine. She became a favorite of top photographers like Richard Avedon and Herb Ritts. She has fronted international cam- paigns for Chanel, Christian Dior, L’Oreal among others. On the silver screen, she has played characters ranging from Joan Milla Jovovich arrives for the screening of the movie of Arc to action heroes. —AFP “Cymbeline” presented in the Orizzonti selection.—AFP

Kristen Stewart poses for a portrait in New York. —AP ‘Furious 7’ revs up for April box office record

ot cars, hot cast and red-hot box Stewart in talks office figures-the juggernaut “Fast H& Furious” franchise is revving up for another wild ride. “Furious 7”, the lat- for Lee’s ‘Billy Lynn’s est installment in the blockbuster action series about a policeman who infiltrates and later becomes part of the world of Long Halftime Walk’ street racing, hits theaters around the world from Wednesday. The fast-paced risten Stewart is in talks to join the TriStar pic “Billy Lynn’s film with a racially diverse cast that has Long Halftime Walk” directed by Ang Lee. The cast won over audiences both at home and Kincludes Joe Alwyn (as the title character) and Garrett abroad is certain to rake in major cash, Hedlund. Based on the Ben Fountain novel, “Billy Lynn” will be but it will also tug at the heartstrings of co-financed by Jeff Robinov’s Fosun-backed Studio 8, together fans. with Chinese distribution company Bona Film Group. Sony Star Paul Walker, who has played cop- Pictures is handling worldwide distribution except for China, turned-racer Brian O’Conner in the films, where Bona Film will release the film. Most of the movie takes died in a fiery car crash in December 2013 at age 40 — a tragedy reminiscent of his place during a Thanksgiving Day football game. Bravo Company Vin Diesel arrives at the premiere of “Furious 7” at the TCL Chinese and 19-year-old private Billy Lynn are part of the spectacular character’s on-screen adventures. To halftime show, as part of a promotional tour arranged by the US complete the film, which was originally Theatre IMAX on Wednesday. —AP government. The team’s heroic work in Iraq had become inter- set for release in summer 2014, the pro- nationally known when captured by news cameras, and the film duction team turned to his actor brothers features flashbacks to the underlying events and the heroism of Caleb and Cody, who resemble him. Lynn, who is facing an imminent return to the war. Analysts say “Furious 7” will have a very Lee, who won a directing Oscar for his innovative work on big opening. “Look for the record for “The Life of Pi,” will be using new technological and artistic biggest April debut to fall hard this week- methods in “Billy.” These include use of the Sony F65 camera end,” said Paul Dergarabedian, of the box shooting in native 3D, high resolution, and with an ultra-high office tracker Rentrak. That top spot is frame rate to create a different cinematic syntax in service of the currently held by last year’s “Captain story. He wants to give audiences a better sense of the height- America: The Winter Soldier” at $95 mil- ened sensation that soldiers feel on the battlefield and on the lion, but Dergarabedian said “Furious 7” home front. Stewart is repped by Gersh. —Reuters was likely to rake in more than $100 million. Some have gone much farther, saying Ford recovering remarkably a US take of $155 million was not out of the question, and a global opening week- after plane crash end total of $250 million-or, the film’s total budget. Besides the obvious predic- Flo Rida performs on stage at the “Furious 7” Takeover held at the arrison Ford is on the road to recovery, according to tions of box office success, reviews so far Revolt Live Studios. famed producer Frank Marshall, who spoke to Variety at have generally been good. The film has the New York premiere of his latest project “Sinatra: All or diverse ever put together. Entertainment hungry British hitman. The diverse cast H so far earned an 87 percent approval rat- Nothing at All” on Tuesday. Marshall reported that his “Indiana Weekly calls it a “United Nations-like has helped the franchise build a massive ing on the aggregator site rottentoma- Jones” colleague and close friend has left the UCLA Medical ‘family’ of scofflaw speed demons.” The worldwide fan base. “Diverse stories with toes.com-putting it ahead of some action Center and is now recuperating from the March 5 plane crash. cast includes Latina actresses Michelle diverse characters need to be told,” films that went on to win Oscars. “Harrison is at home (in Los Angeles) and he’s up and about,” Rodriguez and Jordana Brewster; black Jeffrey Kirschenbaum, Universal’s pro- Dergarabedian says the success stems Marshall said. “I talked to him yesterday and he’s doing really actors Tyrese Gibson and Chris “Ludacris” duction co-president, told Entertainment from “an undeniably appealing concept well. He’s pretty banged up, but he’s recovering remarkably. He Bridges; Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, Weekly. “Not out of any sense of altruism, and an impressive evolutionary path wants to play tennis.” who is of Samoan descent; Korean- but because your audience is looking for which has taken it well beyond its origi- Ford, 72, sustained serious injuries and broken bones after the American Sung Kang; and Walker, who is stories they can connect to and access.” nal concept as a ‘fast cars, hot girls and engine of a small plane he was piloting from Santa Monica Airport white. Also back for more is Vin Diesel, For Dergarabedian, “the films took the cool guys’ genre film.” “These films cut out and crash-landed at Penmar Golf Course in Venice, who himself has said he is of “ambigu- action to a whole new level and with pushed the boundaries of traditional California. Fortunately, the “Star Wars” actor’s exceptional flying ous” ethnicity. On Wednesday, he was their international locales, and a diverse action movie motifs and created a world skills helped to save his life and prevented others from harm. honored by putting his hands and feet in cast made them a truly global phenome- unto itself that was mainly a product of “That’s the thing you would expect him to do in a movie, but he cement at the TCL Chinese Theatre in non.” He also hailed the “increasingly the incredibly effective casting of the did it in real life!” exclaimed Marshall. “He’s a really good pilot. I’ve Hollywood over-the-top car chases”-at one point in ensemble.” talked to a lot of pilots who said that was a hell of a landing and he White Australian rapper Iggy Azalea “Furious 7”, five cars drive off a moving did everything correct in that situation. He made an incredible even has a cameo in the flick. And they plane-and the “almost James Bond- Diverse cast boosts appeal landing, to his credit. He is, after all, Indiana Jones.” —Reuters are joined by veteran action film star esque commitment to international That ensemble is one of the most Jason Statham, who plays a revenge- intrigue.” —AFP Lifestyle FRIDAY, APRIL 3, 2015

Silvia Fassetta, one of the founders of The Green Place, an animal refuge, bottle feeds a lamb Silvia Fassetta, one of the founders of The Green Place, an animal refuge, Cuddles a lamb . in Nepi. — AFP photos After 2,000 years, Easter lamb falling off the menu in Italy? hat could be more redolent of Easter and Lina were the stars of a recent online poster than a sizzling piece of suckling lamb campaign in which Italian actors, musicians and Wstudded with slivers of garlic, crowned TV personalities were snapped holding them with sprigs of rosemary and roasted to a deep, under banners urging readers to: “Make a sacri- golden hue? It is one of the jewels in the crown fice this Easter, don’t kill me.” of Italian gastronomy, an Easter treat born of Backed by Italy’s Anti-Vivisection League nearly 2,000 years of culinary and religious cus- (LAV) — one of the biggest animal rights groups tom. Yet as this year’s celebration of the in Europe with 40,000 members or donors Crucifixion and Resurrection of Christ approach- activists-the campaign has been a slow-burn es, all the signs are that lamb is losing the broad success with the images widely picked up by appeal that had made it a symbolic staple of cel- national newspapers. Fassetta says that is a sign ebratory meals for centuries. that her arguments resonate in a country with an The country’s legions of carnivore gourmets, estimated five million vegetarians and millions Silvia Fassetta bottle feeds a lamb. who are equally keen on chomping down milk- more who take a keen interest in how their food fed veal and herb-stuffed piglets, will fight hard is produced. to keep it that way. But market data suggest a “Most of the fall in consumption has come in significant shift in attitudes has already taken the last two years and I saw the other day that place. According to the national statistics insti- one of our biggest supermarket chains is offer- tute (ISTAT), the number of lambs sent to slaugh- ing a 50 percent discount on lamb. If they are ter in Italy fell from 4.6 million in 2010 to just doing that in the run-up to Easter it means that over two million last year. our message is getting across,” she told AFP. “Personally I would prefer people not to eat Slaughtered at 4 weeks meat at all, but lamb is a good place to start,” she Animal rights activists say the trend, which says, cradling Lina in her arms. has accelerated in the last two years, reflects a groundswell of revulsion at the practice of drag- Religious roots ging tiny lambs-and on a much smaller scale The story of how lamb came to be associated goat kids-away from their mothers and into the with Easter is as rich as the fatty juices oozing slaughterhouse when they are as young as four- out of a prime joint reared on fragrant Sardinian weeks old. Rome butchers Massimiliano and hillsides. The gospel of John describes Christ as Pino Marabitti beg to differ. “The animal rights the “lamb of God,”-a reference generally inter- lot are worse than Islamic fundamentalists,” preted as comparing him to the sacrificial lamb Massimiliano says indignantly from behind his of Jewish tradition. As the Jews sacrificed a lamb stall in the market of the Trieste neighborhood. each year at Passover in commemoration of their “What difference does it make if you kill an liberation from bondage in Egypt (when lambs’ animal at six weeks, six months or six years?” The blood was painted on Jewish doorposts as a sign Italian butchers Massimiliano and Pino Marabitti prepare a lamb for a client. brothers confirm that lamb sales have fallen off for them to be spared from God’s killing of every significantly but blame a struggling economy first-born son in the land), so Christ was sacri- rather than animal welfare concerns. “Lamb is ficed by God, his father, so that sinners could expensive, particularly Italian lamb,” said enjoy everlasting life. Massimiliano as Pino expertly dissected a car- The sacrifice part of the Passover ritual died cass into oven-friendly joints for a customer will- out as Jews were scattered around the world but ing to pay 20 euros ($21) a kilogram (2.2 pounds) the commemorative eating of lamb has for certified Roman lamb-nearly twice the price remained common in some communities, of imported lamb. “More and more what we are including the one first established in Rome in the seeing is all types of meat being imported from second century. Despite their small numbers and eastern Europe where they don’t have the same centuries of persecution, Rome’s Jews have had health and hygiene controls we have here in a big influence on the Italian capital’s cooking Italy,” Massimiliano adds.”People are short of which has helped to sustain lamb as a feast-day cash so they go to the supermarkets and buy favorite. Theologians say there is nothing in the that meat instead.” Christian scriptures to support a notion that lamb should be eaten at Easter. Campaigners Elvis and Lina regularly urge Pope Francis to spell that out, but An opposing view is expressed by Silvia he has so far declined, limiting himself to speak- Fassetta, one of the founders of The Green Place, ing in general terms about the importance of an animal refuge near the spa town of Nepi treating all creatures with respect. — AFP which is home to two of the brightest young things on the Italian media scene. Rescued Activist of the animal rights movement ‘Animalisti Italiani’ (Italian Animals) hold placards lambs with all the cuddly charm of puppies, Elvis reading ‘Who saves a life saves the world’. Lifestyle FRIDAY, APRIL 3, 2015 Fashion-hungry public drives success of designers’ museum shows

heir creations are usually reserved for a vised reports are not able to show the richness few wealthy clients, but European muse- of the material, of the embroidery. Only an exhi- Tums are currently allowing the public to bition allows common mortals to see that.” admire up close the works of star fashion The success of the Gaultier exhibition shows designers Jean Paul Gaultier, Alexander no sign of flagging. It has already been seen by McQueen and Karl Lagerfeld. The Gaultier show, 1.4 million visitors since starting out in Montreal which opened in Paris Wednesday as part of a in 2011 and making eight other stops around global tour, and the McQueen one in London the world. The French designer is famous for running for the past two weeks have proved to innovative and sometimes outrageous pieces, be hits according to organizers. perhaps most famously Madonna’s cone bra. In The Lagerfeld exhibition, in the German city London, the Victoria and Albert Museum is fea- of Bonn, has just begun and is certain to draw turing “Savage Beauty”, the biggest-ever exhibi- crowds curious about the Chanel designer’s tion in homage to Alexander McQueen, the bril- work. “Those who don’t get a chance to attend liant British designer who committed suicide in 2010 aged 40. The display started out in New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art in 2011, organized by its Costume Institute, where it achieved “blockbuster” status that year with 660,000 visitors.

Trend started by US journalist The Met has been at the forefront of the thriving retrospective shows of designers ever since launching the trend in 1983 with an Yves Sant Laurent show that was the brainchild of Dresses of the ‘Punk Cancan’ collection displayed during the exhibition dedicated to influential American journalist Diana Vreeland. French fashion designer Jean Paul Gaultier in Paris. Vreeland, a Harper’s Bazaar and Vogue columnist who was also consultant at the Met’s substance-”the public requires it,” he said. “also becoming his own curator”. Costume Institute before her death in 1989, was Olivier Gabet, director of Paris’s Museum of The need to keep some distance was the behind numerous fashion exhibitions around Decorative Arts that organizes two or three fash- cause of some tension when the Museum of the world. “She felt that clothing as art had to be ion exhibitions each year, also stressed how Decorative Arts showed works last year by the associated with individuals, charismatic individ- much more demanding the public has become. Belgian designer Dries Van Noten. “There was a uals in any period,” explained Harold Koda, the “It’s so hard to escape fashion these days. real discussion-a fairly sharp one sometimes,” A woman taking a picture as she visits the curator in charge of the Costume Institute. “She Advertising is everywhere. And, what’s more, it between the designer and the museum, Gabet exhibition dedicated to French fashion design- didn’t believe that art percolated up from the fascinates people,” he said. said. Koda said “it’s always more fun” to have the er Jean Paul Gaultier in Paris. — AFP photos masses, she believed it trickled down.” What is important in the museum exhibi- artist involved in the exhibit. But he too noted But, Koda admitted to AFP, “she had a very tions, he said, is to include scientific and artistic that “it’s very important for the museum to draw the fashion shows rarely see what a haute cou- loose connection to fact. I think if people saw information. “There has to be a point of view a line” and tell the designer that their work is ture creation looks like,” said Jean-Paul Cluzel, her shows now they would say ‘But there is no and analysis. Otherwise it’s just a marketing being interpreted and “it isn’t your representa- the president of the Grand Palais exhibition hall content!’”. That aspect has changed, as today’s operation.” The collaboration of a designer with tion of your own work. And that’s not nego- in Paris displaying the Gaultier retrospective. public is more sophisticated and knowledge- a museum showing his or her work is valuable, tiable.” He added: “A great art work is some- “Even the very best images, the very best tele- able, the curator said. Now, the focus is on more but contains its own danger of the designer times beyond the intention of the artist.” — AFP

Models present creations by Pakistan designer Abdul Samad at the Fashion Pakistan Fashion Week Week in Karachi. —AFP photos 24 FRIDAY, APRIL 3, 2015

Recipe for black cardamom-orange flourless chocolate cake

A Disneyinspired dessert

By Aarti Sequeira

f delicate green cardamom pods are the queen of spices, black cardamom might Ibe Maleficent. Like the Disney character, the spice is shrouded in a black shell, wrinkled and gnarled, intimidating at first glance and even at first sniff. Unlike green cardamom’s sweet perfume of flowers, pine and lemon, the scent of black cardamom is intense, rooted in smoke, camphor and resin.

Like Maleficent, who apparently only turned to the dark side once her wings were clipped (If the An- gelina Jolie film is to be believed!), I like to think that black cardamom was once a happy flowery little pod before being dried over open flames licking at her husks and turning her dark, funky and smoky. This little missy isn’t an inferior version of the queen of spices, as I’ve heard some people assert. She’s her own personality, thank you very much. Since black cardamom is such an assertive spice, a little goes a long way. And it works especially well in long-cooking preparations, where the full nu- ance of the little pod can express itself. In India, it is used to flavor aromatic curries and some versions of a warm spice mix called garam ma- sala. It’s also found in Chinese cooking and in one of the most famous dishes of Vietnam, pho. In your everyday cooking, you could add a pod to your chili, stew or pot roast. Grind up the seeds and add to a flank steak marinade of cumin, cinnamon, brown sugar and apple cider vinegar. Saute a pod in some ghee or butter before adding rice to make a quick aromatic pilaf. Or, in a highly 25

unorthodox (but nevertheless tasty!) sweet preparation, pair it with some orange juice, cinnamon and chocolate in this gorgeous flourless chocolate cake, a heady way to end your Passover seder.

Ingredients Servings: 12 Coconut oil 1 1/4 cups raw whole almonds (with skins) 3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar, divided 6 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped 4 black cardamom pods 7 green cardamom pods 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon 1/2 cup cocoa powder Juice and zest of 1 large orange (about 1/2 cup juice and 2 teaspoons zest) 6 large eggs, separated Powdered sugar, to dust

Preparation Heat the oven to 350 F. Rub an even coating of coconut oil over the bottom of a 9-inch spring form pan. Place the pan on baking sheet and set aside. In a food processor, combine the almonds and 1/4 cup of the sugar. Process until fine and add the chocolate, then continue to process until a finely milled powder forms. Using a mortar and pestle, pound both variet- ies of cardamom pods until the husks open. Remove and discard the husks, then pound the seeds to a fine powder. Pour into a small bowl. Whisk in the cinnamon, cocoa powder, and the orange juice and zest until smooth. In a medium bowl, whisk the egg yolks with 1/2 cup of the sugar until significantly thickened. Stir in the cocoa mixture and the almond-chocolate mixture. In a large bowl, use an electric mixer to whisk the egg whites and a pinch of salt until soft peaks form. Gradually add the remaining 2 tablespoons of sugar and continue whisking until stiff peaks form. Working in 3 batches, fold the whites into the yolk mixture. Pour the batter into the prepared spring form pan, then place the sheet pan in the middle of the oven. Cook for 40 to 50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted at the centre comes out clean. Cool to room temperature, then run a paring knife around the perimeter of the cake and release the sides of the pan. If desired, dust the cake with powdered sugar, then cut into thin slices and serve.—AP The best free workout apps for your smartphone

ake a look at some of the best workout apps available for mobile devices. Whether you’re a workout beginner or a serious exercise addict, whether you’ve got your own personal gym or nothing more than a dingy gym mat, there’s some- Tthing for you here in our list of 7 of the best free workout apps. Argus (iOS) Challenges by Nexercise (An- If you don’t want another device around your droid, iOS) wrist, Argus is the next best fitness tracker. Con- Challenges turns working-out into a competition stantly running in the background on your iOS among you and your friends. Log your activity, watch device, Argus monitors your steps and calories, your rank rise on the leaderboard and keep up those and you can input nearly any other health and health habits to earn points, prizes and bragging fitness data points you want to track, including rights. If you log it, you can get points for it. Challeng- activity, sleep and food. It also uses the GPS in es has a comprehensive list of activities you can track, your smartphone to automatically track your including aerobics, yoga, housework and playing runs, keeping a map of your daily routes. with pets. And, yes, those prizes are real: Cash in your points for things such as gift cards or headphones. 27

FRIDAY, APRIL 3, 2015

JEFIT (Android, iOS) JEFIT.com’s apps serve as an incredible resource for users looking to do strength training and bodybuilding. Loaded with an exercise database of thousands of routines sorted by targeted body part, it comes complete with detailed instructions, a workout planner, exercise log, progress tracker, numerous timers and options, and synchronization with your JEFIT profile. The free version is ad-supported, while a pro version offers more features and removes advertising.

Johnson & Johnson Official 7 Minute Workout App (Android, iOS) Beginners and veterans alike will appreciate the Johnson & Johnson Official 7 Minute Workout App. The app guides users through the original 7 minute workout, as well as more advanced routines of varying duration and intensity, complete with short videos. A Smart Workout feature can function as your personal trainer. Runtastic Six Pack We also like that users can create their own custom workout routines. Abs (Android, iOS) Runtastic Six Pack Abs is designed to guide you through a 10 week long workout routine designed to sculpt that perfect set of six pack abs you’ve always craved. The app contains a wide variety of workout routines, complete with animated male and female avatars to guide you through the proper form of each exercise. In addition, there are adjustable difficulty levels, and the option to create custom workout plans tailored to target areas, weight loss goals or daily schedules. The app features additional sync options with MyFitnessPal and Runtastic.

FitStar (iOS) FitStar functions as your personalized digital training coach, adapting its exercise routines to match your physical capability, carefully calibrating workouts to be challenging without being too difficult. Users can configure their ideal exercise duration and workout goals, and the app will whip up a workout session for you. Once done, you can rate the difficulty of the workout, allowing the app to slowly learn and adapt to your workout capacity, challenging you without Fitocracy (Android, iOS) breaking your body. The social network for exercise junkies, Fitocracy uses a combina- tion of gamification and peer pressure to encourage your exercise habits. Users can look up exercise routines and then log them in to score points, level up and gain achievements, all of which is displayed in a social media stream that other Fitocrats can view, comment on and share, and otherwise encourage. Signing up at the Fitocracy website also provides data syncing between the Web app and mobile, as well as the option to automatically post your updates to Twitter or Facebook. -- ( www.tomsguide.com) FRIDAY,APRIL 3, 2015

great

reasonsto see Europe before

theining to explore Europe summer but intending to wait for the sun? PThink again: the crowds might arrive in spring and reach full swell midsummer, but European travel in the cooler months is superb timing for off-season prices and local flavor. Travel FRIDAY,APRIL29 3, 2015

1. Off-season bargains The rush for Christmas and New Year flights is long gone so there are deals galore as typically ‘summery’ destinations snooze through their off-peak season. It’s a great time to make an offer on a holiday bidding site like Priceline.com or to scour the usual favorites like TravelZoo, Expedia and Opodo. A number of sites, like OffSeason.com and CheapTickets.com, scoop up all the off-season travel deals in one place, so snagging a deal is like shooting fish in a barrel.

2. Jump in, the weather’s fine Southern Europe laughs in the face of Jack Frost. Plenty of European destinations are still balmy before spring, like southern Spain, the south of France, Sicily, Cyprus and Crete. Contact the relevant tourist office and ask for the stats if you have weather worries. And if you need your dose of vitamin D, get the info on daylight hours in your destination from EuroMeteo.com. Warm destinations won’t swelter as they do during their summer peak, so you can see the ruins of ancient Greece without risking sunstroke and you won’t have to avoid beaches during the midday sun. Time for another ouzo, then.

3. Don’t fear the frost But there’s no need to chase the sun, as lashings of rain and snow give added charisma to Europe’s classic city destinations. Who could fail to be moved by an icy glaze on the turrets of Europe’s castles? And what could elicit more envy than snapshots of romantic Budapest under a smattering of snow? Wrap up in layers and embrace the cooler weather.

4. Get some elbow room If your travel photos are usually invaded by hordes of other tourists, spare yourself the time Photoshopping them out and travel in winter for a crowd-free view. Big-hitting destinations are open for business, but in winter more of the streets will be yours: that means fewer pairs of sandaled feet pacing La Rambla and less jostling for a view of La Sagrada Família. Over in France, the major sights in Provence favorite, Avignon, are still open for business so you can pose on the famous ‘Pont St-Bénézet’ and gawp at the immense Palais des Papes. Travel FRIDAY,APRIL30 3, 2015

5. Live like a local Without so many tourists flocking into their prettiest piazzas, life returns to normal in many tourist hotspots. And as locals’ guard comes down, all the better to people-watch. Try stomp- Make your European travels a ing into a warm Parisian brasserie to see chic locals shake their umbrellas (and wring out their soggy pet poodles). Or maybe you’d prefer to eavesdrop on Londoners as they endlessly discuss breeze by heeding these warnings weather reports with that quintessentially British air of gloom. Road to nowhere: Ferries, buses and train routes can 6. Winter madness slow down or come to a complete stop over winter. Don’t Why not unleash your daring side by timing your trip to coin- pin your hopes on island-hopping Croatia or railroading cide with one of Europe’s hedonistic winter events? Something across Russia before you check whether the routes will about being cooped up indoors unleashes the wild side in Euro- operate. peans and it’d be rude not to join in the chaos. Scandinavians leap Hammering in your head: Hotels sometimes use the into ice-cold lakes as part of their sauna regime, Sicilians explode low season to renovate their properties. If you want to be in a riot of color for the Feast of San Sebastiano, and Croatia’s sure you’ll avoid a noisy night, check online reviews for February festivals are a spectacle of giddy mayhem (particularly mentions of building works, or be bold and ask the hotel raucous in Rijeka). outright. Closed for business: Hotels, museums and galleries 7. Cuddle up sometimes give themselves a hard-earned rest after the Unless you’re hunting the Northern Lights or riding husky hubbub of high season, so call ahead or check the web- dogs across a frozen plain, Scandinavia might seem like a crazy site before you rock up. choice for cold weather. A Stockholm city breaks with short hours of daylight? Traipsing up to Tromsø for dark skies and gloomy museums? But in Scandinavia, the colder it is, the most tempting the cozy comforts. March your rain-battled self to a Finnish sauna, snuggle into one of Gothenburg’s beautiful cafes with a sinful hot chocolate, or head to Denmark to experience ‘hygge’, an untrans- latable phenomenon akin to coziness and goodwill. —www. lonelyplanet.com Leisure FRIDAY, APRIL 3, 2015

WORD SEARCH PUZZLE 71. (used with singular count nouns) Colloquial for `not a' or `not one' or `never a'. CROSSWORD861 72. A brief description given for purposes of identification. 73. A ruler of the Inca Empire (or a member of his family). 76. A platform raised above the surrounding level to give prominence to the person on it. 77. Gone by. 78. Not changed by editing. 82. A zodiacal constellation in northern hemisphere between Cancer and Virgo. 83. Of a light yellowish-brown color n 1. 84. Extreme malnutrition and emaciation (especially in children). 85. Bulky grayish-brown eagle with a short wedge-shaped white tail.

DOWN 1. Common perennial aromatic herb native to Eurasia having buttonlike yellow flower heads and bitter-tasting pinnate leaves sometimes used medicinally. 2. With rapid movements. 3. United States naval officer and historian (1840-1914). 4. Having or showing profound knowledge. 5. Hormones (estrogen and progestin) are given to postmenopausal women. 6. A sharp high-pitched cry (especially by a dog). 7. After noon. 8. Rub elbows with. 9. Divisible by two. 10. A starch made by leaching and drying the root of the cassava plant. 11. American prizefighter who won the world heavyweight championship ACROSS three times (born in 1942). 1. Flat and uninspiring. 12. A special way of doing something. 5. Bleeding into the interior chamber of the eye. 13. (Norse mythology) One of the Aesir known for his beauty and skill with 12. The central part of a car wheel (or fan or propeller etc) through which bow and skis. the shaft or axle passes. 14. Common Indian weaverbird. 15. South American armadillo with three bands of bony plates. 19. The slender spear of the Bantu-speaking people of Africa. 16. The act of removing. 21. Someone who guards prisoners. 17. A flat wing-shaped process or winglike part of an organism. 26. A trivalent metallic element of the rare earth group. 18. A member of any of various Indian peoples of central Mexico. 28. Individual serving of minced e.g. meat or fish in a rich creamy sauce 20. In a benign manner. 22. A large number or amount. baked in a small pastry mold or timbale shell. 31. Greek lyric poet of Lesbos. Yesterday’s Solution 23. 100 penni equal 1 markka. 24. A city in northern India. 32. An extensive grassy and nearly treeless plain (especially in Latin 25. A Russian river. America). 27. A member of the Siouan people inhabiting the valleys of the Platte and 33. Not contained in or deriving from the essential nature of something. Missouri rivers in Nebraska. 34. (the feminine of raja) A Hindu princess or the wife of a raja. 29. A mountain lake (especially one formed by glaciers). 36. The activity of persuading someone to buy. 30. (biology) Relating to or produced by or containing bacilli. 37. A diacritical mark (u-curved) placed over a vowel to indicate a short 35. A member of a Turkic people of Uzbekistan and neighboring areas. sound. 38. A rare silvery (usually trivalent) metallic element. 39. A silvery ductile metallic element found primarily in bauxite. 40. Any of the radiating leaflike spore-producing structures on the under- 43. Having undesirable or negative qualities. side of the cap of a mushroom or similar fungus. 45. Essential oil or perfume obtained from flowers. 41. (Irish) The sea personified. 48. An encircling or ringlike structure. 42. The blood group whose red cells carry both the A and B antigens. 49. A very prickly woody vine of the eastern United States growing in tan- 44. Resinlike substance secreted by certain lac insects. gled masses having tough round stems with shiny leathery leaves and 46. That part of the central nervous system that includes all the higher small greenish flowers followed by clusters of inedible shiny black berries. nervous centers. 51. Cubes of meat marinated and cooked on a skewer usually with vegeta- 47. Resembling or characteristic of or appropriate to an elegy. bles. 50. The basic unit of money in Bangladesh. 56. Lacking either stimulating or irritating characteristics. 52. (meaning literally `born') Used to indicate the maiden or family name 58. A complex carbohydrate found chiefly in seeds, fruits, tubers, roots and of a married woman. stem pith of plants, notably in corn, potatoes, wheat, and rice. 53. Being six more than forty. 60. A landlocked republic in central Africa. 54. An official prosecutor for a judicial district. 62. A Bantu language spoken by the Chaga people in northern Tanzania. 55. The largest tarsal bone. 66. A river that rises in central Germany and flows north to join the Elbe 57. A period marked by distinctive character or reckoned from a fixed River. point or event. 67. A person who weeps. 59. United States operatic soprano (1903-1972). 68. A Chinese green tea with twisted leaves. 61. An international organization of European countries formed after 70. Very dark black. World War II to reduce trade barriers and increase cooperation among its 74. An alliance made up of states that had been Soviet Socialist Republics members. in the Soviet Union prior to its dissolution in Dec 1991. 63. Diabetes caused by a relative or absolute deficiency of insulin and 75. A unit of pressure. characterized by polyuria. 79. A silvery soft waxy metallic element of the alkali metal group. 64. A city in northwestern Turkey. 80. A bivalent and trivalent metallic element of the rare earth group. 65. United States writer (born in Poland) who wrote in Yiddish (1880-1957). 81. An honorary degree in science. 69. Snapping turtles.

Daily SuDoku Yesterday’s Solution Yesterday’s Solution TV listings FRIDAY, APRIL 3, 2015

08:55 Dukes Of Haggle 19:05 Food Factory 20:45 H2O: Just Add Water 06:00 Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives 23:45 May The Best House Win 09:20 Storage Wars Canada 19:30 How It’s Made: Dream Cars 21:10 Austin & Ally 06:30 Siba’s Table 09:45 How It’s Made 19:55 How It’s Made: Dream Cars 21:35 Jessie 07:00 Roadtrip With G. Garvin 10:10 How It’s Made 20:20 Joe Rogan Questions 22:00 Gravity Falls 07:30 Roadtrip With G. Garvin 10:35 Street Outlaws Everything 22:25 Sabrina: Secrets Of A Teenage 08:00 Chopped 00:45 Eastenders 11:25 American Muscle 21:10 How Do They Do It? Witch 09:00 Barefoot Contessa - Back To 01:10 Doctors 12:15 American Muscle 21:35 How Do They Do It? 22:50 Sabrina: Secrets Of A Teenage Basics 01:40 Stella 13:05 Storage Hunters 22:00 How It’s Made: Dream Cars Witch 09:30 Farm Kings 00:00 Dogtown 02:25 Waking The Dead 13:30 Dukes Of Haggle 22:25 How It’s Made: Dream Cars 23:10 Wolfblood 10:30 The Big Eat... 01:00 Situation Critical 03:20 Waking The Dead 13:55 Storage Wars Canada 22:50 Joe Rogan Questions 23:35 Wolfblood 11:00 Mexican Made Easy 02:00 Is It Real? 04:15 The Weakest Link 14:20 Yukon Men Everything 11:30 Chopped 03:00 Brave New World 05:00 Teletubbies 15:10 Wheeler Dealers 23:40 How It’s Made 12:30 Siba’s Table 04:00 Big, Bigger, Biggest 05:25 Show Me Show Me 16:00 Fast N’ Loud 13:00 Guy’s Big Bite 05:00 America’s Lost Treasures 05:45 Boogie Beebies 16:50 How It’s Made 13:30 Guy’s Big Bite 06:00 Bob Ballard Specials 06:00 Charlie And Lola 17:15 How It’s Made 14:00 Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives 07:00 World’s Deadliest Animals 06:15 Teletubbies 17:40 Dive Wars Australia 00:00 Fashion Bloggers 14:30 Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives 08:00 Dogtown 06:40 Show Me Show Me 18:30 Fast N’ Loud 00:30 Christina Milian Turned Up 15:00 Guy’s Grocery Games 09:00 Situation Critical 07:00 Boogie Beebies 19:20 Misfit Garage 00:55 Extreme Close-Up 16:00 Chopped 10:00 Is It Real? 07:15 The Weakest Link 20:10 Dukes Of Haggle 01:25 Kourtney And Khloe Take The 17:00 Guy’s Big Bite 11:00 Family Guns 08:00 My Hero 20:35 Storage Wars Canada Hamptons 17:30 Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives 12:00 Alaska Wing Men 08:30 Twenty Twelve 21:00 Fast N’ Loud 00:00 Violetta 02:20 E! News 18:00 Siba’s Table 13:00 World’s Deadliest Animals 09:00 Eastenders 21:50 Misfit Garage 00:45 The Hive 03:15 Giuliana & Bill 18:30 The Big Eat... 14:00 Banged Up Abroad 09:30 Doctors 22:40 Wheeler Dealers 00:50 Sabrina: Secrets Of A Teenage 04:10 THS 19:00 Chopped 15:00 Convoy: War For The Atlantic 10:00 Hitler On Trial: The Story 23:30 Dive Wars Australia Witch 05:05 THS 20:00 Guy’s Grocery Games 16:00 Armageddon Outfitters Behind The Film 01:15 Sabrina: Secrets Of A Teenage 06:00 Keeping Up With The 21:00 BBQ Crawl 17:00 Animal Mega Moves 10:50 My Family Witch Kardashians 21:30 BBQ Crawl 18:00 Wild Russia 11:20 The Weakest Link 01:40 Wolfblood 06:55 Keeping Up With The 22:00 Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives 19:00 Convoy: War For The Atlantic 12:05 My Hero 02:05 Wolfblood Kardashians 22:30 Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives 20:00 Armageddon Outfitters 12:35 Twenty Twelve 02:30 Violetta 07:50 Style Star 23:00 Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives 21:00 Animal Mega Moves 13:05 Eastenders 03:15 The Hive 08:20 E! News 23:30 Chopped 22:00 Wild Russia 13:35 Doctors 00:05 How It’s Made 03:20 Sabrina: Secrets Of A Teenage 09:15 Giuliana & Bill 23:00 Family Guns 14:05 Hamlet 00:30 The World’s Strangest UFO Witch 10:15 E!ES 17:10 My Family Stories 03:45 Sabrina: Secrets Of A Teenage 11:10 E!ES 17:40 Doctors 01:20 Through The Wormhole With Witch 12:05 E! News 18:10 Casualty Morgan Freeman 04:10 Wolfblood 13:05 #RichKids Of Beverly Hills 19:05 Dara O Briain Live From The 13:35 #RichKids Of Beverly Hills 02:10 How Do They Do It? 04:35 Wolfblood 00:35 Midsomer Murders Theatre Royal 14:05 Fashion Bloggers 02:35 How Do They Do It? 05:00 Violetta 02:00 Emmerdale 20:00 Silent Witness 14:30 Fashion Bloggers 00:30 The Daily Show With Jon 03:00 Food Factory 05:45 The Hive 02:25 Emmerdale 21:40 Ideal 15:00 House Of DVF Stewart 03:24 Food Factory 05:50 Mouk 02:55 Coronation Street 22:10 The Michael McIntyre Chat 16:00 Keeping Up With The 01:00 Hot In Cleveland 03:48 Rise Of The Machines 06:00 Dog With A Blog 03:25 The Chase: Celebrity Specials Show Kardashians 01:30 Family Guy 04:36 Rise Of The Machines 06:25 Binny And The Ghost 04:20 Tricked 22:55 Pramface 17:00 Keeping Up With The 02:00 Brickleberry 05:24 Prank Science 06:50 Girl Meets World 05:15 The Chase 23:25 The Weakest Link Kardashians 02:30 South Park 05:48 Gadget Show - World Tour 07:15 H2O: Just Add Water 06:00 Midsomer Murders 18:00 E! News 03:00 Community 06:12 Food Factory 07:40 Jessie 07:30 The Chase: Celebrity Specials 19:00 THS 03:30 Baby Daddy 06:36 How Do They Do It? 08:05 Wizards Of Waverly Place 08:25 Tricked 20:00 Giuliana & Bill 04:00 Two And A Half Men 07:00 Prank Science 08:30 Austin & Ally 09:20 Martin Clunes: Heavy 21:00 Fashion Bloggers 04:30 The Tonight Show Starring 07:50 The Science Of Star Wars 08:55 Dog With A Blog Horsepower 21:30 Fashion Bloggers Jimmy Fallon 08:40 Food Factory 09:20 Binny And The Ghost 10:15 May The Best House Win 22:00 E! News 06:00 Til Death 09:05 How It’s Made 09:45 Girl Meets World 11:10 Emmerdale 23:00 Christina Milian Turned Up 06:30 My Boys 09:30 Rise Of The Machines 10:10 Liv And Maddie 11:35 Emmerdale 00:10 The Little Paris Kitchen 10:20 Rise Of The Machines 10:35 The Little Mermaid 23:30 Christina Milian Turned Up 07:00 Late Night With Seth Meyers 12:00 Coronation Street 08:00 Two And A Half Men 00:40 Masterchef: The Professionals 11:10 How Do They Do It? 11:55 Sofia The First 12:30 The Chase 01:30 Bargain Hunt 11:35 How Do They Do It? 12:15 Sofia The First: The Floating 09:00 Community 13:15 May The Best House Win 09:30 Black-Ish 02:20 Come Dine With Me 12:00 Prank Science Palace 14:05 Midsomer Murders 02:45 Phil Spencer: Secret Agent 12:25 Gadget Show - World Tour 13:05 Good Luck Charlie 10:00 Parks And Recreation 15:35 The Jonathan Ross Show 10:30 My Boys 03:35 The Little Paris Kitchen 12:50 Superships 13:30 Dog With A Blog 16:30 Who’s Doing The Dishes 04:00 Tareq Taylor’s Nordic Cookery 13:40 Food Factory 13:55 Gravity Falls 11:00 The Tonight Show Starring 17:25 Kate Middleton: Heir We Go Jimmy Fallon 04:30 Masterchef: The Professionals 14:05 How It’s Made 14:20 H2O: Just Add Water Again! 00:30 Guy’s Big Bite 12:00 Til Death 05:20 Bargain Hunt 14:30 Rise Of The Machines 14:55 Liv And Maddie 18:20 The Chase 01:00 Best In Chow 12:30 Two And A Half Men 06:10 Phil Spencer: Secret Agent 15:20 Rise Of The Machines 15:20 Binny And The Ghost 19:10 Coronation Street 01:30 Best In Chow 13:00 My Boys 07:00 Bargain Hunt 16:10 How Do They Do It? 15:45 Hank Zipzer 19:35 The Jonathan Ross Show 02:00 Siba’s Table: Fast Feasts 13:30 My Boys 07:55 Come Dine With Me 16:35 How Do They Do It? 16:10 Violetta 20:30 Who’s Doing The Dishes 02:30 Siba’s Table 14:00 Baby Daddy 08:20 Phil Spencer: Secret Agent 17:00 Through The Wormhole With 17:00 The Little Mermaid 21:25 Kate Middleton: Heir We Go 03:00 Guy’s Big Bite 14:30 Black-Ish 09:05 Michela’s Classic Italian Morgan Freeman 18:40 Liv And Maddie Again! 03:30 Guy’s Grocery Games 15:00 Parks And Recreation 09:35 Extreme Makeover: Home 17:50 How It’s Made 19:05 H2O: Just Add Water 22:20 Coronation Street 04:30 Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives 15:30 The Daily Show With Jon Edition 18:15 How It’s Made 19:30 Violetta 22:50 Emmerdale 05:00 Chopped Stewart 10:15 Masterchef: The Professionals 18:40 Food Factory 20:20 Binny And The Ghost 23:15 Emmerdale 11:10 Nigel Slater’s Simple Cooking 16:00 Hot In Cleveland 11:35 Bargain Hunt 17:00 Late Night With Seth Meyers 12:25 Come Dine With Me 18:00 Last Man Standing 12:50 Phil Spencer: Secret Agent 18:30 New Girl 13:40 Michela’s Classic Italian 19:00 Black-Ish 14:10 Extreme Makeover: Home 19:30 Parks And Recreation Edition 20:00 The Tonight Show Starring 14:50 Nigel Slater’s Simple Cooking Jimmy Fallon 15:15 Masterchef: The Professionals 21:00 The Daily Show With Jon 16:10 Bargain Hunt Stewart 17:00 Come Dine With Me 21:30 Hot In Cleveland 17:25 Phil Spencer: Secret Agent 22:00 You’re The Worst 18:15 DIY SOS: The Big Build 22:30 You’re The Worst 19:10 Come Dine With Me: South 23:00 South Park Africa 23:30 Late Night With Seth Meyers 20:00 Nigellissima 20:25 Masterchef: The Professionals 20:55 Nigel Slater’s Simple Cooking 21:20 Bargain Hunt 22:10 Come Dine With Me 08:00 C.S.I. 22:35 Planet Cake 12:00 Emmerdale 23:00 DIY SOS: The Big Build 14:00 C.S.I. 23:55 Come Dine With Me: South 16:00 Emmerdale Africa 18:00 C.S.I. 19:00 Once Upon A Time 20:00 Grey’s Anatomy 21:00 American Idol 22:00 Survivor: Worlds Apart 23:00 Hannibal

00:20 Fast N’ Loud 01:10 Street Outlaws 02:00 American Muscle 02:50 American Muscle 01:00 Good Morning America 03:40 Storage Hunters 03:00 Grimm 04:05 Dukes Of Haggle 04:00 The Strain 04:30 Storage Wars Canada 05:00 Good Morning America 05:00 How It’s Made 07:00 Emmerdale 05:30 How It’s Made 09:00 Parenthood 06:00 Yukon Men 10:00 Emmerdale 06:50 Wheeler Dealers 12:00 Sleepy Hollow 07:40 Fast N’ Loud 13:00 The Fosters 08:30 Storage Hunters Riddick OSN MOVIES PREMIERE HD 14:00 Live Good Morning America TV listings FRIDAY, APRIL 3, 2015

16:00 Parenthood 17:00 Sleepy Hollow 18:00 The Fosters 19:00 Parenthood 20:00 Sleepy Hollow 21:00 The Fosters 22:00 Grimm 23:00 The Strain

00:00 Aliens 02:30 April Rain 04:15 Hunt To Kill 06:00 Hellboy: Sword Of Storms 08:00 Mission To Mars 10:00 Judge Dredd 12:00 Hunt To Kill 14:00 Stash House 16:00 Mission To Mars 18:00 The Sanctuary 20:00 Judge Dredd 22:00 R.I.P.D.

00:30 April Rain-18 02:15 Hunt To Kill-PG15 04:00 Hellboy: Sword Of Storms-PG 06:00 Mission To Mars-PG15 08:00 Judge Dredd-PG15 10:00 Hunt To Kill-PG15 12:00 Stash House-PG15 14:00 Mission To Mars-PG15 16:00 The Sanctuary-PG15 18:00 Judge Dredd-PG15 20:00 R.I.P.D.-PG15 22:00 Iron Man-PG15

00:00 Your Love Never Fails 02:00 13 Going On 30 04:00 The Big Wedding 06:00 Blazing Saddles 08:00 Austenland MISSION TO MARS ON OSN MOVIES ACTION HD 10:00 13 Going On 30 12:00 The Adventures Of Rocky And Bullwinkle 21:00 Planes: Fire And Rescue-PG 14:00 PGA Tour 12:15 Say Yes To The Dress: The Big 15:05 Who On Earth Did I Marry? 09:00 Limon And Oli 14:00 28 Days 23:00 Delivery Man-PG15 19:00 Super Rugby Highlights Day (Specials) 15:30 American Greed 09:15 Jake And The Never Land 16:00 Austenland 20:00 Golfing World 13:05 Brides Of Beverly Hills 16:20 I Was Murdered Pirates 18:00 Madea’s Witness Protection 22:00 Live PGA Tour 13:30 Brides Of Beverly Hills 16:45 Stalked: Someone’s 09:40 Doc McStuffins 20:00 Grown Ups 2 13:55 Something Borrowed, Watching 10:05 Art Attack 22:00 John Dies At The End Something New 17:10 Murder Shift 10:35 Mickey Mouse Clubhouse 14:20 Something Borrowed, 18:00 Disappeared 11:00 Sofia The First Something New 18:50 Fatal Encounters 11:25 Sheriff Callie’s Wild West 01:00 Pim And Pom: The Big 14:45 Randy To The Rescue 19:40 Forensic Detectives 11:50 Calimero Adventure 01:30 NHL 15:35 Say Yes To The Dress: The Big 20:30 On The Case With Paula 12:05 Jake And The Never Land 02:45 Garfield’s Fun Fest 03:30 Premier League Darts Day (Specials) Zahn Pirates 04:30 Los Campeones De LA Lucha 07:00 World Rugby 01:15 Knife Fight-PG15 16:25 Brides Of Beverly Hills 21:20 The Will: Family Secrets 12:30 Limon And Oli Libre 08:00 Live NRL Premiership 03:00 Empire State-PG15 16:50 Brides Of Beverly Hills Revealed 12:40 Henry Hugglemonster 06:00 Casper’s Scare School 10:00 Volvo Ocean Race Highlights 05:00 The Last Harbor-PG15 17:15 Something Borrowed, 12:55 Handy Manny 08:00 The Happets 12:30 Live NRL Premiership 07:00 The Glass Man-PG15 Something New 13:05 Justin Time 10:00 Spiderwick Chronicles 14:30 Super Rugby 09:00 Grace Of Monaco-PG15 17:40 Something Borrowed, 13:20 Sofia The First 11:45 Barbie In The 12 Dancing 19:00 WWE Bottomline 11:00 The Last Harbor-PG15 Something New 13:45 Mickey Mouse Clubhouse Princesses 20:00 WWE Superstars 13:00 Return To Nim’s Island-PG 18:05 Randy To The Rescue 14:10 Sheriff Callie’s Wild West 13:15 Garfield’s Fun Fest 21:00 WWE Main Event 15:00 Now You See Me-PG15 18:55 Cake Boss 14:35 Julius Jr. 14:45 Barbie In The Nutcracker 22:00 Live Super League 17:00 Grace Of Monaco-PG15 19:20 19 Kids And Counting 14:45 Jake And The Never Land 16:15 Happily N’Ever After 2: Snow 19:45 19 Kids And Counting Pirates 19:00 Haunter-PG15 00:10 Zou White 20:10 Kate Plus 8 15:15 Doc McStuffins 21:00 At Middleton-PG15 00:25 Mouk 18:00 Spiderwick Chronicles 21:00 19 Kids And Counting 15:40 Limon And Oli 23:00 Joe-18 00:35 Jungle Junction 20:00 Dino Time 21:25 19 Kids And Counting 15:55 Zou 00:50 Art Attack 22:00 Barbie In The 12 Dancing 21:50 Kate Plus 8 16:05 Justin Time 20:00 ICC World Cup H/L:PAK v ZIM 01:15 Julius Jr. Princesses 22:40 Extreme Couponing All-Stars 16:20 Sofia The First 21:00 ICC Cricket 360 01:25 Calimero 23:30 Happily N’Ever After 2: Snow 23:05 Mob Wives 16:50 Mickey Mouse Clubhouse 21:30 ICC World Cup H/L : 1ST Semi 01:40 Henry Hugglemonster White 23:55 Mob Wives 17:15 Lilo & Stitch Final 01:50 Zou 17:40 Adventures Of The Gummi 22:30 ICC World Cup H/L : 2ND 02:05 Mouk 01:45 Jennifer Eight Bears Semi Final 02:15 Jungle Junction 04:00 Escape From Polygamy 18:05 Chip n Dale Rescue 23:30 ICC World Cup H/L: Final 02:25 Art Attack 05:45 Promised Land Rangers 02:50 Julius Jr. 07:30 Searching For Sugar Man 18:30 Ducktales 03:00 Calimero 09:00 The Great Train Robbery 19:00 Art Attack 00:00 Quartet-PG15 03:15 Henry Hugglemonster 11:00 Jack And The Cuckoo Clock 19:25 Sofia The First 02:00 Summoned-PG15 03:25 Zou Heart 19:55 Calimero 04:00 Killer Reality-PG15 03:40 Mouk 13:00 Promised Land 00:40 Dates From Hell 20:10 Limon And Oli 06:00 Tinker Bell And The Pirate 03:50 Jungle Junction 15:00 Up Close And Personal 01:05 Dates From Hell 20:25 Jake And The Never Land Fairy-FAM 04:00 Art Attack 17:30 The Great Train Robbery 01:30 Deadly Sins Pirates 08:00 Percy Jackson: Sea Of 00:45 Oprah’s Lifeclass 04:25 Julius Jr. 19:30 The Damned United 02:20 I Almost Got Away With It 20:50 Mickey Mouse Clubhouse Monsters-PG 01:35 Extreme Couponing All-Stars 04:35 Calimero 21:30 The Happening 03:10 Deadly Affairs 21:20 Minnie’s Bow-Toons 10:00 Marvel’s The Invincible Iron 02:00 Mob Wives 04:50 Henry Hugglemonster 23:30 American Gangster 04:00 I Almost Got Away With It 21:25 Sofia The First Man-PG 02:50 Say Yes To The Dress 05:00 Zou 04:45 Dates From Hell 21:50 Adventures Of The Gummi 12:00 Killer Reality-PG15 03:15 Little People, Big World 05:15 Mouk 05:07 Dates From Hell Bears 14:00 High Moon-PG15 03:40 Ballroom Blitz 05:25 Jungle Junction 05:30 Deadly Sins 22:20 Chip n Dale Rescue 16:00 Percy Jackson: Sea Of 04:30 Cake Boss 05:35 Art Attack 06:20 True CSI Rangers Monsters-PG 05:00 Sister Wives 06:00 Julius Jr. 07:10 American Greed 22:45 Ducktales 18:00 Last Passenger-PG15 06:00 17 Kids And Counting 06:10 Calimero 01:00 Rage-PG15 08:00 Nightmare Next Door 23:15 Art Attack 20:00 Lone Survivor-PG15 06:25 Cake Boss 06:25 Henry Hugglemonster 03:00 Philomena-PG15 08:50 Fatal Encounters 23:40 Limon And Oli 22:15 Riddick-18 06:50 Cake Boss 06:35 Zou 05:00 Between Us-PG15 09:40 Murder Shift 23:55 Henry Hugglemonster 07:15 Cake Boss 06:50 Mouk 07:00 Beast Of The Bering Sea- 10:30 I Was Murdered DISNEY XD 07:40 Cake Boss 07:00 Jungle Junction PG15 10:55 Stalked: Someone’s 00:00 Programmes Start At 08:05 Jo Frost’s Family SOS 07:10 Art Attack 09:00 Epic-PG Watching 7:00am KSA 08:55 Jo Frost’s Family SOS 07:35 Julius Jr. 10:45 The Hobbit: The Desolation Of 11:20 Forensic Detectives 07:00 Phineas And Ferb 09:45 Hoarding: Buried Alive 07:45 Calimero Smaug-PG 01:30 Super League 12:10 American Greed 07:25 Phineas And Ferb 10:35 Hoarding: Buried Alive 08:00 Jungle Junction 13:30 Free Birds-PG 03:30 PGA Tour 13:00 Disappeared 07:50 Supa Strikas 11:25 Say Yes To The Dress â€“ 08:10 Zou 15:15 White House Down-PG15 07:00 Golfing World 13:50 On The Case With Paula 08:15 The 7D Bridesmaids 08:25 Henry Hugglemonster 17:30 Epic-PG 08:00 ICC Cricket 360 Zahn 08:40 Ultimate Spider-Man 11:50 Say Yes To The Dress â€“ 08:35 Julius Jr. 19:15 Moms’ Night Out-PG 09:00 Live Super Rugby 14:40 Who On Earth Did I Marry? 09:05 Lab Rats 11:30 Live Super Rugby Bridesmaids 08:50 Calimero Stars FRIDAY, APRIL 3, 2015

COUNTRY CODES Aries (March 21-April 19) Libra (September 23-October 22) Any kind of work that requires precise thinking and concentra- Afghanistan 0093 Lithuania 00370 Albania 00355 Luxembourg 00352 tion will have your attention for this wednesday. Do not let all this concentra- Your success in solving problems this wednesday is like magic. You may be requested to solve problems in a special situation. Your ability to Algeria 00213 Macau 00853 tion isolate you from others, however, or make you feel lonely. Take care to Andorra 00376 Macedonia 00389 include yourself in some activity that is full of pleasant communication. A con- navigate difficulties is quite good. Taxes may prove less taxing than usual this Angola 00244 Madagascar 00261 flict at work could be resolved this thursday. This friday is a time when your month. A current project in the workplace deserves investigation this thursday. Anguilla 001264 Majorca 0034 powers of creativity are great, making your problem solving abilities above If it does not seem to be a positive move–do a bit of research and ask questions. Antiga 001268 Malawi 00265 others. This, however, is not a good time to make any concrete decisions Self-discipline and a sense of self-worth become important issues in your life as Argentina 0054 Malaysia 0060 about a business deal. Positive energies are coming–patience and logic pre- a new phase begins now. Kick back and relax this evening. Being in the spot- Armenia 00374 Maldives 00960 vails. Although some of your energy needs direction, you seem confident and light is common to you but you are careful to be humble and see where your Australia 0061 Mali 00223 optimistic this saturday. Feeling good about yourself does wonders for your talents can best help others this friday. You should enjoy great success and Austria 0043 Malta 00356 overall attitude. Budgeting, caution and discrimination with money are wise attention through your profession. Your personal development does not go Bahamas 001242 Marshall Islands 00692 choices now. unnoticed as others compliment you on your progress this saturday. Bahrain 00973 Martinique 00596 Bangladesh 00880 Mauritania 00222 Barbados 001246 Mauritius 00230 Belarus 00375 Mayotte 00269 Belgium 0032 Mexico 0052 Belize 00501 Micronesia 00691 Taurus (April 20-May 20) Scorpio (October 23-November 21) Benin 00229 Moldova 00373 Bermuda 001441 Monaco 00377 Your confidence is high, making this a super day to deal with Bhutan 00975 Mongolia 00976 others. This wednesday is also a good time to lead the way on a project–for Projects that need finishing can be handled efficiently this Bolivia 00591 Montserrat 001664 your originality is finely tuned. If you should get a group together, everyone wednesday. If you have been considering a new business venture, this is an Bosnia 00387 Morocco 00212 will feel a mutual benefit. A lunchtime ending in a bit of exercise will help to exceptional day to begin. It is also a good day for travel. Loved ones, children and Botswana 00267 Mozambique 00258 other people or things dear to your heart might help you decide on the travel keep your energies in balance this thursday. You return to work this after- Brazil 0055 Myanmar (Burma) 0095 destination. If others challenge you this thursday, be prepared with an account- noon to handle matters in a quick and efficient manner. There are construc- Brunei 00673 Namibia 00264 ing of the tasks that you have accomplished particularly well. Things that are not Bulgaria 00359 Nepal 00977 tive conversations with friends and co-workers after work–giving you ideas working well now are likely to become unglued. Fix them. While family members to ponder. The lack of work in the office this friday could be a test to see who Burkina 00226 Netherlands 0031 are busy this afternoon, do your city a favor and buy a package of wildflower Burundi 00257 Netherlands Antilles 00599 will create new business. Look for ways to increase business–even if you have seeds to sprinkle around your town–nature will do the rest. This friday you may to ask. Feeling good about yourself does wonders for your attitude this satur- Cambodia 00855 New Caledonia 00687 be encouraged to spend a considerable amount of time and effort to improve Cameroon 00237 New Zealand 0064 day. People that have showed little or no support for you in the past will now finances. It is important that you play a big part in family decisions this saturday– give you help. Your support system is more secure. Canada 001 Nicaragua 00505 patience. Cape Verde 00238 Nigar 00227 Cayman Islands 001345 Nigeria 00234 Central African 00236 Niue 00683 Chad 00235 Norfolk Island 00672 Chile 0056 N. Ireland (UK) 0044 Gemini (May 21-June 20) Sagittarius (November 22-December 21) China 0086 North Korea 00850 Colombia 0057 Norway 0047 This wednesday is an easy, relaxed sort of day–particularly if Your attitude for this wednesday is that everything’s coming Comoros 00269 Oman 00968 you avoid excesses. You are inclined to expect that the world will come to up roses and optimism rules the day. Life is for living and you cannot wait to Congo 00242 Pakistan 0092 you–do not expect too much. There is a line between relaxation and laziness. partake of all those new and rewarding experiences that are waiting to Cook Islands 00682 Palau 00680 Learning and communicating are important to you; perhaps research would enthrall you! Do not go overboard, but have fun! When you discover the Costa Rica 00506 Panama 00507 specifics of a special request from a customer this thursday, you will be able to Croatia 00385 Papua New Guinea 00675 be something to consider this thursday. Your professional life calls for you to Cuba 0053 Paraguay 00595 be especially dynamic and assertive. This friday is a good time to accomplish produce just the right product that fits the requirement that is needed. Asking Cyprus 00357 Peru 0051 many work projects. Parental instincts may come to the forefront tonight and questions in order to help a customer is a wise move and that humble attitude Cyprus (Northern) 0090392 Philippines 0063 you make every effort to appease any discordance in the home. You have a of yours is a sure thing that will gain the confidence of a new customer. Czech Republic 00420 Poland 0048 strong wish to make your surroundings as pleasant as possible. Many distrac- Whatever feelings underscore your life, will be felt more strongly this friday. If Denmark 0045 Portugal 00351 tions this saturday cause any number of frustrations. Keep your sense of you are going through a particularly trying time, this period could produce Diego Garcia 00246 Puerto Rico 001787 humor and ask the next person that interrupts you to take a number–you are low energy temporarily. Mischievous behavior this saturday could outweigh Djibouti 00253 Qatar 00974 the new catalog department. the practical if you have no plans. Start early to plan your day. Dominica 001767 Romania 0040 Dominican Republic 001809 Russian Federation 007 Ecuador 00593 Rwanda 00250 Egypt 0020 Saint Helena 00290 El Salvador 00503 Saint Kitts 001869 Cancer (June 21-July 22) Capricorn (December 22-January 19) England (UK) 0044 Saint Lucia 001758 Equatorial Guinea 00240 Saint Pierre 00508 This wednesday is a great day for achievement and a most You know how to gain the support you need for the work you Eritrea 00291 Saint Vincent 001784 energetic period–filling you with a great desire to succeed in all spheres of are trying to accomplish this wednesday. Do not be afraid to talk about what Estonia 00372 Samoa US 00684 Ethiopia 00251 Samoa West 00685 your life. Working with partners in an open, honest environment can only you want to accomplish in front of the people that you know will support you. Gathering information will help you make decisions for later this thursday. This Falkland Islands 00500 San Marino 00378 bring good fortune to you now. This thursday a period of intellectual creativity Faroe Islands 00298 Sao Tone 00239 has dawned in your life; expressing yourself with an expressive flair comes to is an outstanding day to take on a mentally difficult project. Create a balance Fiji 00679 Saudi Arabia 00966 mean more to you. You may be contemplating the additional education you of work, play, rest and relaxation. Sometime this friday you will remember Finland 00358 Scotland (UK) 0044 will need to move into a better-paying job. Good for you . . . The result of this what you already know. A little rest will bring about a fresh mind. There is a France 0033 Senegal 00221 hard work is rewarding. This friday is a time to sit down and get many things common interest in spiritual and mystical values among family members at French Guiana 00594 Seychelles 00284 accomplished. Your workday moves smoothly. Believe it or not, you may this time. A love relationship is enjoyed today–there is a desire for closeness. French Polynesia 00689 Sierra Leone 00232 unconsciously help a close friend through your efforts at this time. You appreciate your particular situation and enjoy support from those around Gabon 00241 Singapore 0065 Communicating feelings becomes important this saturday. You work mentally you this saturday. This is a powerful time of recognizing and using your intu- Gambia 00220 Slovakia 00421 and physically to become more refined emotionally. ition and insights. Ownership matters can be under pressure. Georgia 00995 Slovenia 00386 Germany 0049 Solomon Islands 00677 Ghana 00233 Somalia 00252 Gibraltar 00350 South Africa 0027 Greece 0030 South Korea 0082 Leo (July 23-August 22) Aquarius (January 20- February 18) Greenland 00299 Spain 0034 Grenada 001473 Sri Lanka 0094 Your emotions are very close to the surface this wednesday. Guadeloupe 00590 Sudan 00249 This wednesday you are captivating. People want to know your Guam 001671 Suriname 00597 secrets and many would like your energy. You have creative ideas and can Your sensitivity about the needs of others and your desire to help is strong. This should be one great day to work with people. If you are a salesperson, you Guatemala 00502 Swaziland 00268 present these ideas to higher-ups with great success. This may be as advertise- Guinea 00224 Sweden 0046 ment ideas, short cuts, proofing techniques or perhaps a motivating contest should sell twice your quota! Words of reassurance can work wonders this Switzerland 0041 thursday. You are compassionate and giving to all around you. Your devotion Guyana 00592 for the employees. It may seem that no one agrees with you or you with them Haiti 00509 Syria 00963 this thursday–especially concerning a sensitive project. Compromise may and selflessness will reap unexpected rewards. This evening is a great time to Holland (Netherlands) 0031 Serbia 00381 bring smiles by the afternoon, however. There could be more than one way to plan new goals. Mental motivation from others is key for you this friday. It is a Honduras 00504 Taiwan 00886 do something. All that is psychic, mysterious and spiritual comes to the fore- good idea to make every effort to cooperate and compromise with others. Any Hong Kong 00852 Tanzania 00255 front in your life at this time. Your energy is high this friday–making this a suc- professional project should be a great success. Marriage and other close rela- Hungary 0036 Thailand 0066 tionships give rise to great expectations this saturday. This is a time to appreci- Ibiza (Spain) 0034 Toga 00228 cessful day for any kind of group endeavor. You should expend care in any Tonga 00676 moneymaking efforts for now. Plan this saturday to exchange ideas between ate your ties to others, to promote harmony in the interaction between people. Iceland 00354 Emotional security is strong at this time. India 0091 Tokelau 00690 you and your loved one concerning future goals and expectations. Trinidad 001868 Indian Ocean 00873 Tunisia 00216 Indonesia 0062 Turkey 0090 Iran 0098 Tuvalu 00688 Iraq 00964 Uganda 00256 Ireland 00353 Ukraine 00380 Virgo (August 23-September 22) Pisces (February 19-March 20) Italy 0039 United Arab Emirates 00976 Ivory Coast 00225 United Kingdom 0044 This wednesday is a time when you can expect a little boost, Stimulation from others is motivating this wednesday. You are Jamaica 001876 Uruguay 00598 some sort of extra support or recognition from those around you. You may feel especially hardworking and ambitious on the professional level. You are readily Japan 0081 USA 001 that you are in touch and in harmony with others–the lines of communication receptive to all thoughts that impinge upon you. Any ongoing project should Jordan 00962 Uzbekistan 00998 are open. This thursday is a phase marked by forceful and powerful feelings. be a great success. Career strivings will meet with success this thursday. You Kazakhstan 007 Vanuatu 00678 There are emotional beginnings, a fresh start and perhaps the establishment could be most persuasive with others and eloquent in speech and communica- Kenya 00254 Venezuela 00582 of new habit patterns. Make sure these habits are positive–they will set the tion. The situation is a natural for self-expression, lending itself to your particu- Kiribati 00686 Vietnam 0084 tone for some time! A higher-up seeks you out to work a particular job this fri- lar ideas. Energy, excitement and the opportunity for new discoveries rule the Kuwait 00965 Virgin Islands UK 001284 day. You will appreciate an opportunity to partake in working partnerships or Kyrgyzstan 00996 Virgin Islands US 001340 day. You move in all the positive directions. You can demonstrate a great deal Wales (UK) 0044 of understanding of and compassion to those who are in need and may con- group activities this friday. Mental encouragement from others is important to Laos 00856 you. The day is good for compromises. Any past tensions will clear up now. Latvia 00371 Yemen 00967 sider joining or starting a volunteer organization this saturday. There are elder- Lebanon 00961 Yugoslavia 00381 ly people on your street that do not make trips to the store very often. What a Relax at night. Consider your next vacation. Consciously work on seeing the Zambia 00260 positive in your work situations this saturday. Liberia 00231 wonderful way to help others; you will think of more. Libya 00218 Zimbabwe 00263 Health FRIDAY, APRIL 3, 2015 Indians break from family living in twilight years

NERAL: When Usha Mantri brushed off frowning tion, according to the charity HelpAge India. ed real estate developers and hospitals entering when it goes to an heir-and fees of 10,000 rupees traditionalists and moved into a retirement vil- This growing “dependency ratio”, along with into this segment,” Kumar said, citing projects a month, plus meals. lage, she became a pioneer for a generation of better purchasing power among the elderly, are being developed by the property arm of the giant Kumar said most projects to date were in west- Indians who are increasingly breaking the custom among the factors said to be fuelling the demand Tata conglomerate. ern and southern India, areas which have more of multi-generational households. for senior housing. Manish Kumar, a strategic con- Elderly residents either buy a property in a nuclear families, higher education levels and a She is now happily settled in the peaceful sultant with real estate company Jones Lang township or, as is the case at Dignity, put down a greater number of emigrating young people, but retreat by India’s western mountains, which has LaSalle India, said the current annual demand for partly-refundable deposit to rent a living space developers are now also targeting second and an on-site Hindu temple and offers ayurvedic such projects was estimated to be at 312,00 units, and pay monthly charges. third-tier cities in the north and east. massage - and is a two-hour drive from her son in but only 10,000 to 15,000 units of new supply are Top-end housing at Dignity requires a deposit Mumbai. being planned. of about 3.5 million rupees ($56,000) — 75 per- Focus on the middle “I have a very different type of thinking,” the “Of late we have seen a good number of reput- cent refundable if the resident leaves or dies, Perhaps surprisingly, only one of the projects 69-year-old told AFP in her studio apartment at so far, Antara Senior Living near the Himalayas, is the Dignity Lifestyle Retirement Township, one of targeting the very top end of the Indian market, the first of its kind in India. “I want to give full with most developers focused on the middle and freedom to my child, and I want full freedom for upper middle-class. myself.” “If a rich man sends his father to a senior citi- Mantri was the first resident to move into the zens’ home, he will be looked down upon,” Dignity complex, which looks more like a modest explained Gopal Srinivasan, a trustee at Dignity holiday resort, nine years ago. She now has more Lifestyle. than 60 neighbours, while other retirement com- “Therefore the very rich keep their parents in munities are springing up around India. their house, have a 24-7 nurse, have a doctor While most senior citizens still prefer to live coming in every day, but they won’t admit their with their families, alternative options are increas- parents to senior citizens’ houses,” he said. ingly in demand as the country develops, children At the other end of the scale are the many who migrate and their parents live for longer. cannot afford such care. “I think very slowly minds are getting Srinivasan said state-run homes for the aged changed,” said Hemlata Parekh, one of Mantri’s were in a “pathetic condition”, while abuse of neighbours at Dignity and a former teacher. senior citizens by their children had become “ram- Parekh, 82, has siblings in Mumbai but no chil- pant”. On top of this, about 90 percent of India’s dren, and said it would be difficult for her to man- elderly worked in the unorganised sector-such as age household chores and transport in the city. small farms or family enterprises-which has left Dignity, however, has a communal dining room, most without pensions, said Prakash Borgaonkar, round-the-clock security and an in-house doctor. Mumbai director of HelpAge India. There is a wing with special care for those with The government offers regular social security dementia, while for the more active retirees there payments only to those below the poverty line-a are monthly shopping trips and occasional pic- minority of India’s elderly-and even then the ben- nics. “It is a hassle-free retirement township, in a MUMBAI: In this photograph taken on March 10, 2015, an attendant (L) looks at efits are difficult to access, Borgaonkar said. real sense,” said Parekh. physically challenged elderly Indian citizens as they gather in an open area as “Society is changing fast, and because of this part of daily activities at The Dignity Foundation Township in Neral some 50kms joint family system which is breaking, these elder- ‘Dependency ratio’ grows east of Mumbai in the western Indian state of Maharashtra. While most senior ly are again isolated, they are neglected,” he said, There are currently more than 100 million calling for government policies to support the Indians aged 60 and above, and that is projected citizens still prefer to live with their families, alternative options are increasingly elderly as demographics swiftly change. “Are we to rise to more than 300 million by 2050, when in demand as the country develops, children migrate and their parents live for ready to take up this challenge? Today we have to they will make up about 20 percent of the popula- longer. —AFP think on that.” —AFP FRIDAY, APRIL 3, 2015

Kuwait KNCC PROGRAMME FROM THURSDAY TO WEDNESDAY (02/04/2015 TO 08/04/2015)

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Modi urges Indian banks to Wal-Mart support of gay rights turns on business lend to debt-laden farmers PAGE 41 PAGE 38

HUAIBEI: A worker cuts open an oil barrel in a factory to recycle the metal in manufacturing water tanks in Huaibei in central China’s Anhui province. China and Japan have reported gloomy industrial data, adding to pressure on leaders of the world’s second-and third-largest economies to launch new stimulus. — AP Exuberance cooling in Gulf bond market Expectations for tighter liquidity may be weighing

DUBAI: Order books for Gulf bond issues are shrink- that bond market conditions in coming months Local institutions have fewer investment options have actually loosened a bit. Deposits at Saudi ing, suggesting exuberance in the market is fading - could be a little more difficult for issuers. Lower-rat- than foreigners and are in any case disposed to Arabian banks surged 3.6 percent from a month slightly - after several years of massive demand and ed issuers may have to become slightly more mod- keep their money in the region. earlier in February. In both countries, short-term ultra-tight pricing. A $1 billion, 10-year sukuk issue est in their fund-raising ambitions. National Bank of money market rates have not risen significantly last week by the emirate of Ras Al-Khaimah, rated A Kuwait, rated A-plus by Standard and Poor’s and Liquidity from multi-year lows. What may be happening is by Standard & Poor’s, drew roughly $2.5 billion of Aa3 by Moody’s, upsized its Tier 1 bond issue this Several factors may be squeezing order books. that some local banks are looking ahead to the pos- investor orders. That was a comfortable amount, week to $700 million from $650 million, after receiv- One is banking system liquidity in the Gulf; the sibility of substantial liquidity tightening late this but much smaller than the $7.85 billion attracted by ing orders worth $1.4 billion. plunge of oil prices may be reducing the amount of year or in 2016, because of cheap oil or the start of the similarly rated emirate of Sharjah for a $750 mil- But BBK, formerly known as Bank of Bahrain money which local banks have available to buy US interest rate hikes. This prospect may be causing lion, 10-year sukuk issue six months ago. Both and Kuwait and rated BBB by Fitch, issued only bonds by cutting the oil revenues which govern- banks to bid less generously for bond issues. sukuk used the ijara format and priced at 110 basis $400 million of five-year bonds two weeks ago ments deposit in the banks. The latest official data But any US interest rate hikes are likely to be points over midswaps. after originally indicating a benchmark deal, which suggests this is not happening to any great degree. very gradual, so Gulf tightening will be as well. Dubai Islamic Bank’s $1 billion sukuk issue in was understood to mean at least $500 million. Deposit growth has slowed only modestly, and Some central bankers in the Gulf have said they January generated nearly $2 billion of demand, but Orders were $900 million. “Interest in regional governments are willing to draw down foreign expect to have leeway to tighten somewhat more didn’t come close to the bank’s perpetual debt sale credits is intact, but the exuberance is gone,” a reserves if necessary to prevent any tightening of slowly than the US Federal Reserve. Another factor in March 2013. That $1 billion, Tier 1 sukuk issue was Dubai-based asset manager said. Bankers involved domestic liquidity. behind smaller order books appears to be pricing. 14 times subscribed. The smaller size of order books in arranging some of the recent Gulf bond issues Bank deposits in the United Arab Emirates rose Yields on other emerging market bonds have risen doesn’t appear to be causing propective borrowers said that while demand from both local and for- a healthy 1.3 percent from the previous month in in recent weeks even as those on Gulf bonds have to pull any issues, and it doesn’t even seem to be eign investors had diminished, most of the reduc- February, and the loans-to-deposits ratio is at 0.97, stayed low, pressed down by limited supply relative affecting pricing significantly. But it does indicate tion appeared to occur among foreign investors. down from 1.00 a year ago - showing conditions to demand. — Reuters Business FRIDAY, APRIL 3, 2015 38

Modi urges banks to lend to debt-laden farmers

MUMBAI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi yesterday urged market prices for produce and other reasons compound- India’s banks to lend more to the country’s millions of ed already dire financial problems. Modi said 140 million impoverished farmers in a bid to halt suicides by debt- people have opened bank accounts since his reformist laden agricultural workers. Speaking at an event on government launched a major financial inclusion initiative increasing financial inclusion, Modi said he was pained to last year. hear of increased reports of farmers taking their own lives But he stressed that more needed to be done, and after being unable to repay unscrupulous money lenders. asked the RBI to come up with a 20-year roadmap for “Can’t we ask ourselves how we can make our banking greater access to the formal banking system. Farmers system so strong that no farmer is forced to give up his life and other poor have long been unable to borrow from just because he can’t repay the loan (from money traditional banks because of a lack of capital, forcing lenders)?” Modi said. them to become dependent on loan sharks and other “We have to change mindsets. We have to think on lenders who often charge exorbitant interest rates. ways to include the poor as we move forward,” Modi said India’s poor but powerful farming lobby flocked to at the event at the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) in Mumbai, Modi’s party at the general election last May when the alongside its governor Raghuram Rajan and Finance Hindu nationalist premier won the biggest mandate in Minister Arun Jaitley. “We can pull the poor out of pover- MUMBAI: Indian Prime Minister Narendra 30 years. But anger in rural areas has recently been ty, they just need a bit of hand holding,” he said. Local mounting over his government’s bid to overhaul land media have reported scores of farmer suicides in recent Modi gestures as he speaks during the inau- purchasing laws making it easier for businesses to buy weeks. Families say they were left with no choice after guration of a conference on Financial farming and other plots for much-needed infrastructure, crop damage from unseasonal storms along with poor Inclusion in Mumbai yesterday. —AFP defense and other projects. —AFP Foreign investors cry foul over Indian ‘tax surprise’ Tax inspectors seek to raise tax on past untaxed gains

HONG KONG: US and European investor groups panies’ effective tax rate below a minimum rulings to avoid legal disputes, had set a prece- have called for the Indian government to urgent- threshold. Foreigners without local operations dent for levying MAT on foreign companies, ly clarify its tax regime for foreigners, following are not typically covered by such provisions. and that the tax department was enforcing the surprise attempts by tax inspectors to claw back In India, foreign investors have hitherto paid ruling. In recent weeks, many foreign investors money they say is owed on years of previously 15 percent on short-term listed equity gains, 5 have duly received notices requesting their untaxed gains. International funds and banks percent on gains from bonds, and nothing on MAT calculations for financial year 2011-2012. could face a bill of as much as $8 billion, said tax long-term gains, but from late last year many The tax office has said it would also apply the experts, just as many foreign investors are poised firms received notices from tax inspectors requir- tax to previous years. to pour money into India following the election ing them to pay MAT, potentially bringing overall Tax inspectors could go back seven years, of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who has tax on these gains to as much as 20 percent. The according to Indian law, and could also charge pledged to create a more business-friendly envi- following month Finance Minister Arun Jaitley interest and penalties. Two individuals said ronment. “This development has caught every- intervened via the 2015 budget bill to state that some foreign investors had begun legal pro- one by surprise and is extremely worrying for for- capital gains made by foreign investors as of ceedings against the government. Investors say eign investors,” said Patrick Pang, a managing April 2015 were exempt from MAT, but that did the change is at odds with Modi’s desire to wel- director at the Asia Securities Industry & Financial not resolve the issue. “The government’s clarifi- come investment, since it could hit private equi- Markets Association (ASIFMA) in Hong Kong. “It cation in February, though right in intent, has ty and venture capital transactions, not just suggests that the Indian government can come created unwanted confusion, and the view the portfolio investors. Some investor groups are out at any time and re-clarify what was believed tax office is taking is that, by implication, the past also concerned that the finance bill wording to be an established tax policy on foreign invest- years’ gains can be subject to MAT,” said Keyur does not preclude MAT liability on other future ments.” Shah, a partner in the India tax practice at EY. income and are asking the Ministry of Finance ASIFMA is one of several business groups, to amend the bill to specify that the MAT including London-headquartered ICI Global, the Legal proceedings exemption covers all future and past gains and European Fund and Asset Management A senior official from the tax department income. Association, and the Federation of Indian who declined to be identified confirmed that “An amendment which introduces a clarifi- Chambers of Commerce and Industry, to have the tax office believed the exemption from cation embodying the principle that a foreign raised the alarm over attempts by the Indian tax MAT does not apply retroactively. “There is company which has no business presence ... is department to levy minimum alternative tax nothing (in the budget) to suggest that it (the not liable to MAT is required to end unwar- (MAT) on foreign investors’ profits, according to exemption) would apply to old cases,” this per- ranted litigation on this aspect,” said Rajiv AHMADABAD: Aircrafts of British Aerobatics sources and letters seen by Reuters. In many son told Reuters. He added that a 2012 decision Tyagi, a spokesman for the Federation of Champions perform during rehearsals on the eve of jurisdictions governments use a form of MAT to by India’s Authority for Advance Rulings, a body Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry in the Gujarat Aero Conclave 2015 in Ahmadabad, ensure that tax breaks don’t pull domestic com- that mostly non-residents can apply to for tax a statement. —Reuters India. The four-day Air Show began on April 1. —AP India IT plans suffer from power cuts, congestion - and monkeys

VARANASI: As India launches an $18 billion plan to spread the informa- be found. The city of over 2 million people is impossibly crowded and access cheaper could add up to 1.6 percentage points, or about $70 bil- tion revolution to its provinces, the problems it faces are a holdover from laying underground cable is out of the question. Chasing away or trap- lion, to India’s GDP over a four-year period, consultants at McKinsey have the past - electricity shortages, badly planned, jam-packed cities, and ping the monkeys will outrage residents and temple-goers. Varanasi is estimated. monkeys. The clash between the old world and the new is sharply in part of the parliamentary constituency of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, focus in the crowded 3,000-year-old holy city of Varanasi, where many a Hindu nationalist leader who came to power last May. A shortage of Global interest devout Hindus come to die in the belief that doing so will give them sal- electricity is further complicating efforts to set up stable Wi-Fi in public Global technology companies see opportunity in Modi’s commit- vation. Varanasi is also home to hundreds of macaque monkeys that live places - daily power cuts can last for hours during the sweltering summer ment to a digital future and are adapting their products to India’s varied in its temples and are fed and venerated by devotees. in Varanasi and across much of India. climates and external threats. IBM is in discussions to provide software to But the monkeys also feast on the fibre-optic cables that are strung Modi’s government has pledged to lay 700,000 kms of broadband help several cities make the leap into the digital age. Network provider along the banks of the Ganges river. “We cannot move the temples from cable to connect India’s 250,000 village clusters within three years, build Cisco Systems is working with the government in the eastern city of here. We cannot modify anything here, everything is built up. The mon- 100 new “Smart Cities” by 2020 and shift more public services like educa- Visakhapatnam to bring more education and healthcare services online, keys, they destroy all the wires and eat all the wires,” said communication and health to electronic platforms to improve access and accounta- and has developed a “ruggedised” Wi-Fi box to survive India’s varied cli- tions engineer A.P. Srivastava. Srivastava, who oversees the expansion of bility. Varanasi was the first of an eventual 2,500 locations singled out for mates and cut down on the need for cables that will be at the mercy of new connections in the local district, said his team had to replace the street-level Wi-Fi. Industry experts predict that the broadband initiative, the elements - or monkeys. “We’ve built outdoor Wi-Fi-access routers riverside cables when the monkeys chewed them up less than two along with a surge in smartphone ownership, will mean about a third of specifically keeping in mind Indian environmental conditions,” Dinesh months after they were installed. Indians will have access to the internet by 2017, from about 20 percent, Malkani, Cisco’s India country head, said in an interview. “You cannot pre- He said his team is now looking for alternatives, but there are few to or 250 million people, now. Expanding internet connectivity and making dict what challenges you are going to come up against.” —Reuters Business FRIDAY, APRIL 3, 2015 Gold edges down, hold off above $1,200

LONDON: Gold edged down yesterday, but managed to hold against a basket of main currencies, while boding well for price to stay above the $1,170 level in order for the uptrend to above $1,200 an ounce on a weaker dollar after disappointing safe-haven assets such as gold. Equity markets were also hit continue...if we do break (that) ...all (bullish) bets are off and economic data raised doubts over the US growth outlook and by the disappointing data on Wednesday, although econo- we could be heading towards the $1,138 mark.” the Federal Reserve’s rates policy ahead of key jobs data. Spot mists polled by Reuters forecast Friday’s US nonfarm payrolls A weaker nonfarm report could push back expectations for gold was down 0.2 percent at $1,201.26 an ounce by 0935 to show an increase of 245,000 in March after a 295,000 rise a US interest rate hike which some analysts predicted could GMT, having climbed 1.8 percent on Wednesday, the biggest in February. come as early as June. Gold hit $1,219.40 last week, its highest single-day rally since Jan 30. The move higher came after a 2.4- Trading activity is expected to thin today, when most US since March 2, at the end of a seven-day run-up on expecta- percent slide in all of March. US gold for June delivery slipped markets will be closed for the Easter holiday, while some tions that the US central bank would go slow in raising interest $6.70 an ounce to $1,201.50. European markets will close Friday through Monday and rates. Any hike by the Fed, which has kept rates near zero since US private employers added the smallest number of work- reopening on Tuesday. “The precious metal could face higher 2008 to stimulate the US economy, could reduce demand for ers in more than a year in March, missing market expecta- volatility as we approach towards the Friday’s US non farm assets perceived as safer such as gold. Spot silver fell 0.5 per- tions, data on Wednesday showed. Separately, factory activi- payroll number,” AvaTrade chief market analyst Naeem Aslam cent to $16.81 an ounce, while platinum lost 0.6 percent to ty hit a near two-year low in March. Weaker-than-expected said. “(But) we may actually see a weak number, which could $1,151.65 an ounce and palladium was unchanged at $743.98 data weighed on the dollar, which was down 0.4 percent push the dollar lower.” “Having said that, we do need the gold an ounce.— Reuters Oil eases below $57

LONDON: Oil prices slipped yesterday as officials from the big global powers remained locked in nuclear talks with Iran that, if successful, could allow the Islamic state to release more crude oil onto world markets. Negotiations on Tehran’s disputed nuclear program have stretched well beyond a self- imposed March 31 deadline, with diplomats saying the chances of a prelimi- nary accord in the next few hours are finely balanced. Tehran is hoping for a deal that will end crippling economic sanctions and allow it to sell millions of barrels of oil, some of it stored at sea in supertankers and ready for delivery. Brent crude for May was down 30 cents at $56.80 a barrel by 1000 GMT. The contract settled $1.99 higher on Wednesday. US crude for May was down 40 cents at $49.69 a barrel, after closing up $2.49, or 5.2 percent, on Wednesday. Most financial markets will be closed on Friday for public and religious holidays. Crude prices snapped a three-session YANGON: A general view shows cargo containers in a yard at a port in Yangon yesterday. Myanmar has implemented an array of changes since losing streak on Wednesday after the the end of junta rule, including welcoming Suu Kyi’s opposition into parliament. Most Western sanctions have been lifted and the long-clois- US Energy Information Administration tered economy is opening up. — AFP (EIA) said US oil production dropped last week for the first time since late- December. In the Swiss city of Asian shares rise Lausanne, US Secretary of State John Kerry and German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier said they Weak US data pressures dollar against yen, euro would stay on in an effort to seal a political agreement with Iran, a step towards a final pact due by the end of TOKYO: Asian shares shrugged off weak US data when it meets on Tuesday, the first trading day showing concern about a strong dollar, and the June. overnight that raised concerns ahead of today’s key after markets close for the Easter long weekend. data only compounded such fears,” said Masashi employment figures, and logged gains yesterday Japan’s Nikkei stock average ended 1.5 percent Murata, senior currency strategist at Brown Iranian Foreign Minister as investors covered positions ahead of the Easter higher, after skidding to a three-week low in the Brothers Harriman in Tokyo. “Even if Friday’s non- Mohammad Javad Zarif said “signifi- holidays. European bourses were expected to fol- previous session. “Hedge funds are seen covering farm payroll number is decent - it could come in cant progress” had been made but low suit, with financial spreadbetters calling their short positions as the Nikkei fell sharply this around 250,000 - that might not dispel strong dol- more discussions were needed to Britain’s FTSE 100 to open flat to 1 point higher, or week,” said Norihiro Fujito, senior investment lar concerns. That is why there isn’t much bargain reach a deal on how to resolve a 12- up 0.01 percent; Germany’s DAX to open 27 points strategist at Mitsubishi UFJ Morgan Stanley hunting for the dollar,” he said. The greenback was year standoff over Tehran’s nuclear higher, or up 0.2 percent; and France’s CAC 40 to Securities. down about 0.2 percent on the day at 119.57 yen, ambitions. Many analysts doubt a deal open 12 to 13 points higher, or up 0.3 percent. Friday’s non-farm payrolls are expected to show while the euro added about 0.2 percent to $1.0787. can be clinched in Lausanne. “(I “The performance of Europe’s markets, which an increase of 245,000 jobs in March, following a The euro was bolstered by Wednesday’s data expect) nothing beyond a general continue to look fairly well-supported, as well as gain of 290,000 in February, according to econo- showing manufacturing activity across the euro statement of intentions to keep talks trading at multi-year highs, stands in contrast to the mists polled by Reuters. But on Wednesday, the zone is accelerating. Oil prices were off their ses- going through spring,” Scott Lucas of weakness currently being seen in US markets,” ADP National Employment Report showed that U.S. sion lows but still down on the day, giving back EA WorldView, a specialist website on Michael Hewson, chief market analyst at CMC private employers added 189,000 jobs last month, some of the sharp gains made in the previous ses- Iran and Syria, told Reuters Global Oil Markets, said in a note. Most US markets will be falling well short of economists’ expectations for a sion after U.S. crude output fell for the first time in Forum. Despite the data showing US closed on Friday, with some European markets rise of 225,000 jobs. The figure was the weakest two months and the government announced a closed Friday through Monday and reopening on since January 2014. Separate data on Wednesday smaller-than-feared rise in weekly stockpiles. US production falling, US crude oil inven- Tuesday. MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific showed the pace of US manufacturing growth in crude futures shed about 0.9 percent to $49.66 tories climbed last week to a record shares outside Japan was up about 0.6 percent, March slowed to its slowest in nearly two years. after surging more than 5 percent on Wednesday. high for the 12th straight week. The ignoring a weak performance overnight on Wall The dollar slumped after the data as it rein- Brent was down 0.6 percent at $56.76 after closing EIA said US crude stocks rose 4.8 mil- Street. forced concerns that the currency’s recent rally has up 3.6 percent. Gold hovered slightly above $1,200 lion barrels to 471.4 million barrels in Australian shares finished up 0.7 percent, on weighed on exports. The data also raised bets the an ounce, clinging to gains from the prior session the week to March 27. — Reuters growing expectations that the Reserve Bank of Federal Reserve might not hike interest rates until when it rose the most in two months on the weak Australia will announce its second rate cut of 2015 late 2015. “Right now the market’s worry is the Fed US economic data.— Reuters Business FRIDAY, APRIL 3, 2015

Dubai property king’s outside deals stir investor unrest Chairman’s role in Egypt mega-project raises eyebrows

DUBAI: As chairman of Emaar Properties, group’s annual shareholders’ meeting on property crash in Dubai. It yielded to the autopilot.” Emaar’s brain drain is another Mohamed Alabbar has shaped much of April 15. The fortunes of Alabbar and Emaar - investors’ demands and paid up. worry. Former chief executive Low Ping now Dubai’s skyline, but rapid growth in his out- which developed Burj Khalifa, the world’s Nevertheless, any open questioning of holds the same position at Eagle Hills. side real estate interests is raising the possi- tallest building - are intertwined. “We’re in a Alabbar’s position would be unusual for the Salman Sajid, previously chief financial offi- bility of a rarity in the Gulf - open sharehold- region where who is running the show is as Gulf, where business disputes are normally cer of several Emaar units, is Eagle Hills’ CFO. er dissent. Speculation persists that Alabbar important as a proper strategy, if not more,” settled beyond public view. In an earlier email exchange with Reuters, and Emaar, the company he founded in said Fathi Ben Grira, chief executive of Abu the spokeswoman explained Alabbar’s rela- 1997, could soon part ways despite a cate- Dhabi-based investment firm MENACORP. Brain drain tionship with the companies. “Alabbar pro- gorical denial from the firm last month. His Emaar’s shares have recovered to around 7 Speculation about Alabbar has grown vides advice and counsel to CCP and Eagle involvement in other firms’ projects, such as dirhams from 6.25 immediately before the since last month when he signed an agree- Hills in his official capacity,” she said, without a planned $45 billion city in Egypt and devel- denial on March 19 that Alabbar was leaving, ment to develop the Egyptian mega city on elaborating. Emaar directors are allowed to opments from west Africa to the Balkans, has but remain well below levels above 10 last behalf of Capital City Partners (CCP), of sit on the boards of competing firms by a raised eyebrows. September. which he is a founding partner. He is also a resolution that must be approved annually “This is something that is a concern for Born in 1956, Alabbar rose up through board member at Abu Dhabi’s Eagle Hills, at the shareholders’ meeting. So far, this has us,” said one Emaar shareholder,” who the state ranks by working at the United which plans developments in Serbia, Nigeria been a formality, but a Dubai broker said this declined to be named. “There is a conflict of Arab Emirates’ central bank and the Dubai and Bahrain. Emaar has developed some of might not happen this time. “These kinds of interest. The chairman owns a company in government office in Singapore, before the best sites in Dubai and beyond, but now activities - high-level executives involved the same field.” A spokeswoman represent- returning to the emirate with a job at the has to compete with start up firms. The fact with (other) big real estate companies (that) ing Alabbar did not immediately respond to Department of Economic Development. that some have links to Alabbar perplexes demand more of their time - it definitely a Reuters request for comment on the share- In this period he became close to Dubai’s investors in Emaar. becomes a question mark,” the broker said. holder’s remarks. Emaar directors are not ruler, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al “Why wasn’t the Egypt project given to Nshama, a Dubai developer launched in currently barred from involvement with oth- Maktoum, before founding Emaar. Emaar, in Emaar Egypt, if you think it’s a good buy?” September, has also recruited heavily from er property groups. Emaar has also lost a which the state Investment Corporation of asked the shareholder. “We see Emaar is not Emaar. Its chief executive, Fred Durie, was string of senior executives to rivals, including Dubai holds a 29 percent stake, has experi- a priority for Dubai. There is no new land CEO of Emaar International until November one that is handling some of Alabbar’s extra- enced shareholder unrest before - notably in being allocated, it’s going to other compa- 2014 while chief operations officer Abubakr mural projects, raising further concerns that 2011 over its failure to pay dividends after nies,” the shareholder added. “It is clear that Sidahmed was Emaar’s senior director for industry sources say may come up at the the global financial crisis and subsequent Emaar is not in a growth mode, it is on projects until September 2014. —Reuters Economics to trump politics in Ankara’s rift with Tehran Turkey and Iran depend on each other for trade

ANKARA: Turkey and Iran have accused during a press conference in Istanbul. heavily critical of Iran,” said Sinan Ulgen, each other of trying to dominate the head of the Istanbul-based Center for Middle East as they back opposing sides Ottoman ‘delusions’ Economics and Foreign Policy. in the crisis in Yemen, but the war of Iran supports the Shi’ite Houthi mili- words is unlikely to permanently dam- tants in their campaign against Yemeni Trouble with neighbors age a relationship driven by deepening President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi, but The tensions with Iran further illus- economic ties. Turkey’s relations with it denies giving them military aid or trate how far the ruling AK Party has Tehran have already been strained by sending in its own troops. Turkey has strayed from the “zero problems with NBK issues $700 million stark differences over Syria. Ankara said it may provide logistical support to the neighbors” mantra that once Additional Tier 1 Capital upped the ante last week, saying it the Saudi-led Arab coalition against the defined its policy ambitions. Erdogan backs the Saudi-led campaign in Yemen Houthis, who seized Yemen’s capital last and Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu’s Securities at 5.75% against Houthi militants supported by year. Erdogan last week called on vision of a Middle East with political Iran. Tehran to withdraw any forces it may Islam, the Muslim Brotherhood and KUWAIT: National Bank of Kuwait (NBK), the largest bank in Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan have in Yemen, Syria and Iraq. In Iraq, he Turkey at its heart has left it isolated. The Kuwait (rated Aa3 by Moody’s, A+ by S&P and AA- by Fitch), then accused Iran of attempting to said, Iran only wants to drive out Islamic growing prominence of both Turkey successfully issues $700 million perpetual Additional Tier 1 dominate the region. An Iranian law- State insurgents in order to replace and Iran in the fight against Islamic State Regulation S securities. The securities will bear interest at a maker in turn charged that Erdogan was them. Iran responded by summoning could further heighten tensions, rate of 5.750%, which is considered amongst the lowest by seeking to rebuild the Ottoman empire Turkey’s envoy to complain about the believes Osman Bahadir Dincer, from international standards in the current market conditions. The and demanded the cancellation of his comments, which have inflamed some the Ankara-based think-tank, USAK. transaction is the first Investment Grade rated issuance planned April 7 visit. But diplomats and Iranian lawmakers. “Anyone who speaks Turkey, a reluctant partner in the US-led (Moody’s) in the Middle East, highlighting the underlying analysts say the long-term impact will against Iran cannot be our guest,” MP coalition and which shares the oldest credit strength of NBK. The transaction would be used to be minimal as Turkey needs Iranian gas Mansour Haghighatpour was quoted as unchanged frontier in the Middle East boost NBK’s capital as it has been approved as fully eligible and sanctions-hit Tehran desperately saying by local media. “Erdogan has with Iran, is gradually increasing its role. Additional Tier 1 Capital by the Central Bank of Kuwait (CBK) needs export markets. Turkey’s imports delusions of being a pasha and thinks he A program with Washington to train under its Basel III framework. from Iran were nearly $10 billion in 2014 can resurrect the Ottoman empire.” and equip predominantly Sunni Syrian The inaugural transaction was well received by both and its exports totaled around $4 billion. Much of the enmity between Turkey and rebels, who could find themselves con- regional and international investors, with the orderbook clos- “This would be a huge financial disin- Iran stems from sharp differences over fronting Iranian-backed groups, is ing in excess of $1,400 million, representing a 2 times over- centive for Turkey joining a great anti- the chaos in neighboring Syria. expected to begin in the coming weeks. subscription for the deal. The issuance followed an extensive Iran bandwagon,” said one Ankara- Turkey accuses Tehran of propping “If we’re more involved in the Middle series of investor meetings across Asia, the Middle East and based diplomat, expressing surprise at up a Syrian regime guilty of massive Eastern equation we’ll come up against Europe. The Additional Tier 1 Capital Securities will be listed the harshness of Erdogan’s criticism. “It rights abuses. Shiite Iran says Erdogan, a Iran, because they’re on the ground,” on the Irish Stock Exchange. HSBC and Standard Chartered was pretty strong rhetoric in the run-up devout Sunni, has pursued a sectarian Dincer said. Bank acted as Joint Global Coordinators and Citigroup, HSBC, to a presidential visit.” A gas-for-gold policy against Syrian President Bashar Whilst neither country wants rela- NBAD, NBK Capital and Standard Chartered Bank acted as trade, in which Turkish gold exports Al-Assad, who follows an offshoot of tions to sharply worsen, the crisis Joint Lead Managers and Bookrunners on the issuance. have been used to indirectly pay Iran for Shiite Islam. Ankara supports the Syrian sweeping the Middle East-with regional UNB acted as a co-lead manager. NBK is the largest finan- its natural gas, has provided a financial opposition, but denies accusations that powers backing armed groups in a kalei- cial institution in Kuwait with effective market dominance in lifeline to Tehran, largely frozen out of it has secretly armed extremist groups. doscope of conflicts-means maintaining the commercial banking market. the global banking system by Western Erdogan’s backing of the Saudi-led delicate relations will be trickier than It enjoys a broad banking presence with an international sanctions imposed over its nuclear pro- coalition may also be an attempt to ever, warned Fadi Hakura, Turkey expert network of worldwide branches in four continents. NBK’s gram. On Monday, Erdogan said his trip revive regional relations badly damaged from the London-based Chatham international presence spans many of the world’s leading was still on, but hinted that a last minute by Turkey’s backing of the Muslim House. financial centers including London, Paris, Geneva, New York change of plan was possible. Brotherhood, outlawed in much of the “Both capitals will be keen to avoid a and Singapore, as well as China (Shanghai). Meanwhile, “Developments in Yemen are important. Middle East. “The only way to recuper- direct conflict ... If anything there would regional coverage extends to Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, UAE, There could be steps that necessitate us ate the lost ground without sacrificing be a proxy conflict, (which would) exac- Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq, Egypt, and Turkey. making every kind of decision,” he said the Muslim Brotherhood was to be erbate local tensions.”— Reuters Business FRIDAY, APRIL 3, 2015 41 Airbnb to Cuba in major US business expansion HAVANA: The popular online home-rental service Airbnb will allow American travelers to book lodging in Cuba starting today in the most significant US business expansion on the island since the declaration of detente between the two countries late last year. For a half-century, the US trade embargo has blocked such businesses from entering the Cuban market. In January, however, the Obama administration loosened a series of restrictions on US business in an attempt to encourage the growth of the island’s small private sector. Airbnb searches for “Cuba” will now turn up more than 1,000 properties across the island, with 40 percent in Havana and the rest in tourist destinations such as Cienfuegos a few hours away on the southern coast. The company has been sending teams of representatives to Cuba for three months to sign up home owners, and plans to expand steadily in coming months. “We believe that Cuba could become one of Airbnb’s biggest markets in Latin America,” said Kay Kuehne, regional director for Airbnb, the website and mobile app that allows users to book rooms in more than 1 million private homes around the world. “We are actually plugging into an existing culture of micro- enterprise in Cuba. The hosts in Cuba have been doing for decades what we just started doing seven years ago.” One of the most developed and important elements of Cuba’s entre- preneurial sector is a network of thousands of privately owned rooms and houses for tourists. Starting in the post- HAVANA: Tourists leave a privately owned home with rooms for rent in Havana, Cuba. —AP Soviet economic crisis of the 1990s as homey, bed and breakfast-style alternatives to Cuba’s generally grim state-run hotels, “casas particulares,” or private homes, have expanded into an industry with options ranging from small apartments China knocking on door in central Havana to multi-room beach houses with top-notch food and maid service. The Airbnb announcement is the latest in a series of US of IMF’s major league business moves into Cuba. In February, New Jersey-based IDT Corp and Cuban state telecoms firm ETECSA agreed to connect phone calls from the United States directly to Cuba. Europeans aiming for yuan entry into SDR Previously, they were routed through third countries such as Italy and Spain. Netflix and MasterCard have also unblocked BRUSSELS: China is closer to joining the major ment and progress towards liberalization.” World Bank and Asian Development Bank, domi- their services in Cuba, but only a handful of islanders have league of reserve currencies with a deal possible Chinese Premier Li Keqiang asked IMF chief nated by the United States and Japan. Keen to connections fast enough to stream Netflix, and most credit- later this year to include the yuan in the Christine Lagarde last month to include the yuan avoid a second rift with Europe - even though card issuers still prohibit transactions from Cuba, making International Monetary Fund’s unit of account, in its SDR basket, pledged to speed up its “basic the United States can block IMF decisions - Lew MasterCard’s move largely symbolic so far. —AP international finance officials say. However the convertibility” and said China hoped to play an focused on the terms for admitting the yuan to United States, where China’s growing economic active role in international efforts to maintain the SDR rather than the timing. “China will need and political muscle is a source of strategic con- financial stability, state news agency Xinhua said. to successfully complete difficult fundamental cern in Congress, is reluctant to add the yuan so reforms, such as capital account liberalization, a Wal-Mart support soon to the basket of currencies that make up Phased entry? more market-determined exchange rate, interest the IMF’s Special Drawing Rights. A euro zone central bank source said one rate liberalization, as well as strengthening of of gay rights US Treasury Secretary Jack Lew said after a route could see a phased entry into the SDR, financial regulation and supervision,” he said. visit to Beijing this week the yuan was not yet linked to fulfilling the official criterion that the While Washington believed Beijing has turns on business ready to join the virtual currency that defines the yuan must be “freely usable”, which Western offi- stopped intervening to weaken its currency, Lew value of the IMF’s reserves, used for lending to cials interpret as full convertibility. It would be said the true test would come when market CHICAGO: The chief executive of Wal-Mart Stores has emerged as countries in financial difficulty. “While further lib- the first emerging market currency to join the pressure increased for the yuan to strengthen. an unlikely voice for gay rights after the Arkansas state governor eralization and reform are needed for the (yuan) SDR, marking another stage in China’s rise as a David Marsh, managing director of the central heeded his call on Wednesday to reject a much-criticized bill. But to meet this standard, we encourage the process global economic player and requiring the United banking think-tank OMFIF, sees a “grand bar- the decision by Doug McMillon to speak out against the “religious of completing these necessary reforms,” Lew States to accept a dilution of its unrivalled power gain” between China, the United States and the freedom” bill reflects more than a decade of evolving policy by the said in a speech in San Francisco on Tuesday. The in international finance. While the Europeans are IMF taking shape under which Beijing would retailer on the issue of gay and lesbian rights, and follows a pattern yuan, also known as the renminbi or RMB, is vying for commercial advantage in the world’s enter the heart of global finance in exchange for of taking stands on some social issues when it makes business sense already the world’s fifth most-used trade curren- second biggest economy, Washington sees turning the yuan into a strong currency on world to do so. “Every day, in our stores, we see firsthand the benefits cy. Beijing has made strides this year in introduc- Beijing also as an authoritarian strategic chal- financial markets. The Chinese central bank was diversity and inclusion have on our associates, customers and coming the infrastructure needed to float it freely on lenger that may not feel bound by rules written using its $3.8 trillion in reserves to keep the yuan munities we serve,” McMillon said in a statement on Tuesday asking global capital markets. by the West. The US Congress has held up ratifi- steady against the dollar. The Chinese currency for a veto of the bill. That was seen as a major factor behind the gov- European members of the Group of Seven cation of a 2010 reform of voting rights in the has appreciated by 11 percent in trade-weighted ernor’s decision on Wednesday to ask lawmakers in Wal-Mart’s major industrialized economies - Germany, IMF intended to give China and other emerging terms in the past year. “All of this is a potential home state for revisions. Wal-Mart’s action comes against the back- Britain, France and Italy - favour adding the yuan economies more say. challenge for the dollar and its pivotal position in drop of other major companies taking stands on developing politi- this year to the basket that comprises the dollar, Britain, keen to secure pole position for world money,” Marsh said in a briefing. cal and social issues, with mixed results. General Electric CEO Jeff the euro, the yen and the pound sterling. Japan, London as an offshore centre for international While there is no fixed set of indicators to Immelt on Wednesday joined a growing chorus of executives like the United States, is more cautious, the offi- trading in yuan, has taken the lead in pressing measure the eligibility of a currency for the SDR expressing concerns about a similar bill seen as possibly discrimina- cials said. The IMF’s board will hold an initial dis- publicly for China’s admission to the SDR. David basket, in 2011 IMF staff set out a number of indi- tory against gays in Indiana. Starbucks canceled a program in which cussion in May on China’s request and a full five- Ramsden, chief economic adviser at the UK cators that could show whether a currency is baristas were invited to engage customers on conversations about yearly review of the SDR’s composition will be Treasury, said much had changed since the “freely usable”: currency composition of official race, making it a cautionary tale for companies looking to wade into conducted later in the year ahead of a decision makeup of the virtual currency was last reviewed reserve holdings; currency denomination of potentially controversial issues. expected in November, IMF officials said. in 2010, and including the yuan was now a “very international banking liabilities; currency Wal-Mart has been selective in the issues it tackles in the public “The German side supports China’s goal to live issue”. Germany has ambitions to lure yuan denomination of international debt securities; domain. For years it has resisted calls by labor groups to pay a “living add the RMB to the SDR currency basket based trading to Frankfurt, home of the European volume of transactions in foreign exchange spot wage” and its move in February to increase pay to at least $9 an hour on existing criteria,” Joachim Nagel, a member of Central Bank, and was irked when Britain last markets. More than 60 central banks hold the was viewed by many analysts as driven by competition for workers in the executive board of the German central bank, month jumped ahead of its EU partners to yuan in their reserves, according to China- a tight labor market as much as social concerns. Advocates of the ‘liv- said last weekend at a high-level forum in Boao, become a founder member of the China-led focused bankers in London. Offshore trading in ing wage’ want $15 per hour. One former Wal-Mart executive, who on the southern Chinese island of Hainan. The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank. the yuan soared some 350 percent on Thomson now consults for the company, saw parallels between McMillon’s upcoming review could be a good opportunity Washington suffered a diplomatic reverse Reuters trading platforms last year and rival plat- show of support for LGBT rights and a push a decade ago on sustain- to introduce the yuan into the basket, he said, after trying to dissuade its allies from joining the form EBS said the yuan was one of its top five ability under then chief executive Lee Scott. —Reuters adding: “We appreciate China’s recent develop- Chinese initiative, seen as a potential rival to the traded currencies. —Reuters Sports FRIDAY, APRIL 3, 2015

Pearson, Tallent lead Australia team for worlds

SYDNEY: World medallists Sally Pearson, Kim Nicholas Hough (110m hurdles), and Youth Team Mickle and Jared Tallent headline Australia’s 26- Olympic Games medallist Brandon Starc (high Men strong track and field team named yesterday for jump). 800m: Jeff Riseley, Alex Rowe. 110m hurdles: the world championships in Beijing in August. “The intention of the selection policy is to nomi- Nicholas Hough. High jump: Joel Baden, Brandon Starc. Pearson (100m hurdles), Mickle (javelin) and nate the most competitive possible team to repre- Discus: Julian Wruck. Javelin: Hamish Peacock. 20km Tallent (20km walk, 50km walk) all won medals at sent Australia for Beijing 2015,” Athletics Australia walk: Dane Bird-Smith, Jared Tallent. 50km walk: Chris the Moscow championships two years ago. chairman of selectors Dion Russell said. Erickson, Jared Tallent. The Australian squad also includes “Thirteen of the athletes selected themselves as Commonwealth champions Eleanor Patterson a national champions with at least one IAAF qualifi- Women (high jump), Alana Boyd (pole vault) and Dani cation standard.” 100m: Melissa Breen. 200m: Ella Nelson. 5000m: Samuels (discus throw), as well as national record Selectors will decide next month on the final Eloise Wellings. 100m hurdles: Michelle Jenneke, Sally holders Melissa Breen (100m) and Alex Rowe line-up for the men’s and women’s marathon, Pearson. 400m hurdles: Lauren Wells. 3000m steeple- (800m). 10,000m and 50km walk. The 46-strong Australian chase: Madeline Heiner, Victoria Mitchell. High jump: Others to join the team from the recently com- squad at the 2013 world championships won three Eleanor Patterson. Pole vault: Alana Boyd, Nina pleted national championships include medals (two silver, one bronze). Kennedy. Long jump: Brooke Stratton. Discus: Dani Commonwealth Games finalist Jeff Riseley (800m), This year’s team will prepare for the August 22- Samuels. Javelin: Kim Mickle, Kathryn Mitchell, Kelsey- IAAF World Junior Championships medallist 30 Beijing worlds in Wakayama, Japan. Lee Roberts. — AFP

IOC releases compensation figures for Bach, members

LONDON: In what it described as a vital show of office space and equipment required for IOC financial transparency, the International business in their home countries. The IOC said Olympic Committee on Thursday disclosed how Bach works 365 days a year but will forego the much its members receive in allowances and per daily reimbursements received by others mem- diem payments - including an annual 225,000 bers. While in the past the president received euro ($242,000) sum for President Thomas Bach. those allowances, “for the sake of transparency The IOC ethics commission urged all other the indemnity will now come from one single sports organizations in the Olympic movement source,” the IOC said. to follow suit and publish their payment policies, The ethics commission set a single fixed sum an appeal that will put pressure especially on - linked to inflation - of 225,000 ($242,000) “to FIFA and its president, Sepp Blatter. cover some of the president’s personal costs The IOC released its “indemnity policy” cover- related to the execution of his function.” “This procedure will lead to savings for the IOC and to transparency,” the committee said. The figure does not include Bach’s housing in Lausanne, Switzerland. The IOC pays for his accommodation in a suite at the Lausanne Palace hotel, where predecessors Jacques Rogge and Juan Antonio Samaranch also resided during their years in office.

Salaried position The issue of whether the IOC presidency should be a salaried position has been debated BIRMINGHAM: In this April 11, 2010 file photo, Carmen Jorda of Spain, slides off the track dur- for years. Rogge, near the end of his term, pro- ing the Indy Grand Prix of Alabama Firestone Indy Lights Series auto race at Barber posed that his successor be paid, but the idea Motorsports Park in Birmingham, Ala. There’s a whiff of sexual apartheid in the latest madcap was dropped when most of the candidates said suggestion from F1’s billionaire boss Bernie Ecclestone, that teams should launch a champi- they would not accept a salary. onship exclusively for women. — AP One candidate, Sergei Bubka, said he backed the idea because the presidency is a full-time job. But he said he would have donated his Surgery to sideline Pedrosa LAUSANNE: In this Wednesday July 9, 2014 salary to charity because he was well-off enough file photo, International Olympic Committee to go without pay. The IOC decision to release (IOC) President Thomas Bach speaks during the figures contrasts with the secrecy of other for at least two races a press conference after an executive board bodies such as FIFA. meeting at the IOC headquarters in “The IOC ethics commission invites all the MADRID: Repsol Honda rider Dani Pedrosa tors and medical professionals that I trust, Lausanne, Switzerland. — AP sports organizations of the Olympic movement will miss at least two races after deciding to they are all in agreement that this is the only to establish a similar policy and make this public, undergo more surgery to try to fix a persistent option for me. ing the reimbursements for Bach and other in order to increase transparency within the arm problem, the Spaniard’s team said yester- “We will have the surgery on Friday and members as part of the “Olympic Agenda 2020” sports movement,” Ndiaye wrote. day. they will use a special technique to help close reforms passed in December. “Among the princi- The presidents of FIFA and European soccer Pedrosa, 29, will go under the knife in the wound to try and prevent this issue con- ples of good governance for sports organiza- body UEFA do receive salaries, but they have not Madrid today, with an estimated recovery tinuing to affect me.” Pedrosa, whose compa- tions, transparency is certainly one of the most been made public. Blatter, whose organization period of four to six weeks, meaning he will triot Marquez has won the last two champi- important,” IOC ethics commission chairman has been dogged by financial and corruption definitely miss the MotoGP in the United onships, has not won a race since the Czech Youssoupha Ndiaye said in a letter to members. scandals, said in the past that his annual salary States on April 12 and the race in Argentina a Grand Prix last August. — Reuters “It is the IOC’s responsibility to apply this to its was “perhaps a bit more” than $1 million. week later, Repsol Honda said. own governance and ... to increase the trans- According to a report in Britain’s Sunday Test rider Hiroshi Aoyama will temporari- parency of its management.” Times newspaper last year, members of the FIFA ly take Pedrosa’s place in the team along- IOC presidents and members are considered executive committee receive $200,000 a year, as side world champion Marc Marquez, they volunteers and do not receive a salary, but their well as $500 per diems. added. travel, housing costs and other expenses on UEFA President Michel Platini’s annual salary Pedrosa is suffering from a problem com- Olympic duty are covered. The IOC said execu- has been reported in a French business maga- mon among motorcycle racers. Pressure tive board members and commission chairs will zine as 3.2 million euros ($3.4 million). Also builds up in the forearm, causing intense receive $900 daily on Olympic business, includ- Thursday, the IOC announced that Paquerette pain, and makes riding a bike exceptionally ing the day before and after meetings to cover Girard Zappelli would serve in the newly created difficult when the muscle becomes too big for travel days. Regular IOC members will receive position of chief ethics and compliance officer. the ‘sack’ that it sits in. $450 a day at meetings and at the Olympics. She has worked for years as a special representa- “Obviously this isn’t the news I wanted to Members can also receive an annual sum of tive to the ethics commission. Will Keenan was be sharing with everyone,” Pedrosa said. $7,000 for “administrative support,” referring to appointed chief internal audit officer. — AP “However, after speaking with some key doc- Dani Pedrosa Sports FRIDAY, APRIL 3, 2015

China’s drinks king denies plans to buy Italy’s AC Milan SHANGHAI: The billionaire chairman of were “sheer fiction”. “We have no inten- February he had held “cordial and pri- pany to invest in a top European club. Chinese drinks maker Hangzhou tion of getting into the soccer sphere, vate” discussions with the club, prompt- Media reports in China had suggest- Wahaha Group Co has knocked back and have not made any contact with AC ing Berlusconi to respond that he was ed Wanda may also be interested in tak- reports he is planning a bid for strug- Milan,” Zong said on his official Sina not interested in selling his controlling ing a stake in AC Milan as part of plans gling Italian soccer giants AC Milan, cur- Weibo microblog account yesterday. stake. China’s billionaires have been to deepen its push into sports and rently controlled by Italy’s former prime Reuters could not reach Wahaha for starting to snap up sporting assets out- entertainment. minister Silvio Berlusconi. further comment. Speculation has side the country’s borders. Zong, however, said Wahaha Zong Qinghou, worth an estimated swirled around the Italian club, one of In January, property conglomerate would prefer to look within China’s $19 billion according to the latest annu- the country’s most prestigious teams, Dalian Wanda Group bought 20 percent borders rather than overseas. “Even if al Hurun rich list, said reports in Italian but which has struggled since last win- of Spanish soccer champions Atletico we wanted to buy a soccer club, we media that he was planning to purchase ning a league title in 2011. Thai busi- Madrid for 45 million euros ($48.45 mil- would only consider a domestic up to 75 percent of the Italian team nessman Bee Taechaubol said in lion), becoming the first Mainland com- team,” he said. — Reuters

Nonu joins select group for pacesetting Hurricanes

SYDNEY: All Black powerhouse Ma’a Nonu joins select company in Super Rugby over the Easter weekend as leaders Wellington Hurricanes face the Western Stormers, while David Pocock returns to his favoured No.7 position for the ACT Brumbies. Nonu will play his 150th Super Rugby game at inside-centre for the Hurricanes against the South Africans in Wellington today. He will join two New Zealand hookers-Keven Mealamu and Corey Flynn-and Australian lock Nathan Sharpe in reaching the milestone. It will be the 32-year-old’s 114th appearance for the Hurricanes, having also played for the Auckland Blues and Otago Highlanders in recent seasons. Nonu will form part of a powerhouse Hurricanes backline along with All Blacks winger Julian Savea and fly-half Beauden Barrett. The Hurricanes are the only unbeaten team in the competition, while the Stormers are eighth with four wins from six outings and coming off a 39-21 loss to the Highlanders in Dunedin last weekend. Returning Springboks Duane Vermeulen and Eben Etzebeth will give the Stormers Shooters preparing during the trap event. the extra grunt up front for the match. Former Wallaby captain Pocock returns to open-side flanker, while Wallaby centre Tevita Kuridrani is out injured for the second-placed Brumbies home match with South Africa’s Central Cheetahs. HH the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Pocock’s second start of the year comes on the back of a solid return two weeks ago from the bench against the annual shooting championship begins Waratahs. He pushes Jarrad Butler to No.8 and Ita Vaea on to the bench. With Kuridrani out, the Australian conference leading Over 200 shooters participate Brumbies have switched Henry Speight from the wing to outside-centre. “David made a successful return to rugby last By Abdellatif Sharaa to qualify for the Brazil 2016 Olympics. Yesterday’s competitions included the week and we’ll see him start, while Jarrad Butler, who’s been Secretary General of Kuwait and Arab double trap men, 10 meter air pistol and fantastic for us all year, moves to No.8,” coach Stephen KUWAIT: HH the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al- Shooting Federations Obaid Munahi Al- rifle men, besides the official training of Larkham said. “Henry’s itching to get his hands on the ball a little bit more and we’ve moved him to 13.” Ahmad annual championship began yes- Osaimi, thanked, on behalf of Kuwait other events, scheduled to start today terday with the participation of more than Shooting Sport Club board members, HH including the trap men and women skeet Replaced 200 shooters from the club and military the Amir for his unlimited care and sup- men and women, 10m air pistol and rifle Springboks Willie le Roux and Coenie Oosthuizen return sports associations. port of Kuwait shooting and shooters, giv- women and 50m prone rifle men. for the Cheetahs after being rested last week, while scrum-half Competitions were at their highest ing them the motive and incentive to con- Tomorrow, (Saturday) will see the finals Sarel Pretorius, who missed the first two games of the tour for from the start in the preliminaries as tinue their winning ways and keep Kuwait of trap and skeet men, 50m three position the birth of his second child in Bloemfontein, will be playing shooters were keen on qualifying for the in prominence in the international arenas. rifle men, 50m pistol men, as well as 25m from the bench. final rounds to compete for this valuable Al-Osaimi also thanked HH the Crown pistol women, as well as the finals of All Blacks fly-half Dan Carter will miss the Canterbury cup which makes the winner Kuwait Prince Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmad and HH Olympic archery. Obaid Al-Osaimi called Crusaders game against the Coastal Sharks in Durban after champion for the 2014-2015 season. the Prime Minister Sheikh Jaber Al- upon shooting fans to come to the club returning to New Zealand to attend the birth of his second The tournament includes the Olympic Mubarak as well as PAYS Director General and see there champions compete for the child. Carter has been replaced by Nathaniel Apa, while Colin skeet, trap and double trap in addition to for their support. He said the administra- coveted cup, and attend the closing cere- Slade is likely to wear the No.10 shirt tomorrow. the air rifle and pistol, and Olympic tion and technical apparatus were keen on mony at 5 pm at Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Sharks centre Francois Steyn will be missing as he serves a archery. This tournament concludes a sea- making sure the tournament comes in a Olympic Shooting Complex, Saturday. four-game ban after the Super 15 governing body successfully son full of achievements at all levels be it fitting manner, worthy of bearing the HH the Amir will be represented by appealed a decision not to punish him for a red card in a local, continental and international levels, name of HH the Amir, and be the best con- Information Minister, Minister of State for recent game. Steyn, a 2007 Rugby World Cup winner with the and shooters are still preparing for highly clusion for a season full of achievements Youth Affairs Sheikh Salman Sabah Al- Springboks, was sent off on March 21 after a dangerous lifting important events at the international level made possible by HH the Amir’s support. Salem Al-Humoud Al-Sabah. tackle on Waikato Chiefs and All Blacks fly-half Aaron Cruden. A judicial hearing surprisingly cleared Steyn and removed the red card from his record, but the ruling body appealed the verdict. “I am not quite sure how it happened (getting to the top of the South Africa conference) given some of the challenges we have had but I am very happy nonetheless,” Sharks director of rugby Gary Gold said. “But nobody in our camp is fooled into thinking we are playing anywhere near well enough to be title contenders. We are grateful to win these close ones (against the Force and the Chiefs the week before) but I just feel we should not be in situations where we just get over the line.” In the Easter weekend’s remaining games, the Chiefs face the Blues in Hamilton, the Rebels host the Queensland Reds in Melbourne and the Golden Lions take on the Northern Bulls in Johannesburg, while the NSW Waratahs, Highlanders and Western Force have byes. — AFP Fuhaid Al-Daihani in action. Shooters during the competition. Sports FRIDAY, APRIL 3, 2015

No winners among east Ukraine’s war-hit athletes

DONETSK: Igor Moiseyev should now be sible to compete abroad. “I didn’t take any sides when all this would set us back around 10,000 hryvnias practising karate with a Japanese master “We try to participate in local competi- political unrest began and took care of my ($425, 392 euros) and now it is between on Okinawa Island, but instead the black tions to keep the children active,” business, developing basketball among 20,000 and 22,000 hryvnias.” But a short belt is having to repair his war-damaged Moiseyev said. children,” he explained. “Ukraine consid- stay to take care of his daughter in Crimea- gym in Donetsk, east Ukraine. “If parents don’t have money to pay for ered attempts to keep my business run- the Ukrainian peninsula annexed by Russia He is just one of many local athletes training, we do it for free, despite our running as a criminal activity, and now I no in March 2014 — at the height of the fight- and sportsmen hit by the year-long con- ning costs.” longer have any contact with Ukraine,” he ing in eastern Ukraine has convinced him flict between pro-Russian separatists and Only the help of colleagues in Russia added. to stay at home, despite the obstacles. Ukrainian forces that has left more 6,000 and the Czech Republic has kept the club’s “Living in Crimea, I realised how diffi- dead. doors open, said Moiseyev, adding that Strapped for cash cult it is to live in another state, away from “In our village, which is two kilometres counterparts in Ukraine had offered little For race car driver Vasyl Kobenok, 28, home,” he said. (over a mile) from Donetsk airport, there is support. the unrecognised DNR’s exclusion from “I will stay in Donetsk and I plan to con- not a single house intact, and our home “We often went to competitions in Lviv international sporting bodies is a big prob- tinue my career here. I want to develop the and our dojo (training place) were hit,” and in the Carpathian Mountains (both in lem. sport in my hometown, teaching motor- explained the karate teacher. western Ukraine), but no Ukrainian club “Even the Russian Automobile sports to children.” “Before the war, my club was very has offered to help.” Federation has not officially accepted us,” Equestrian centre director Irma strong. We won many trophies at world Basketball player Oleg Golovin, 34, has he lamented. Svetlichnaya has also vowed to stay, and European championships. Now, due been training for a year ahead of the But scraping together enough money despite choosing to take an indefinite to the military activities, we only have 10 EuroBasket 2015 biennial tournament, to buy fuel and get his car on the starting break from competition. percent of the students.” which was initially meant to take place in grid is now the biggest challenge facing “We do not participate in competitions The self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Ukraine, but which will now be hosted by Kobenok, a past winner in Ukraine. because we don’t want the horses to get Republic (DNR) that took power in the France, Croatia, Germany and Latvia in “Preparing the car has become two to hurt,” she explained. “We don’t want them region last year is not recognised by the September. He too revealed frustrations at three times more expensive,” he said. to go through the checkpoints and conflict international community, making it impos- authorities in Kiev. “Last year, competing in a rally in Odessa zones. No medal is worth it. —AFP

England quells Pietersen talk ahead of West Indies tour LONDON: England flew out to the Caribbean yesterday suppressing fevered talk about Kevin Pietersen’s possible international return and insisting the upcoming test series against the West Indies isn’t make or break for coach Peter Moores. Pietersen is once again the talk of English cricket after the incoming ECB chairman said the divisive batsman could get back in the squad after more than a year out if he performs well in the county game. Pietersen isn’t in England’s squad for the West Indies tour, but Moores said it is time to focus on the players currently in the national team. “The frustration for me is that people whose dreams are being made by going on this tour aren’t being mentioned,” Moores said. “They are not getting any air time and it’s frustrating. “I understand Kevin’s a huge subject, but I don’t think we can be drawn into that. We’ve got to be completely focused on what’s ahead of us.” Speaking at London’s Gatwick Airport before England headed out to the Caribbean, Moores said Pietersen “isn’t on the radar.” Moores’ job is under pressure after England’s group-stage exit from the Cricket World Cup in Australia and New Zealand, and the coach will be hop- TAMPA: Tampa Bay Rays Kevin Kiermaier (39) hits a foul ball during the Spring training game against the New ing a return to test cricket - England’s favoured format - lifts some of York Yankees in Tampa on Wednesday, April 1, 2015. —AP the gloom. “We’ve got these 16 guys going to the West Indies who are desper- ate to turn around England cricket,” test captain Alastair Cook. “We Garcia homers, Abreu has need to get back to winning ways.” Colin Graves, the incoming ECB chairman, said “there will be some enquiries” if England failed to win the series against the West Indies, who he said will be “mediocre” opposition since many of their stars are playing in the Indian Premier League. more hits for White Sox Moores dismissed the suggestion that Graves’ comments added extra pressure, saying: “It doesn’t work like that. “From my point of view PEORIA: Avisail Garcia homered among his “against a guy who’s pretty good. It was good strikes, fields his position. I said every year I’m it’s not about the coach, it’s about the players, it’s about winning . I’m three hits and drove in four runs, Jose Abreu to get some knocks and do our thing. We’ll def- looking for surprises, and he’s a surprise.” going no further: we’ve got five weeks, three tests. If we play really well, added to his sizzling spring training with two initely take a day like this, building momentum Olson, who’d never pitched above Double- we’ll gain momentum into a big summer (home series against New more hits and a Chicago White Sox split squad going into the season.” A, has not allowed an earned run and has 15 Zealand and Australia). The focus has to be playing the right sort of beat the Seattle Mariners 12-4 on Wednesday. Chicago teed off on Paxton, who’ll be in strikeouts in 10 games (12 2-3 innings) this cricket.” The first of three tests against the West Indies starts on April 13 Abreu raised his spring training-leading Seattle’s rotation. Paxton allowed seven runs spring. in Antigua. —AP batting average to .518 (29 for 56). Garcia and on 10 hits in 3 1-3 innings. “Just one of those Starting pitcher Taijuan Walker is also on the White Sox are looking forward to getting days,” Paxton said. “It’s going to feel good to that list after posting a 0.36 ERA (25 innings) in the regular season started. “I’m ready, and get back to Seattle and get that real game-time six starts, though it’s not official where Walker thanks to God I’m healthy,” Garcia said in adrenalin pumping.” Seth Smith drove in will fall in the rotation order. Spanish. Seattle’s first run with a two-out single in the “It was a fastball high and away,” Garcia said third. TRANSACTIONS of his home run off Mariners starter James The White Sox reassigned pitchers Jesse Paxton. “I turned on it and it got out.” BIG WINNER Crain and Carlos Rodon to minor league camp Melky Cabrera added a two-run double, Tyler Olson, a rookie left-handed reliever before the game. Rodon had a good spring, Jeremy Farrell had four hits including a two-run from Spokane, Washington, made the striking out a team-high 21 in six games (five home run and White Sox second baseman Mariners’ opening-day roster. Mariners manag- starts) with a 3.05 ERA. Carlos Sanchez, who will be on the opening- er Lloyd McClendon has Olson’s name on a day roster after a very good spring at the plate, board in his office that lists the 25-man roster. STARTING TIME COLOMBO: In this Thursday, Nov 20, 2014 file pho- had four hits and two RBIs. “Take a look at the board,” McClendon said Mariners: Paxton dismissed his perform- to, England’s cricket captain Alastair Cook, left, and Gordon Beckham went 3 for 4 with two when asked about Olson. “Shows a lot of poise ance: “If a game like this happens in Seattle, team coach Peter Moores listen to a question during RBIs for the White Sox. “It’s good to see what and the ability to get right-handers and left- then we’ve got a problem,” he said, “but right a press conference ahead of their one day interna- we did with a split squad,” Beckham said, handers out. Holds runners, works fast, throws now I feel good about where I am.” —AP tional series against Sri Lanka in Colombo. —AP Sports FRIDAY, APRIL 3, 2015 Harden’s career-high 51 lead Rockets over Kings 115-111

HOUSTON: James Harden strengthened his case for the MVP triple-double of the season, the 17th of his career and his eighth rebounds and had two blocks as Utah cruised past Denver. award with a career-high 51 points, and the Houston Rockets since the All-Star break. Anthony Morrow scored 32 points and Gobert was coming off his 22nd double-double of the season squandered a huge early lead but held on for a 115-111 win over Enes Kanter added a career-high 30 points and 16 rebounds for Monday. The Nuggets scored 29 first-quarter points, then 30 in the Sacramento Kings on Wednesday night. Houston was up by the Thunder. According to STATS, it was the first time a team had the second and third quarters combined. Derrick Favors scored nine with about eight minutes left when Sacramento used a 9-2 three players score at least 30 points in a game since Westbrook, 19, had seven rebounds and three blocks as the Jazz frontcourt spurt to get within 104-102 with 5 1/2 remaining. An 8-0 run by Kevin Durant and James Harden did it for Oklahoma City on March dominated. Dante Exum had a career-high 12 assists. Kenneth Harden, which he capped with a 3-point play, pushed the lead to 7, 2012. Chandler Parsons added 22 points for the Mavericks, who Faried scored 19 points and added 10 rebounds for the Nuggets, 112-104. Four straight points by the Kings cut the lead to four with had seven players score in double figures. while Ty Lawson finished with 15. less than a minute left, but they didn’t score after that. DeMarcus Cousins led the Kings with his second career triple-double with 24 points, 21 rebounds and 10 assists after missing Monday’s game to rest. He also had six blocks. Wednesday’s performance surpassed Harden’s previous career best of 50 points, which came on March 19.

SPURS 103, MAGIC 91 Aron Baynes had 18 points, Manu Ginobili added 13 and San Antonio clinched a playoff berth with a win over Orlando. San Antonio, which posted its fifth straight victory, is 15-3 since Feb. 27 and has made the postseason in 18 consecutive seasons. It was the Spurs’ eighth straight win over Orlando. Victor Oladipo led the Magic with 24 points, while Nik Vucevic added 16 points and 11 rebounds. Orlando has lost four straight, and 10 out of its last 11. Playing in the second game of a back-to-back, the Spurs were able to rest forward Tim Duncan. He started, but played just 12 minutes, scoring six points.

WIZARDS 106, 76ERS 93 Marcin Gortat scored 23 points and grabbed 14 rebounds, Bradley Beal added 20 points, and Washington defeated Philadelphia. John Wall chipped in 13 points and 15 assists for Washington, which had lost five of six. The Wizards (42-33), who clinched a playoff spot Monday, began play three games behind the Raptors for fourth place in the Eastern Conference. Ish Smith tied his season high with 23 points and Isaiah Canaan added 18 for the 76ers (18-58), who have lost four straight overall and 18 of 19 on the road.

CELTICS 100, PACERS 87 Kelly Olynyk scored 19 points after nearly missing the game with an eye injury sustained hours before tip-off, and Boston beat Indiana in a matchup of Eastern Conference playoff hopefuls. Tyler Zeller scored 17 of his 19 points in the first half and Evan Turner finished with 13 points, 12 assists and 11 rebounds for Boston, which is a half-game out of a playoff spot. The Celtics sit just behind Brooklyn and Miami, who are tied for seventh place in the East. George Hill had 21 points and Rodney Stuckey scored 16 for the Pacers, who lost for the ninth time in 11 games and fell two games behind Boston.

NETS 100, KNICKS 98 Brook Lopez’s follow shot with 2 seconds left gave the Brooklyn Nets their fifth straight victory and a share of seventh LOS ANGELES: New Orleans Pelicans forward Anthony Davis, left, dunks as Los Angeles Lakers forward Ryan Kelly defends place in the Eastern Conference, as they beat the New York during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Wednesday, in Los Angeles. — AP Knicks. The Nets blew a 16-point, second-half lead but escaped what could have been a crushing loss thanks to Lopez’s effort on BUCKS 95, BULLS 91 PELICANS 113, LAKERS 92 the boards on their last possession. Deron Williams had 26 points, Michael Carter-Williams had 21 points and 10 rebounds to Anthony Davis scored 20 points and the New Orleans seven rebounds and seven assists in one of his best games of the lead Milwaukee Bucks to a rare victory at home over Chicago. Pelicans inched closer to a possible playoff berth with a rout of season. And when he missed in the lane with the game tied at 98, The Bucks (37-38), who lost their previous nine home games the Los Angeles Lakers. New Orleans’ third straight victory, cou- Lopez tipped the ball once, then knocked it in on his second against the Bulls, also got 16 points from Ersan Ilyasova. pled with Oklahoma City’s 135-131 loss to Dallas, brought the attempt. Andrea Bargnani scored 22 points for the Knicks, who Milwaukee won for just the third time in its last 11 games and Pelicans within 1 1/2 games of the Thunder for eighth place in lost their eighth straight. maintains a 2 1/2-game lead over Miami and Brooklyn for sixth the Western Conference and completed a four-game season place in the Eastern Conference. Chicago’s seven-game winning sweep of the Lakers. Six players scored in double digits for New HORNETS 102, PISTONS 78 streak against Milwaukee ended despite 25 points and seven Orleans, including Norris Cole with 17 off the bench. Jordan Marvin Williams scored 18 points and Charlotte cruised past rebounds from Jimmy Butler. Pau Gasol added 14 points and 11 Clarkson had 18 points, 10 assists and seven rebounds for the lot- Detroit. Kemba Walker had 17 points and Gerald Henderson rebounds for the Bulls, who have lost seven of their last nine on tery-bound Lakers, who dropped to 11-25 at home and 20-53 added 14 as the Hornets won for only the third time in 10 games the road. overall. to keep pace in the Eastern Conference playoff race. Charlotte entered the night two games behind eighth-place Brooklyn. RAPTORS 113, TIMBERWOLVES 99 CLIPPERS 126, TRAIL BLAZERS 122 Before the game, Hornets center Al Jefferson had his knee Lou Williams scored 18 points to lead a balanced Toronto Chris Paul had a season-high 41 points and 17 assists and drained for the third time in eight days. He finished with 11 points offense as the Raptors defeated the Minnesota Timberwolves. Six the Los Angeles Clippers rallied in the second half for a victory and nine rebounds, sitting out the fourth quarter because of the players scored at least 13 points for the Raptors, who shot 55.3 over the Trail Blazers, denying Portland a chance at clinching big lead. Jodie Meeks led Detroit with 15 points. Andre percent from the field. DeMar DeRozan had 17 points, Terrance the Northwest Division title. The loss snapped a four-game win- Drummond was in early foul trouble and finished with 13 points Ross 16, Jonas Valanciunas 15, Greivis Vasquez 14 and James ning streak for the Blazers, who needed a win to secure their and nine rebounds. Johnson chipped in 13 for Toronto. Andrew Wiggins scored 25 first division title since the 2008-09 season when they shared it points, Zach LaVine had 22 and Chase Budinger added 19 for with Denver. J.J. Redick added 25 points, including five 3-point- MAVERICKS 135, THUNDER 131 Minnesota, which lost its fourth straight. ers, and eight rebounds for the Clippers, who trailed by as Monta Ellis scored 26 points, and Dallas withstood a triple-dou- many as 19 points in the first half and then held off a furious ble from Russell Westbrook to beat Oklahoma City. Westbrook fin- JAZZ 98, NUGGETS 84 Portland rally at the end. LaMarcus Aldridge led the Blazers ished with 31 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists. It was his 10th Rudy Gobert scored a career-high 20 points, grabbed 12 with 29 points. — AP Sports FRIDAY, APRIL 3, 2015 Korean Park back at happy hunting ground

RANCHO MIRAGE: Park In-bee returns to petition at a sun-bathed Mission Hills on for the first major of the year,” said the 26- Park, who was the game’s dominant player one of her most successful venues for this Wednesday. “Some weeks I get my game to year-old. “I feel like I’m in good form. This is a in 2013 when she won the first three majors week’s ANA Inspiration at Mission Hills that level, and even this year as well, but that tough golf course, a really good test. It really of the year. “Getting back to No. 1 is definite- Country Club where two years ago she won week in 2013 my game was perfect. “I don’t inspires a lot of people to play well.” ly a good goal for me for this year, but her second major title with a “nearly perfect” think I’m as good as that right now. I think I Park clinched her 13th LPGA title by two because I’ve been there before ... I think I’m a display. Park was the overnight leader head- will get to that point sometime this year, but shots at the HSBC Women’s Champions after little bit more relaxed. I feel like with good ing into the final round in 2013 and was nev- I was just a little bit unhappy with the ball- holding off world number one Lydia Ko and golf I’ll get there. “But that’s not my only er threatened after she birdied the first two striking last week.” Park, a five-times major third-ranked Stacy Lewis in the Singapore concern. Obviously the career grand slam is holes on the way to a commanding four- champion, has already triumphed once on heat, ratcheting up the ‘Big Three’ rivalry in in my mind, that would be the one that I stroke victory. the LPGA Tour this season, winning the the women’s game. really want the most,” said Park, who needs “That week my game was nearly perfect,” HSBC Women’s Champions in Singapore last “It’s good to feel the rivalry between to win the Women’s British Open and the the South Korean world number two told month before placing fifth at the Kia Classic Stacy and Lydia because that definitely Evian Championship to complete the full set reporters before playing in the pro-am com- in Carlsbad last week. “I’m just really excited inspires you to get better and better,” smiled of five. — Reuters Philadelphia win 4-1 at undermanned Penguins

PITTSBURGH: Brayden Schenn scored twice, Vincent Lecavalier added his first goal in nearly three months, and the Philadelphia Flyers had little trouble with the injury-depleted Pittsburgh Penguins 4-1 on Wednesday night. Carlo Colaiacovo chipped in a rare goal for the Flyers, who ended a nine-game, road-losing streak. Steve Mason stopped 24 shots for Philadelphia as the Flyers won their seventh straight game in Pittsburgh. Sidney Crosby scored his 300th career goal for the Penguins and boosted his NHL-leading point total to 80, but Pittsburgh mus- tered little offense on a night the team played without injured stars Evgeni Malkin and Kris Letang. Marc-Andre Fleury made 27 saves for the Penguins, who remained tied with the New York Islanders for second place in the Metropolitan Division.

DUCKS 5, OILERS 1 Andrew Cogliano and Francois Beauchemin each had a goal and an assist, and Anaheim clinched its third straight Pacific Division title with a victory ANAHEIM: Derek Roy #8 of the Edmonton Oilers and Hampus over Edmonton. Corey Perry, Nate Lindholm #47 of the Anaheim Ducks reach for the puck at Honda Thompson and Simon Despres also Center on April 1 in Anaheim, California. — AFP scored in the fourth straight win for the NHL-leading Ducks, who became the first team to wrap up a division race with their two points of 29th-place Arizona. James eighth victory in 10 games overall. NHL results/standings van Riemsdyk, Eric Brewer and Nazem Frederik Andersen made 22 saves, and Kadri scored for Toronto (29-43-6), which squandered a chance to win three Jakob Silfverberg had a career-high three Buffalo 4, Toronto 3; Philadelphia 4, Pittsburgh 1; Anaheim 5, Edmonton 1; San Jose 5, assists in a dominant effort by the Ducks, Colorado 1. straight for the first time since a six-game who lead Nashville by four points for run from Dec. 10-16. The Maple Leafs are Western Conference Tampa Bay 47 24 7 250 204 101 10-34-3 since. home-ice advantage throughout the Pacific Division Detroit 40 23 13 221 208 93 Western Conference playoffs. Ryan W L OTL GF GA PTS Boston 39 25 13 204 198 91 Nugent-Hopkins scored and Ben Scrivens SHARKS 5, AVALANCHE 1 Anaheim 50 22 7 232 217 107 Ottawa 38 26 12 220 204 88 stopped 22 shots for the 28th-place Scott Hannan and Chris Tierney scored Vancouver 45 27 5 224 208 95 Florida 35 27 15 192 210 85 Oilers, whose three-game winning streak Calgary 42 28 7 229 204 91 to help San Jose keep its slim playoff Toronto 29 43 6 204 249 64 ended. Anaheim swept the clubs’ four- Los Angeles 37 25 14 201 192 88 hopes alive in a win over Colorado. Patrick Buffalo 22 47 8 152 258 52 game season series. San Jose 38 30 9 217 216 85 Marleau also scored and Logan Couture Edmonton 23 41 13 186 260 59 Metropolitan Division and John Scott added empty-net goals for Arizona 23 46 8 161 256 54 NY Rangers 48 21 7 231 179 103 the Sharks, who have won 13 straight reg- SABRES 4, MAPLE LEAFS 1 ular-season home games against Matt Moulson and Matt Ellis scored Central Division NY Islanders 45 27 5 235 215 95 Nashville 47 22 9 224 193 103 Pittsburgh 42 24 11 211 194 95 Colorado. Alex Stalock made 19 saves in 1:41 apart in the third period, and Buffalo St. Louis 46 23 7 229 190 99 his third straight start in place of sick rallied to beat Toronto. Washington 42 25 10 227 190 94 Chicago 46 24 6 217 176 98 Philadelphia 31 29 17 202 220 79 starter Antti Niemi. The Sabres overcame a 3-1 second- Minnesota 44 25 7 219 186 95 Columbus 37 35 4 210 234 78 Matt Duchene scored a power-play period deficit and won their second Winnipeg 39 26 12 217 204 90 goal for the Avalanche, who began a New Jersey 31 33 13 170 197 75 straight, inching closer to moving out of Dallas 37 30 10 239 248 84 three-game road trip with a loss. Reto last place in the NHL. Zac Dalpe and Cody Colorado 35 30 12 207 218 82 Carolina 28 37 11 176 208 67 Barra made 25 saves. The Sharks moved Hodgson also scored. Ellis added an assist, Eastern Conference Note: Overtime losses (OTL) are worth one within five points of Winnipeg for the final and Brian Gionta set up two goals for Atlantic Division point in the standings and are not included wild-card spot in the Western Conference Buffalo (22-47-8), which moved to within Montreal 47 22 8 203 174 102 in the loss column (L). with five games remaining. —AP Sports FRIDAY, APRIL 3, 2015

Former managers say reform vital to England’s World Cup hopes

LONDON: England’s prospects of ever winning another on Wednesday, said English players accounted for a mere of 25 to be reduced from 17 to 13, phased over four years World Cup will suffer unless reforms are introduced to 32 per cent of playing time in the Premier League last year from 2016. give home-grown players more chances to shine, five for- compared with almost 70 per cent two decades previously. “In 2014, just 23 English players were playing mer England managers have warned. Champions League football. That compares with 78 Glenn Hoddle, Kevin Keegan, Sven-Goran Eriksson, ‘The trend cannot continue’ Spanish players, 55 from Germany and even 51 from Graham Taylor and Steve McClaren signed a joint letter to “There are many reasons why England has failed to win Brazil-and the numbers will only get worse,” he said in an FA chairman Greg Dyke backing his proposals for change, any major honours since 1966 and each of us bears a por- FA statement last month. the Daily Telegraph newspaper reported on Thursday. tion of that responsibility. “However... the pool of English “If we want to maintain a national side capable of com- In the letter, they called for swift implementation of talent playing at the very top level is shrinking and it’s an peting against the world’s best, we need change.” Dyke measures to ensure English players are given more match undeniable fact that this is a clear disadvantage for any set up the England Commission in 2013 to look at ways of exposure at top clubs to boost England’s chances of England manager,” added the managers. improving the chances of young English talent succeed- repeating the country’s lone 1966 World Cup success. Dyke has proposed changes to the home grown player ing at the highest levels of the game. “Failure to do so risks England falling further behind rule in English football to help more “top quality” English The Commission specifically identified a lack of quality the leading football nations and will only make it harder to players break through. coaching and opportunities for home grown players to end the long wait to win the World Cup,” they said. He wants a reduction in the maximum number of non- play competitive first team football between the ages of The letter, which the newspaper said was sent to Dyke home grown players permitted in a club’s first team squad 18 and 21. —Reuters

State of the Premier League championship race LONDON: Premier League. With no European prizes left to chase this season, England’s top clubs are focused on winning the Premier League title, although that goal looks beyond all but Chelsea. Arsenal and Liverpool, both in the top five with eight matches left, have the added incentive of trying to win the FA Cup but leaders Chelsea, champions Manchester City and a rejuvenated Manchester United are focused just on the main prize. Chelsea are strong favourites to finish as champions for the first time since 2010 as they lead with 67 points, six clear of City with a match in hand. Arsenal are a point further back after winning nine of their last 10, while United, fourth on 59, have also been in excellent form, winning their last four including a 2-1 win at Liverpool. Chelsea have led the table since the third week of the season and, despite a slight dip in form with two draws in their last four games, appear too far ahead to be caught. Coach Jose Mourinho is confident of a third title with the club after success- es in his first spell in 2005 and 2006.

Champions League The other battleground is the one for next season’s Champions League places and, while Arsenal and Manchester United have forged ahead of them, Liverpool, Southampton and SAO PAULO: Emerson (R) of Brazil’s Corinthians vies for the ball with Jorge Gravi (L) of Uruguay’s Danubio, Tottenham Hotspur are still hoping for a top four finish. during their 2015 Copa Libertadores football match held at Arena Corinthians stadium, in Sao Paulo, Brazil, on April 1. —AFP Europa League The consolation for Liverpool, Southampton and Spurs if they miss out on the Champions League could be a Europa League place. With League Cup winners Chelsea set to play in Arsenal, Liverpool focus the Champions League, their Europa spot will go to the sixth or seventh-placed team depending on who wins the FA Cup. on points not Cup glory Relegation Six clubs-Hull City (28 points), Aston Villa (28), Sunderland (26), Burnley (25), QPR (22) and Leicester City (19) are involved LONDON: The Premier League bursts least until Manchester City play at points, will be hoping to stay in touch in the battle to avoid relegation. back into life after the international Crystal Palace on Monday. with the leading quartet, both Villa’s form has picked up since Tim Sherwood took over as break this weekend with Arsenal and Chelsea, leaders since late August, Southampton and Totttenham will look manager six weeks ago, while Sunderland need a quick Liverpool clashing in a potential FA Cup host Stoke City, managed by the to overtake them if they should slip up. improvement under their new coach Dick Advocaat to avoid final dress rehearsal in the early kick-off London club’s ex-striker Mark Hughes, in Saints and Spurs are both a point slipping into the bottom three. at the Emirates tomorrow. Saturday’s late match and anything oth- behind Liverpool with the former travel- Burnley might take heart from their recent 1-0 win over Although the two teams are the er than a home win would be a major ling to erratic Everton and the latter vis- Manchester City, but QPR and Leicester look doomed to an favourites to meet in the Cup final at upset. iting relegation-threatened Burnley. immediate return to the Championship. Wembley at the end of May, of more Chelsea have played 29 matches, one Spurs had four players-Harry Kane, immediate concern to both will be the fewer than all of the chasing pack, and Ryan Mason, Kyle Walker and goalscorer Cup three points at stake tomorrow. are on 67 points, with second-placed Andros Townsend-in the England team Holders Arsenal face Reading in one FA Cup semi-final Victory for Arsenal would maintain City on 61, Arsenal with 60 and that drew 1-1 with Italy on Tuesday. while either Liverpool or Blackburn Rovers, who meet in a their unlikely late challenge for the title, Manchester United on 59. They will be hoping for a third win in quarter-final replay on April 8, face Aston Villa in the other while a Liverpool win would rekindle four over Burnley this season after beat- semi. their hopes of a top-four finish after IMPROVING VILLA ing them in an FA Cup third round their last match before the break ended Tomorrow, United host Aston Villa, replay in January. Promotion in a 2-1 home defeat by Manchester who have looked a better side since Tim Kane, meanwhile, who has scored 29 The tightest league in Europe has seen the Championship United. Sherwood took over as manager from goals for Tottenham this season includ- lead change hands throughout the season with Bournemouth, Arsenal have won their last six league Paul Lambert six weeks ago but are still ing a hat-trick against Leicester City last who have never played in the top flight, currently top, a point matches and halved the gap on leaders involved in the relegation fight. United time out, needs one more goal to ahead of Watford who occupy the other automatic promotion Chelsea from 14 points on Feb. 10 to should chalk up a fifth successive league become the first Spurs player since Gary spot. —Reuters seven now and a win for the Gunners win. Lineker in 1991-92 to hit 30 goals in a would lift them into second place, at While Liverpool, who are fifth on 54 season. —Reuters FRIDAY, APRIL 3, 2015 www.kuwaittimes.net

HOUSTON: Sacramento Kings’ DeMarcus Cousins (15) tries to block a shot by Houston Rockets’ Corey Brewer (33) in the second half of an NBA basketball game Wednesday, in Houston. The Rockets won 115-111. — AP

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