1. law, govt and politics
2. government
3. embassies and consulates

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40 PAGES
NO: 16422
150 FILS
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2015
www.kuwaittimes.net
RABI ALTHANI 14, 1436 AH
Syrians throng embassy
after it resumes services
12,000 passports need renewal • Tight security around mission
Min 10º
Max 25º
High Tide
12:52 & 23:25
Low Tide
06:33 & 18:03
By Faten Omar
Activist’s jail
term upheld as
tweeters freed
Domestics’ law studied
By B Izzak
KUWAIT: The public prosecutor yesterday freed two
online activists on bail after questioning them along
with others over accusations of insulting Saudi King
Abdullah, who died less than two weeks ago. The
prosecutor freed Mohammad Khaled Al-Ajmi on a KD
1,000 bail pending trial after detaining him for five
days for allegedly writing comments on his Twitter
account deemed offensive to King Abdullah and
endangering diplomatic ties between Kuwait and the
kingdom.
The prosecutor also freed Flaih Al-Azemi, a journalist with an Arabic daily, after several days of detention
after facing similar accusations. No date has been yet
set for their trial. The decisions come one day after a
judge ordered the detention of two other tweeters for
10 days pending investigation over similar charges.
Arrest warrants have also been issued against a number of other activists for making similar charges.
Continued on Page 13
KUWAIT: Syrians living in Kuwait wait to renew their passports at their embassy yesterday after the diplomatic mission resumed consular services. — Photo by Yasser Al-Zayyat
KUWAIT: The Syrian Embassy resumed operations yesterday after being closed for nine months, with long
lines forming outside as Syrians rushed to complete
pending paperwork. An official source at the embassy,
who chose to remain anonymous, denied reports that
the embassy was closed to put pressure on Kuwait to
send back the Kuwaiti ambassador to Syria. “The reason
behind the closure of the embassy was because the
visas of the ambassador and some diplomats at the
embassy were not renewed, so they had to go back to
Syria,” he told Kuwait Times.
“Kuwait recalled its ambassador and diplomatic staff
for safety reasons, but Syria kept its embassy open in
Kuwait more than two years after the withdrawal of the
Kuwaiti ambassador from Syria,” the source said. “The
passports of approximately 12,000 Syrians need to be
renewed, according to the Ministry of Interior, but the
number was higher, as many Syrians renewed their
passport in Syrian embassies in the United Arab
Emirates and Oman. Because of the difficulty of entry
for some people into the UAE, they sent it via mail,” he
added.
The source assured that Kuwait “warmly welcomed”
the opening of the embassy, with a tight security presence around the mission. He added that the charge
d’affaires at the embassy is the de facto ambassador.
The Syrian embassy in Kuwait reopened last month
after a diplomatic team consisting of the charge d’affaires and two aides arrived in Kuwait.
Alarab off air hours after launch
UN: 2014 ‘hottest
year on record’
BRISBANE: Juris Greste, the father of Australian journalist Peter Greste (pictured
below), Peter’s brother Andrew Greste and his mother Lois Greste smile after
holding a press conference yesterday. — AP
Greste speaks of ‘angst’
over colleagues in jail
NICOSIA: Australian journalist Peter Greste
yesterday urged Egypt to free his jailed
colleagues at Al-Jazeera, describing his
“angst” at having to leave them behind
after being released. Greste, 49, was arrested for allegedly aiding the blacklisted
Muslim Brotherhood, along with colleagues Canadian-Egyptian Mohamed
Fahmy and Baher Mohamed of Egypt, in
moves that sparked worldwide condemnation. The award-winning correspondent
was freed and deported on Sunday after
more than 400 days behind bars in Cairo,
and he immediately flew with his brother
Michael to Cyprus, where he has been
resting before returning to Australia.
“This is a massive step forward... I just
hope that Egypt keeps going down this
path with the others,” Greste told AlJazeera in his first interview since leaving
prison. Greste said he felt a “real mix of
emotions boiling inside” upon hearing the
unexpected news that he was to be
released because it meant leaving behind
“my brothers” Fahmy and Mohamed. “I
Egyptian
PM woos
Kuwaiti
investors
5
went for a run and the prison warden
called me over and said: ‘It is time... to get
your stuff and go,’” he told the pan-Arab
television network.
“I feel incredible angst about my colleagues, leaving them behind,” he said.
“Amidst all this relief, I still feel a sense of
concern. If it’s appropriate for me to be
free, it’s right for all of them to be freed.”
Greste said he was overwhelmed by the
level of support for the campaign for his
release, and that he now looked forward
to “watching a few sunsets” and “feeling
sand under my toes”. “This has been like a
rebirth and you realise that it is those little
beautiful moments in life... that’s what’s
important.”
Fahmy’s relatives expect him to also be
deported under a decree passed by
Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi that
allows for the transfer of foreigners on trial.
His fiancee, Marwa Omara, told AFP in
Cairo: “We are expecting Mohamed to be
released in the coming days.”
Continued on Page 13
Obama
unveils
$4 trillion
budget
21
GENEVA: The year 2014 was the hottest on record,
part of a “warming trend” that appeared set to continue, the UN’s weather agency said yesterday. Average
global air temperatures in 2014 were 0.57 degrees
Celsius higher than the long-term average of 14 C for
a 1961-1990 reference period, the World
Meteorological Organization (WMO) said in a statement. “Fourteen of the 15 hottest years have all been
this century,” said WMO secretary general Michel
Jarraud. “In 2014, record-breaking heat combined
with torrential rainfall and floods in many countries
and drought in some others - consistent with the
expectation of a changing climate,” he added. Global
sea-surface temperatures also reached record levels.
United Nations members will meet in Geneva next
week for talks on a global climate pact that must be
signed in Paris in December for curbing greenhouse
gas emissions. The UN seeks to limit warming to no
more than 2 C over pre-Industrial Revolution levels,
but scientists warn the Earth is on target for double
that target - a scenario that could be catastrophic.
“We expect global warming to continue, given that
rising levels of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere
and the increasing heat content of the oceans are
committing us to a warmer future,” said Jarraud.
The WMO said that only a few hundredths of a
degree separated the warmest years. Average global
air temperatures in 2010 were 0.55 C above average,
compared to 2014’s 0.57 C, and 0.54 C in 2005.
Continued on Page 13
MANAMA: A new pan-Arab news channel
backed by a billionaire Saudi prince was
suspended from broadcasting from its
home in Bahrain yesterday, just hours after
it went on air and carried an interview
with a prominent opposition activist. The
Alarab television station said on its official
Twitter feed that coverage was halted for
“technical and administrative reasons”, and
that it hopes to be back on the air soon. It
went live on Sunday afternoon.
The unexpected stoppage, apparently
on the order of Bahraini authorities, came
just hours after Alarab surprised many
viewers by featuring Bahraini opposition
activist Khalil Al-Marzouq as one of its first
guests. Yusuf Mohammed, the media
director at Bahrain’s Information Affairs
Authority, cited similar reasons as the
channel for its being “temporarily suspended” in comments to the official
Bahrain News Agency. He did not give further details. He said the authorities are
working with Alarab management “to
swiftly resolve the matter”, and he expected the channel will resume broadcasting
soon.
Continued on Page 13
MANAMA: Advertising on the side of a skyscraper shows news anchors of the
newly launched Alarab TV network yesterday. — AP
Iran launches first satellite since 2012
TEHRAN: Iran launched an observation satellite yesterday its first since 2012 - with
President Hassan Rouhani declaring it safely
entered orbit and that he had personally
ordered the mission. The Fajr (Dawn) satellite
was successfully placed 450 km above Earth,
said Al-Alam television, an Arabic-language
station owned by the Islamic republic. It is the
fourth such satellite launch by Iran, after three
others between 2009 and 2012. The satellite
was locally made, said the official IRNA news
agency, as was its launcher, according to
Rouhani who noted Iran’s aim is to have no
reliance on foreign space technology. “Our sci-
‘Spewing
buffalos’:
Uganda’s
‘Uglish’
entists have entered a new phase for conquering space. We will continue on this path,”
Rouhani said in a short statement on state television.
Al-Alam said the Fajr satellite, weighing 52
kilos, would be able to take accurate pictures
from space. It took eight minutes to reach orbit
and is now linked with its ground-based controllers, state media said. The launch came as
Iran started 10 days of celebrations for the 36th
anniversary of the Islamic revolution, culminating on February 11, “Victory Day”, when the USbacked shah’s reign officially ended in 1979.
Defence Minister General Hossein Dehgan
40
echoed Rouhani’s comments, stating that the
21-m and 26 tonne launcher, named Safir-Fajr,
shows “the ability of Iran to build satellite
launchers”.
In February 2010, Iran launched a satellite
containing a rat, turtles and insects. Separate
missions under Iran’s space programme have
seen two capsules launched. One, in January
2013, included a monkey that was recovered
alive. Iran’s space activities, however, have
sent alarm bells ringing in the international
community amid concern over Tehran’s
development of technology that could have
military purposes. — AFP
Patriots win
Super Bowl
thriller over
Seahawks
20
LOCAL
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2015
Zain’s social projects in 2014
KUWAIT: Zain Telecom revealed that its strategic
path in the fields of social development and
responsibility witnessed important events in 2014,
during which it expressed more commitment
towards the sound practice of its social responsibilities in all fields. The company, which owns the
largest developed telecommunications network in
Kuwait, said that its commitment to making a positive effect on the society and environment is what
made it adopt a series of influential issues, adding
that it believes that its continued future is bright.
Zain, in light of this goal, explained that based on
the values it believes in, it will keep planning to
work on cases and opportunities related to the
components of the social fabric out of its belief in
the role of the private sector in improving social
and economic prosperity.
The company explained that with the start of
each year, it updates its attention towards influential issues, be it health, educational, cultural, sports,
economic and environmental. It believes in the
importance of the major role private establishments play in social development, and based on
that it seeks to use its resources to bring an added
value to the society.
Youth and education
Zain is proud of be the platinum sponsor of the
31st annual conference of Kuwait students in the
United States for more than 11 consecutive years,
because the company considers it a true opportunity to express its passion towards contacts with
future generations, especially students abroad,
since the conference sees a large number of students in the presence of many national personalities whose contributions resulted in the development of Kuwait in various fields.
Zain is keen on being present at events with
students in the United States at the end of each
year who represent the largest group of students
abroad. Through the participation of Zain next to
major decision makers in Kuwait as guests in the
conference, Zain considers this event as a unique
cultural gathering, because it is distinguished with
a high level of patriotic sense, specially that stu-
dents are seeking education abroad, so this major
annual event is considered the umbrella that
brings citizens of the country together.
Partnership with Loyac
Zain renewed its strategic partnership with
Loyac to become the major partner in the project
for more than 10 consecutive years, and this is the
project that aims at developing youth skills and
train 2,000 students each year.
Innovation camp
Zain organized innovation camps for training
secondary school students in cooperation with
Injaz throughout the year. The program targeted a
group of secondary schools students all over
Kuwait, and it gave the opportunity to 579 students during 2014 to benefit from many skills related to business and administration and was supervised by Zain employees, who represent the private sector.
‘Taleb’
Zain continued its support of the “Taleb” electronic project that won Kuwait’s electronic prize. It
is considered an electronic educational portal that
links more than 600,000 students with their
guardians and teachers through the Internet website of the project, in order to develop communications between the home and school environments.
Fun program
Among the projects that Zain established since
2008 and directed to the youth sector is the fun
program that gives a fantastic opportunity to university students in Kuwait to fill the gap between
studying and actual work experience. Students in
the program work as ambassadors for Zain and its
beautiful world in the company’s many activities.
Knowledge club
Zain announced its major participation in
the knowledge club, which is considered one
of the largest training projec ts that holds
workshops and hosts an elite group of inter-
national experts throughout the year.
Breast cancer
Zain launched its annual breast cancer awareness campaign in October 2014, which is the initiative it has adopted for the seventh consecutive year,
within its activation of its participation in awareness
campaigns and shedding light on breast cancer.
World Diabetes Day
Zain participates in the activities of the World
Diabetes Day on Nov 14 every year, in cooperation
with the Damsan Diabetes Institute.
Qout market
Zain announced its partnership with Qout market for the second season. This is the largest youth
initiative in Kuwait, aiming at spreading awareness
about a healthy lifestyle and consumption of organic and healthy products.
Hala February
Zain considers itself a major partner in the
national celebrations every year, and returned in
2014 with a new sponsorship of the Hala February
festival, which coincides with Kuwait’s celebration
of the national and liberation days.
Support of Gaza people
Zain made several humanitarian initiatives to
help Gaza and West Bank residents who are in dire
need during the catastrophic crises they went
through in the middle of 2014. The group gave various aid to the Palestinians to improve their living
conditions by donating $500,000 which was spent
on food and urgent medical aid in Gaza.
Cooperation with the Islamic
Charity Organization
Zain made notable efforts in supporting donation campaigns in cooperation with the IICO
through providing dynamic podiums such as SMS
services that provide a donation mechanism for
various projects that reduce people’s suffering, and
that is why the IICO honored Zain for its efforts.
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2015
LOCAL
In Brief
Weapons’ Collection Team
Developmental projects
KUWAIT: Well-informed security source said that a law
would be issued shortly concerning regulating weapons
collection and the penalties to be imposed for illegal
weapon possession. The sources added that the deputy PM
and Interior Minister Sheikh Mohammed Al-khaled would
soon issue a decision about forming the Weapon Collection
Teams that would be efficiently manned and equipped to
commence work immediately. “The teams will be probably
headed by the Acting Manager of Farwaniya Detectives’
Wanted Pursuit Team, Colonel Nayef Al-Hasawi.
KUWAIT: Kuwait continues to moving forward with its
developmental projects according to their set timeframe and within their technical specifications,
Minister of Public Works and Minister of Electricity and
Water Abdulaziz Al-Ibrahim said yesterday. Al-Ibrahim
made this remark in his opening speech at the second
engineering forum, organized by the Kuwait Society of
Engineers. The event was opened by the Minister of
behalf of His Highness the Crown Prince Sheikh Nawaf
Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah.
Kuwait flag - symbol of
patriotism and loyalty
KUWAIT: Kuwait’s flag has always been the symbol of
Kuwaiti’s unity, Minister of Information and Minister of
State for Youth Affairs Sheikh Salman Al-Homoud AlSabah said yesterday. He added in remarks to KUNA that
Kuwait’s celebration of flag hoisting on January 28 with
the honor of the attendance of His Highness the Amir
Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah and His
Highness the Crown Prince Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmad AlJaber Al-Sabah represents the importance of this
national event in the country.—KUNA
Kuwaitis can travel
Albania without visa
Tirana open for business
Ben Garcia
KUWAIT: Kuwaitis can now visit Albania
without a visa, according to the Albanian
embassy in Kuwait. The decision follows the
visit of Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama to
Kuwait last November. The no visa policy for
Kuwaitis will be implemented shortly to woo
more tourism and investors from Kuwait. “If
you are citizens of Kuwait or the United Arab
Albanian Ambassador to
Kuwait Kujtim Morina
Emirates you are free to go Albania just by
showing identification documents and passport. No visa is needed. This order will be
implemented starting Wednesday or two
days after the publication of this announcement,” said Kujtim Morina, Albanian
Ambassador to Kuwait during a press conference yesterday at the Albanian embassy in
Al-Zarah, South Surra.
“Kuwaitis can stay up to 90 days within a
period of six months. That is the new immigration procedure which takes effect shortly;
we want to convey this message to all
Kuwaitis,” he said. Morina admitted there few
Kuwaitis visit Albania, although it increased
last year when they implemented a no-visa
policy for Kuwaiti during summer vacation.
“The new no visa policy will help, because
this will be whole year round, not only in
summer. The free movement of citizens
helps increase trade exchanges and visits
from citizens of both countries,” he asserted.
Though one of the poorest nations in
Europe, Albania is growing in popularity as a
destination for tourists. “In 2014, we ranked
4th in the New York Times list of tourism destinations; another online survey we are
among top 10 tourism destinations,” said
Morina. The UNESCO Heritage Committee
identifies at least four locations in Albania as
being part of the world heritage list: Butrinti
National Park, Gjirokastra, Beranti, Isopolyphony.
Morina also added that the visit of their
Prime Minister Edi Rama to Kuwait on
November 18-20, 2014 marked a significant
step in strengthening bilateral relations
between the two countries.
“Our bilateral relations are excellent. In
the area of trade, is still low, but we are trying
our best to increase our economic
exchanges. We have several projects underway, like the support of Arab Funds in our
country really helps; they have 22 million
Kuwaiti dinar projects being undertaken
now in Albania and we want more Kuwaitis
to invest in Tirana; in fact, the delegation of
PM last Nov comprised several businessmen
and they came to seek partnership with their
counterparts,” he mentioned.
Many Kuwaiti companies have expressed
interest in Albania according to Morina and
many visited the country to make their own
assessments. “Some Kuwaiti companies
have already started their business in
Albania. In fact, we are open for business
and some of our priorities are in the areas of
tourism, agriculture, renewable energy, mining industry, manufacturing and investment,” Morina noted.
17,004 liquor bottles seized
By Hanan Al-Saadoun
KUWAIT: On a routine inspection campaign,
Ahmadi security arrested two Asians with 17,004
home-made liquor bottles, 36 barrels full of
liquor, 24 gas cylinders, seven plastic bags of
liquor and quantities of yeast they used in manufacturing the liquor.
Ex-convict arrested
Ahmadi police arrested an ex-convict wanted on several cases. He was in an abnormal
condition, and had 69 Captagon tablets, 10
narcotic pills, a black bag with one shabu
envelope, five half-empty envelopes containing what is suspected to be drugs, and six
wrappers containing a brown substance suspected of being heroin. Drugs paraphernalia
was also found. KD70 in forged currency along
with other suspected substances were also
found, along with an air rifle and two boxes of
bullets. The car the suspect drove was used in
a theft. The suspect was sent to concerned
authorities.
Gang of 4 nabbed
A gang of four was arrested with half a kilo of
meth, 50 gm of marijuana, 250 psychotropic
pills, two guns, ammunition and some fireworks,
said security sources. Case papers indicate that
narcotic detectives had been tipped off concerning a citizen selling drugs. He was arrested along
with two other citizens and a GCC national in a
camp.
High-voltage cables stolen
An MEW employee reported that on sending
electricity technicians to fix a power failure in a
power unit, they found out that some high-voltage cables and DPUs had been stolen.
Alexey Solomatin, Russia Ambassador in Kuwait
Suspects escape
Jahra security are hunting for two suspects
who escaped arrested after others surrounded
two security officers, preventing them from
doing their job, said security sources. Case
papers indicate that a man was arrested for an
armed robbery using a cleaver to threaten a grocer, before another person with no ID showed
up asking to release him. Both men were arrested for not holding any IDs, but soon a few others
showed up, creating commotion around the
patrol to enable the two suspects to escape. In
another development, a citizen and owner of a
baqala reported that an unidentified person
stopped his delivery man and stole KD80 in
cash, in addition to a number of prepaid mobile
recharge cards.
KD 450, ATM cards missing
A citizen reported that an unidentified robber
broke her vehicle window and stole her purse
with KD 100 in it in addition to that of her sisterin-law with KD350 in it and ATM cards, which he
used to withdraw money from their bank
accounts. A case was filed and further investigations are in progress.
Ambassador hails
Russia-Kuwait ties
By Faten Omar
KUWAIT: Russian Ambassador to Kuwait
Alexey Solomatin yesterday hailed RussianKuwaiti ties, as Kuwait was the first country in
the Arabian Gulf to establish diplomatic relations with Russia. “There is respect and a desire
to cooperate more with Kuwait and exchange
visits. We are expecting a proposal from Russia
to set up a joint committee with the government of Kuwait in March. Meetings and talks
covering economic, technical, cultural, scientific and education fields will also be held,” he
said.
The Embassy of Russia in Kuwait will celebrate Diplomat’s Day on Feb 10, the mission
also announced. In 1549 on the same day, the
first Russian government was responsible for
foreign affairs. But the Russian foreign ministry
was only founded in 1802 by a decree from
Russian Emperor Alexander the First. Solomatin
stated that Russia will celebrate the 70th
anniversary of victory in the Second World War
on May 9. The Russian embassy will also organize an official reception at the embassy to celebrate Russian National Day on June 12.
On expanded EU sanctions on Russia,
imposing asset freezes and visa bans on 15
Russian officials and Ukrainian rebel leaders,
Solomatin said such steps do not help in solving problems and there must be direct dialogue between Russia and the European Union.
“We are trying to make our relationship with
Western countries stronger, but after this decision, Russia decided to freeze contacts with the
EU for a year, not forever,” he said.
The EU targeted a number of high-ranking
Russian officials, including Deputy Prime
Minister Dmitry Kozak and General Valery
Gerasimov and pro-Russian separatist leaders
in eastern Ukraine, but steered clear of sanctions on business leaders. “There were economic and social problems and related problems in
all fields, so we could not work intensively on
international relationships. We are making
efforts to develop relations with Western countries first. We need to continue to strengthen
US-Russian relations, because there is great
responsibility in US to what is happening in
Russia and what is happening in the whole
world,” he said.
“Russia will participate in solving the problems in the Middle East. We do not interfere
directly and we do not impose political or economic pressures on any country, but we want
to solve those problems peacefully,” Solomatin
said. “The Moscow talks with Syrian opposition
figures and the Damascus government ended
perfectly and were successful. We will keep
holding such meetings and we support meetings in other countries such as Egypt. Russia is
interested in making peace in Iraq, Syria and
Yemen,” he added.
Students benefit
from Gulf Bank
red account
KUWAIT: Gulf Bank announced that it
will be present at the American
University of Kuwait (AUK) during the
registration period from 1-5 February
2015, whereby the Bank will have a fully
manned stand to assist students in their
banking arrangements. Gulf Bank’s presence aims at informing students about
the red account, the Bank’s dedicated
program specially designed for students
aged 17 to 24 years. The account requires
no deposit to open and can be used as a
savings accounts with monthly interest
payments. In addition, red account holders receive regular special offers and discounts at over 150 outlets in Kuwait. To
find out more about the red account and
its unique benefits for young people, students can visit the Bank’s stand at AUK or
any one of Gulf Bank’s 59 branches, or call
the Customer Contact Center on
1805805. Information is also available on
the Bank’s bilingual website at www.egulfbank.com/red .
Awareness about Alzheimer’s
By Nawara Fattahova
KUWAIT: The Women’s Cultural and Social
Society held a one-day event at The Avenues
yesterday to raise awareness about
Alzheimer’s. Members of the society distributed awareness brochures and booklets. An
illustrative screen displayed detailed information, while two doctors were available,
one in the morning and the other in the
evening, to answer questions related to
Alzheimer’s. Specialists from the old-age
home were also present.
“We have a health committee for health
projects such as Al Amal Club that deals with
cancer, Al Asdiqa Club caring for psychiatric
diseases and Al Bustan nursery for children
with hearing difficulties. The society also
holds awareness courses and conferences,
and these include for Alzheimer’s,” Moudhi
Sqeer, a member of the society, told Kuwait
Times yesterday. “Alzheimer’s is spreading,
especially since people now live longer and
we have more elderly people. Alzheimer’s
usually affects people above 65 years of age,
but rarely it can even affect a 50-year-old,
and the risk increases at 85,” she added.
There are no exact statistics in Kuwait as
well as in most Middle East countries about
this disease. “We are cooperating with the
old-age home that provides us with unofficial statistics. According to them, there are
about 60,000 elderly Kuwaitis, and about 5
percent of them (3,000) are or may be suffering from Alzheimer’s. This figure is an approximate one as in our conservative community,
people keep this secret and feel ashamed
about others knowing this,” explained Sqeer.
The event was mainly for families or caregivers of patients with Alzheimer’s. “As the
patient is usually isolated from the society,
and those taking care of him - whether fami-
ly members or medical staff - suffer from
depression or psychological problems, we try
to help them by providing awareness
through books and brochures that we publish or through the courses we hold,” she noted. “We give them information, such as for
instance if a patient is afraid of loud noises,
they should not talk to him from the back
but should approach from the front. If he is
scared of darkness in the afternoon, they
should take care of that. We teach them ways
of dealing and taking care of the patient,” she
added.
“This is the first time such an event was
held at a mall, as we want to tell the community about our work and what we do. We
want them to communicate with us. We also
let the visitors to register their contact information so we can inform them when we
have an event to make them benefit from it,”
concluded Sqeer.
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2015
LOCAL
Egypt’s PM lures
Kuwait investors
KUWAIT: Ayman Al Mutairi, Senior Corporate Communications Manager at
VIVA pictured with Kuwait Fire Service Directorate (KFSD)’s team.
VIVA launches a campaign
‘Your Safety is Our Priority’
KUWAIT: VIVA, Kuwait’s fastest-growing
and most developed telecom operator,
organized a national campaign titled “Your
Safety is Our Priority” in collaboration with
Kuwait Fire Service Directorate (KFSD). The
campaign seeks to promote awareness
among desert campers of fire hazards that
could occur in tents, and how to prevent
such accidents from happening during
vacations and camping season. VIVA will
send educational messages about fire hazards and how to react in a fire emergency
via SMSs about the awareness boards in
camps that guide campers.
VIVA’s initiative to raise awareness of fire
hazards and prevention stems from its
belief in the importance of protecting the
environment and promoting prevention
measure and awareness among campers
during this season. VIVA is also involved in
the local community and youth welfare as
it continues to raise awareness, encourage
collaboration among various segments of
society, as well as responsibility towards
others.
VIVA will continue to raise awareness and
adhere to its core principles by supporting
and developing educational programs while
increasing its social involvement to serve
various groups of society. To learn more
about VIVA’s Corporate Social Responsibility
initiative, please visit the company’s CSR
focused portal https://www.viva.com.kw/csr.
It offers a description of each CSR initiative
that VIVA has supported, or adopted since
its inception.
KUWAIT: Egypt ’s visiting Prime M inister
Ibrahim Mahlab said yesterday that his country
is preparing a package of legislative reforms to
lure more foreign direct investments (FDI) to
breathe life into the ailing economy of the
Arab most populous state. “A higher committee for legislative reforms is reviewing a large
number of laws, at the forefront of which is the
investment law, with a view to cur tailing
bureaucracy and cutting time of paper work
processing,” Mahlab said in a speech during a
visit the Kuwait’s Chamber of Commerce and
Industry (KCCI).
“The new investment law will be completed
before the convention of the international economic conference which Egypt will organize
on March 13,” he affirmed. He pointed out that
the current situation in Egypt requires solidarity and cooperation among regional countries
to overcome the huge security and economic
challenges. Mahlab noted that Egypt will set a
new mechanism to ensure quick settlement of
investment-related disputes.
“ The government is keen on crack ing
down on corruption at the state bodies and
on improving the performance of civil servants through reforming the civil servants
and labor laws,” he stressed. He added that
Egypt is also working on a unified land law
and a bankruptcy law to achieve the interest
of the state and investors and avoid future
disagreements. The Premier suggested that
the Egypt ’s economic conference aims to
improve the living standards and economic
conditions of the low-income people who
make up 25 of the population.
Over 25 mega projects in the different sector
would be put forward for investment during
the conference, he said. KCCI President Ali Al-
the Egyptian economy to help recover it.
Al-Ghanim also urged Egypt to take all
required measures to create an investmentfriendly environment. He unveiled that Premier
Mahlab will receive, starting from today, the
complaints of Kuwaiti companies which have
investments in Egypt to be consider and
KUWAIT: Egyptian Prime Minister Ibrahim Mahlab (left) and Chairman of Kuwait
Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI) Ali Al-Ghanim gesture during a meeting
with Kuwaiti and Egyptian businessmen yesterday at the KCCI headquarters in
Kuwait City. —Photo by Yasser Al-Zayyat
Ghanim underscored that Kuwait is eager to
support Egyptian economy and a large Kuwaiti
investment delegation would par take in
Egypt’s economic conference. He also encouraged Arab investors to pour more money into
resolved. Mahlab started a three-day official
visit to Kuwait on Sunday, in response to an
official invitation by His Highness the Prime
Minister Sheikh Jaber Al-Mubarak Al-Hamad AlSabah. —KUNA
ABK holds graduation ceremony for Academy’s 15th batch trainees
KUWAIT: Al Ahli Bank of Kuwait held a graduation ceremony for ABK
Academy’s 15th batch of trainees, an occasion well attended by members of
ABK Management. Hamza Enki, GM, Human Resources said that the professional training imparted by the ABK Academy encourages Kuwaiti youth to
work and experience the banking sector - part of the reason why it achieves its
Kuwaitisation ratio.
Jassem Al Salman, AGM, Human Resources maintained that the Academy’s
15th batch of successful, well-trained graduates was the result of a combined
effort, led by Retail Banking and supported by other divisions. The rigorous
and structured training stemmed from a belief in the importance of new
recruits committed to the banking industry, whose focus on confidentiality
and customer care would pave the way for a new generation of professionals
in ABK. He expressed his gratitude to the various Divisions for their contribution towards the success of the Academy.
Officials of the ABK Academy congratulated the graduates for choosing to
be part of the banking sector, a highly professional environment that focused
on career development. They reiterated that providing premium customer
service to the ABK customer was the most important aspect for the new
employees. The ABK Academy was launched in 2009 and developed its programs and initiatives through the years, to become the primary destination for
job seekers in the banking sector.ABK welcomes fresh graduates to join the
Bank by submitting their applications through the websitewww.eahli.com.
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2015
LOCAL
kuwait digest
kuwait digest
Reconsider domestic
and foreign policies
Nothing comes
after ‘tet’
Democracy
By Shamlan Al-Essa
By Hassan Al-Essa
he quick changes in the Arab region require that
Gulf countries reconsider their domestic and foreign policies to overcome the dangers these countries are facing. Among the most important challenges
that face our country is the quick rise of the Iranian influence in the region after the fall of Yemen and Syria, Iraq
and Lebanon being under Iran’s mandate. The question what are the expected Gulf polices towards the accelerating developments in Yemen? And do the Gulf countries
have a joint view towards what is going on in Yemen?
And where the Gulf countries agree with Iran and where
they differ? Especially that there are Gulf countries that
have close ties with Iran.
The Gulf countries can form an effective Arab axis to
contain the Iranian expansion in the region, especially
that Iran uses the religion and sect factor and support of
the minorities in the Arab region to strengthen its position, which created crises between Gulf countries and
Iran, because the Gulf countries consider Iran’s interference in their domestic affairs a violation of these countries’ sovereignty.
The Iranian policy in the region is contradictory and
double-faced, because at the time when Iranian President
Hassan Rouhani confirms his efforts to create positive
atmosphere and improve his relations with neighboring
Gulf countries, we find him attack Saudi Arabia and UAE
for their support of Saddam Hussein during his war with
Iran! While the King of Bahrain Hamad bin Essa Al-Khalifa
sent a congratulatory letter to the Iranian president on
the anniversary of the Iranian revolution victory in 1979,
the Iranian Revolution Supreme leader Ali Khamenei
received a group of Bahraini opposition during which he
blessed their power and steadfastness!
The Arab Gulf countries attempted to protect themselves against the Iranian influence expansion through
signing strategic alliances with the US, and among the
strange ironies is that the American ally does not want to
face Iran now, rather its entire concentration is on fighting
the expansion of the Islamic State (Daesh) in the region.
The latest visit by American president Barack Obama
along with a large American delegation to extend condolences to the Saudi leadership included political talks over
several issues, including the war against terrorism and the
latest developments in Yemen.
We in the Gulf should understand that the American
stand towards Iran is because of a change in the structure
of strategic American interests and its work towards grabbing the alternatives that follow the reconciliation with
Iran and reduce the burden of confronting it, more than
reflecting a victory of any side in the long struggle
between them. The interests of the United States in the
region are limited to Israel’s security after the US dropped
the policy of managing change in the region and the
American involvement in the region was reduced. The
Arab Gulf countries are required to strengthen the
domestic front by following a reform policy that concentrates on the citizenry principle to bring the people closer
to their rulers and repel all foreign attempts to expand
into our countries.
ccusations of forgery and manipulating laws
with the intention of profiteering from a business are very simple and normal. However,
assuming it is illegal, nobody cares about the argument that took place between two lawmakers in parliament three days ago, where one of them accused
the other of registering some stores he owned in his
wife’s name and not paying their rent, and the other
argued that he ‘was not one of those who would forge
a report in a tender or forensic reports about drug
abuse’!
Well, regardless of this argument that ended by
using a genuine Kuwaiti dialect term ‘Tet....tet’ (which
is usually used to scare away cats intruding or trespassing into the house), none of their colleagues,
Cabinet members or even their voters actually care
about such accusations that may prove true or are
mere provocative talk affected by childhood memories and arguments.
People in Kuwait and in other countries witnessing
similar public property and fund violations and
lenient administrations are used to hearing news
about major crimes of abuse of powers, profiteering
and bribery, which all drain public funds and most
probably reach dead ends due to mistakes in imposing the law or lack of earnestness in tracking down
the culprits, especially when this tracking is limited to
symbolic nominal measures where the stardom of
some officials is splashed in newspapers as if corruption and looting public facilities is their prime cause,
or when such cases are closed because the culprits
managed to find their way out of the country to wrap
up the whole story with the conclusion that those
with authorities did their duties according to the law
and we should stop asking them for more.
Accordingly, this ends another silly act of our official
play.
What does it mean to forge a tender or a rent
stores in a wife’s name by this or that lawmaker when
compared to endless stories about mightier hotshots
who remained in office for scores of years and served
under many ministers who considered them (the hotshots) above suspicion? Those hotshots really knew
how to mislead the law and justice that has become
actually, not symbolically, blind as indicated by its
famous statue.
When this blindness happens, justice no longer
sees VIPs and their crimes but it strongly punishes
some young people for ‘tweeting’ out of the flock and
in disobedience. VIPs might have learnt how to butter
and tidy up everyone when they were in office
according to the principle of ‘charity cuts the tongue’.
Well, a few days ago, the local press shyly reported the
story of one of those hotshots as one of so many in a
country where charity does cut tongues, who managed to escape like so many before him who fear
nothing nor the term ‘tet’ because they knew long
ago that nothing comes after ‘tet’!
—Translated by Kuwait Times from Al-Jarida
A
T
Al-Anbaa
kuwait digest
What about corruption and arms deals?
By Dr Bader Al-Daihani
W
hile talking about how to handle the predicted
deficit and excessively focusing on social subsidies and salaries, namely those of small
employees and retirees, both the government and its
financial advisor - the International Monetary Fund have been avoiding discussing or even referring to certain expenses despite their significance in handling the
financial deficit, such as expenses of huge arms deals
and those resulting from political and institutional corruption.
The arms race and facilities related to it have been
draining GCC states’ budgets, as a single huge deal costs
what equals funds spent on necessary social needs for
years to come, taking into consideration that social
expenditure is part of a state’s public expenditure as well
as the fact that the sole beneficiaries of such deals are
weapons manufacturers, their local agents and some
senior bureaucrats who get huge commissions for facilitating signing the contracts. According to an Al-Shall
report on Sept 28, 2013, Kuwait’s military spending in
2012 was $6.021 billion (KD 1.686 billion), with an annual
increase of about 10.2 percent.
In addition, one can talk about political corruption
forever. Examples of abuse of powers and public positions to achieve personal gains and illegal wealth made
by using public funds in profiteering, political deals and
custom-tailored tenders are endless, not to mention the
billions-worth foreign transfers and bank deposits, the
high cost the state budget endures as a result of giving
away state property and lands very cheaply on longterm contracts in very significant spots like the seafront
extending along the Kuwaiti coast from north to south,
Shuwaikh industrial area and Al-Rai (that all of a sudden
and by powers of influential people turned into an
investment and commercial area) and agricultural land
holdings and ranches that are mainly being allocated for
political reasons for long periods and contracts without
changing the lease value to match that of the market.
(Some of those lands still cost the same per square
meter in rent since the 1960s!)
Therefore, treatment of the predicted deficit must be
comprehensive, radical and fair because ignoring the
huge arms deals about which we never have enough
details about why we need them and political and institutional corruption issues that have been draining public
funds, while at the same time pursuing a few dinars in
the pockets of small employees and people with limited
and small incomes would mean the continuation of
extreme social bias in managing the state budget.
—Translated by Kuwait Times from Al-Jarida
kuwait digest
Human rights and
Kuwait in Geneva
By Mudaffar Abdullah
T
and bureaucracy that has caused considero start with, sentencing a parliamenable retreat in development. For instance,
tary election candidate and a number
of his campaign assistants to prison for Hungary recommended establishing a special national organization for human rights,
taking part in vote-buying is considered a
which is a good idea to place the whole
substantial development after long experiences of lack of evidence. The grace given to issue in the hands of only one body instead
of scattering its responsibility amongst the
Kuwait to prepare its reply for the compreministries of interior, social affairs, foreign
hensive human rights periodic review sesaffairs and justice.
sion was over last week in Geneva and will
Notably, this idea has been kept in drawbe followed by another session within four
ers of the parliamentary human rights commonths for NGOs.
mittee since 1996 and the government has
Well, to briefly define this mechanism
not taken any positive moves towards
approved in 2006, it is part of the work of
achieving it so far, which caused a lot of
the UN Human Rights Commission which
embarrassment with international organizaallows member states to provide a 20-page
tions because the minreport describing
istries mentioned
human rights in their
Following this issue for above are too busy to
territories - a 10 page
give due proper care
report with recommenyears, I noticed the
and attention to human
dations on human
progress of human rights rights.
rights and a 10-page
Despite progress
report including a sumin Kuwait is subject to
made in some fields
mary of all information
public administration like ranking Kuwait
provided by NGOs. HRC
is responsible for periproblems and bureau- 46th in the international human development
odically reviewing the
cracy
that
has
caused
index in 2014 comfiles of 48 countries
every four years.
considerable retreat in pared to 63rd in 2011,
Kuwait still has many
What has been said
development.
duties and the governabout Kuwait? What are
ment still has a lot of
the recommendations
challenges in view of its
made by other countries? So many issues were discussed includ- achievement as a ‘Center of Humanity’,
ing freedom of speech, torture, free Internet, which was achieved thanks to the efforts of
HH the Amir. So many officials have been
Kuwaiti women married to non-Kuwaitis,
media stars and in office for years without
bedoons, labor rights, withdrawing citizeneven telling the difference between internaship, establishing a supreme human rights
tional obligations and their selfish love of
organization and endorsing some internathe country, which was reflected by creating
tional protocols and agreements.
the slogan ‘Kuwait is for Kuwaitis’! We still
Recommendations were made by many
have some officials who keep making racist
countries including the US, France,
anti-expat statements as if they are living in
Denmark, Hungary, Spain and others.
a secluded world away from human commuFollowing this issue for years, I noticed
nications through social media networks!
the progress of human rights in Kuwait is
— Translated by Kuwait Times from Al-Jarida
subject to public administration problems
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2015
Culture wars split
Republican focus
Japan PM defends handling of hostage crisis
Page 12
Page 9
SINAR: A Kurdish peshmerga fighter fires a weapon towards positions of the Islamic State group who are 500 meters or half a mile away, overlooking the strategic town. —AP
Iraqi Kurds struggle to hold IS
Towns on strategic crossroads in turmoil
SNUNY: Only stray dogs and a dozen armed fighters walk
the streets of Snuny, a ghost town at the base of Mount
Sinjar where rapid military changes of fortune are written
on the walls. “Smoking is banned” has been scribbled in
Arabic outside one cafe. A nearby building bears the warning: “Submit to the Islamic State, you infidels.”
Those messages don’t reflect the views of the new management. Today, flags representing various Kurdish political groups flap furiously in the wind over Snuny, claiming
ownership of the town’s barren streets. But all along the
Kurds’ shifting front lines, it’s a tenuous hold sustained only
with timely air support from the US-led coalition.
Questions remain whether the coalition-backed Kurds can
secure strategic crossroads like Snuny and renew an offensive versus the Islamic State group, which controls a broad
swath of northern Iraq from its base in Iraq’s second-largest
city, Mosul.
Retreating comrades
The Kurds retook Snuny from the Sunni militants last
month, but a weeks-old battle has reached a point of stalemate on the other side of the mountain for militant-held
Sinjar. To the southeast, the oil-rich city of Kirkuk remains at
risk of falling to the Islamic State group. While Islamic State
fighters have been forced to retreat from Kobani, the
strategic town on Syria’s border with Turkey, the battlefield
picture suggests they are far from beaten in northern Iraq,
where harsh winter weather and thick mud underfoot
hampers military moves - and even rear-line positions such
as Snuny remain in surprising range of the enemy.
Whichever side triumphs will determine whether the
Islamic State can use the main highway west to funnel
weapons and reinforcements to their retreating comrades
in Syria.
Just after midnight Friday, fighters from a Yazidi militia
and an Associated Press crew were startled awake by the
whoosh and thud of mortar shells nearby as Islamic State
fighters targeted a headquarters of the Kurdish Democratic
Party. Such attacks underscore the sense that disparate
Kurdish militias drawn from Iraq, Syria and Turkey have yet
to consolidate their gains despite strong coalition air support. And when the literal fog of war descends, Islamic
State fighters have demonstrated a clear edge. Last week
they retook most of Sinjar during a period of heavy fog
that made it impossible for US and other coalition warplanes to offer close air support to the often lightly armed
Kurds.
In Kirkuk, Kurdish forces have suffered painful losses
from incessant IS militant activity. On Friday, militants
attacked several Kirkuk targets and the Kurds lost a senior
commander and eight of his troops in battle. Kurdish
authorities since have deployed heavy reinforcements to
the city, depriving other positions of needed peshmerga
fighters. Overlooking the main highway near Sinjar linking
northern Iraq to Syria, a few dozen peshmerga fighters
remain in a holding position as they await more arms and
troops. Islamic State fighters sought to overrun them last
week but were repelled. Kurds described their enemy as
cunning and relentless. “They will never give up,” the commander of that position, Brig. Gen. Bahjat Taymes, said of
Islamic State fighters dug in barely 100 yards away. “They
are ready to die. They are happy to die.” — AP
Sisi speaks about killed protester
CAIRO: The Egyptian president has
spoken publicly for the first time
about the recent shooting death of a
female protester, calling her a “martyr”
and offering condolences to her family and all Egyptians “pained” by her
death, newspapers reported yesterday. President Abdel-Fattah El-Sissi’s
comments reflected a nod to activists
enraged by a killing they see as a coldblooded murder of a colleague and
the latest example of the use of excessive force by police at a time when ElSissi’s government is accused of suppressing freedoms and trampling on
human rights.
Shaimaa El-Sabbagh, 32-year-old
mother and activist, was killed while
taking part in a peaceful protest on
Jan. 24 in Cairo. Her death was captured in social media footage, including a clip showing two masked policemen pointing their rifles in her direction, followed by sounds of gunshots.
She was wounded by birdshot and
died at the scene. Activists and witnesses at the rally blame the police for
her death. Both private and stateowned papers yesterday quoted ElSissi as saying he views Egyptian men
and women as his own children. ElSabbagh “is my daughter, no one
should doubt that,” he said.
Despite the outcr y over ElSabbagh’s death, El-Sissi has resisted
growing calls for abrogating a dracon-
ian law adopted in 2013 that bans
street protests without prior government approval, a key activist demand.
“I offer my condolences to the family
of the martyr and every Egyptian
pained by her death,” El-Sissi said. “An
individual’s mistake should not be
used to undermine an entire institution (police),” he added, speaking at a
meeting Sunday with army and police
commanders, top politicians, religious
leaders and prominent media figures.
At the meeting, El-Sissi also urged
Interior Minister Mohammed Ibrahim,
to uncover “the truth behind” ElSabbagh’s death. Ibrahim has said he
would personally hand over any
policeman found to have been
involved in the killing. However, a senior ministry official, Gamal Mukhtar,
last week insisted El-Sabbagh was
killed by a type of bullet not used by
the police. He also claimed the
footage of her death may have been
fabricated by the outlawed Muslim
Brotherhood group. — AP
CAIRO: Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah El-Sissi speaks during a meeting
with top police and army generals, politicians and religious leaders. — AP
p8_Layout 1 2/2/15 10:14 PM Page 1
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2015
I N T E R N AT I O N A L
Greste release rids
Sisi of PR fiasco
CAIRO: Egypt’s release of Australian journalist Peter Greste removes a stumbling block
for President Abdel Fatah Al-Sisi as he seeks
to shore up international support following
a widely condemned crackdown on the
opposition. Secret police raided a Cairo
hotel room used by Greste and fellow AlJazeera journalists Mohamed Fahmy and
Baher Mohamed in December 2013, setting
off a nightmare for the journalists and a
public relations disaster for the government.
On Sunday, Greste was spirited from his
prison cell onto a Cyprus-bound plane, as
Egypt prepares for an economic donor conference in March, smoothing over a main
bone of contention with its Western allies.
Fahmy, a Canadian-Egyptian, is expected to
be released within days, his fiance Marwa
Omara said.
Blacklisted brotherhood
A court had sentenced the three to up
to 10 years in prison for aiding blacklisted
Muslim Brotherhood, which Sisi had
removed from power in July 2013, before
an appeals court ordered a retrial in
January. Their arrests came against the
backdrop of a crackdown on supporters of
ousted president Mohamed Morsi that has
killed hundreds, and a cold war between
Egypt and Qatar, which owns Al-Jazeera
and backed Morsi’s Muslim Brotherhood.
But the case spiraled into a global campaign for their release, with Washington
and the United Nations leading the charge
while journalists held rallies in several
countries demanding the trio’s freedom.
“They didn’t want to talk about it anymore,
they didn’t want to explain it anymore,” said
a Western diplomat on Sisi’s decision to
deport Greste on Sunday. Sisi, who had
publicly said he wished they had been
deported from the start and never been
tried in the first place, “was sick of it,” said
the diplomat. “He wants to move beyond
this matter and not have it as a focus.”
Greste’s release came less than two
months after Cairo reconciled with Doha,
which shut down Al-Jazeera’s proBrotherhood Egyptian affiliate. Greste,
Fahmy and Mohamed work for Al-Jazeera’s
English channel, which operated separately
from the Egyptian channel Al-Jazeera
Mubashir Masr. But the prosecution made
no distinction between the channels during the trial.
‘Qatar was on trial’
“Egypt was trying Qatar & AJ, not 3
human beings with families literally dreaming of their freedom,” Fahmy wrote on
Twitter at one point. Even without a
detente with Qatar, Sisi appeared set on
releasing Greste and Fahmy amid pressure
from Canada and Australia, where the two
journalists had become a cause celebre.
“Clearly the Sisi regime has been wanting
to get rid of what has become a public relations problem,” said Issandr El Amrani, the
North Africa director of the International
Crisis Group.
In November, Sisi enacted a decree that
appeared tailored for Greste and Fahmy,
but not Mohamed: foreigners on trial, or
convicted in Egypt, could be deported to
their home countries to stand trial or serve
out their sentences. Both Australia and
Canada have made clear they will not place
Greste and Fahmy on trial. But the decree’s
wording was aimed more at avoiding the
impression in Egypt that the two had been
released under international pressure.
“This has been in the works for several
months with the adoption of laws and procedures that would allow for the extradition of foreign convicts in Egypt,” El Amrani
said. Mohamed, however, appears set to
face a retrial. Sisi’s administration has said
he will not issue any pardons until the
courts have completed their work. And
Egypt is still holding several other reporters
behind bars. — AFP
Hackers steal rebel plans
BEIRUT: Hackers targeted Syrian opposition members with online “honey traps,”
posing as female supporters to steal battle
plans and the identity of defectors, a security firm said yesterday. A report produced
by US cyber security firm FireEye describes
how the hacking operations in late 2013
and early 2014 targeted Syrian opposition
fighters, media activists and humanitarian
aid workers. The group said it was unclear
whether the information had been passed
onto the Syrian government, and who the
hackers were. But the hacked material
included a detailed opposition military
plan to recapture the town of Khirbet
Ghazaleh, strategically located in southern
Daraa province, in 2013.
“The hackers stole a cache of critical
documents and Skype conversations
revealing the Syrian opposition’s strategy,
tactical battle plans, supply needs, and
troves of personal information and chat
sessions,” the report said. The hacking provided “actionable military intelligence for
an immediate battlefield advantage” in the
case of the planned Khirbet Ghazaleh
attack. It captured “the type of insight that
can thwart a vital supply route, reveal a
planned ambush and identify and track
key individuals.” Despite the high-tech
tools used in the attack, the hackers also
relied on a well-worn tactic: the “honey
trap.”
Multiple victims
Targets were contacted on the chat and
online phone service Skype by hackers
posing as pro-opposition women. They
would ask the target whether they were on
a smartphone or computer, apparently in a
bid to tailor their attacks. Then the hackers
would send the target a photo of themselves loaded with malware that penetrated their personal files and stole information. The method was particularly fruitful
because Syrian opposition members were
often sharing computers, meaning one
machine yielded information from multiple victims.
Most of the data stolen was created
between May 2013 and December 2013,
but some of the stolen Skype chat logs
went back to 2012 and others included
information from as recently as January
2014. The hackers also used other tactics,
including creating fake social media
accounts and Syrian opposition websites
that encouraged visitors to click on links
that would infect their computers.
In May 2013, regime troops stormed
Khirbet Ghazaleh which was rebel-held at
the time and being used to block the highway between Damascus and Daraa. The
report was unable to identify where the
hackers were based, or who they might
have reported to. But it noted that the
hackers’ servers were based outside of
Syria and they used tools and tactics that
were different from other Syrian hackers.
Syria’s conflict has involved other documented cases of cyber warfare, by both
pro-regime and opposition activists. Some
of the most high-profile include attacks by
the so-called Syrian Electronic Army, a
group of pro-government hackers who
have attacked websites and social media
accounts belonging to media outlets and
politicians. — AFP
SURUC: Syrian refugee children who fled violence in Syrian city of Ain Al-Arab,
known also as Kobane, seen outside their tents in a camp in the border town. — AP
Tunisia creates an
Islamist coalition
TUNIS: Tunisia yesterday presented its new
coalition government, dominated by the
secular Nidaa Tounes party but also including its Islamist rivals, as it prepares to tackle
security problems and a faltering economy.
Prime Minister Habib Essid announced the
makeup of his new cabinet, which had initially been abandoned after the moderate
Islamist Ennahda party warned it would
vote against a line-up that included none
of its members.
ìWe have made changes... to widen the
composition of the government with the
participation of other political parties,î
Essid said. The new cabinet, which includes
a minister and three state secretaries from
Ennahda, will be put before parliament for
a vote of confidence tomorrow. ìWe have
no more time to lose, we are in a race
against the clock,î Essid said as he
announced the line-up at the presidency.
His government will be the first since landmark parliamentary and presidential elections last year that were the first freely contested polls in the history of the North
African country. The anti-Islamist Nidaa
Tounes of President Beji Caid Essebsi won
the largest number of seats in Octoberís
general election, with Ennahda coming
second.
But Nida Tounes did not secure a majority and Ennahda, which holds 69 of parliamentís 217 seats, had rejected a cabinet in
which it was not represented. Tunisia has
struggled to form a stable government
since it became the birthplace of the Arab
Spring uprisings by ousting longtime dictator Zine El Abidine Ben Ali in 2011.— AFP
CAIRO: In this photo provided by Egypt’s state news agency MENA, Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi, poses with attendees at a meeting
with top police and army generals, politicians and religious leaders. — AP
Court hands death sentence
to 183 Brotherhood members
Sustained crackdown by authorities on Islamists
CAIRO: An Egyptian court sentenced 183 supporters of the outlawed Muslim Brotherhood to
death yesterday on charges of killing police
officers, part of a sustained crackdown by
authorities on Islamists. The men were convicted of playing a role in the killings of 16 policemen in the town of Kardasa in August, 2013
during the upheaval that followed the army’s
ouster of Islamist president Mohamed Mursi.
Thirty-four were sentenced in absentia.
Egypt has mounted one of the biggest
crackdowns in its modern histor y on the
Brotherhood since the political demise of
Mursi, the country’s first democratically-elected
president. Thousands of Brotherhood supporters have been arrested and put on mass trials in
a campaign which human rights groups say
shows the government is systematically
repressing opponents. “ Today’s death sentences are yet another example of the bias of
the Egyptian criminal justice system,” said
Hassiba Hadj Sahraoui, Deputy Middle East and
North Africa Program Director at Amnesty
International. “These verdicts and sentences
must be quashed and all of those convicted
should be given a trial that meets international
standards of fairness and excludes the death
penalty.”
Yesterday’s sentences came a day after Al
Jazeera journalist Peter Greste was freed after
serving 400 days in Egyptian jail on charges
that included aiding a terrorist group - a reference to the Brotherhood. Two of his Al Jazeera
colleagues are still detained. President Abdel
Fattah Al-Sisi, who as army chief toppled Mursi,
describes the Brotherhood as a major security
threat. The movement says it is committed to
peaceful activism.
Blamed for violence
The death sentences followed one of the
bloodiest attacks on Egyptian security forces in
years. Islamic State’s Egypt wing claimed
responsibility for a series of coordinated operations that killed at least 27 people last week.
Sisi blamed the Brotherhood for the violence
and told Egyptians in a televised address that
the war against militancy will be a long and
tough. Egyptian authorities make no distinction between the Brotherhood, Islamic State
and al Qaeda, arguing that they have a shared
ideology and are equally dangerous.
Security forces k illed hundreds of
Brotherhood supporters and arrested thousands of others after Mursi’s ouster. After the
death sentences were read out on yesterday,
Brotherhood supporters held in metal cages
shouted profanities at policemen. A defense
lawyer looked at the Islamists and said “You
have God.” The Egyptian government’s human
rights record has come under closer scrutiny
since woman activist Shaimaa Sabbagh was
shot dead during a Cairo protest on January 24,
a day before the anniversary of the 2011 uprising that toppled Hosni Mubarak. The Interior
Ministry promised an investigation. Separately,
an Egyptian police officer has been detained on
suspicion of killing a suspected member of the
Brotherhood in hospital, the Interior Ministry
has said. The suspect was being treated in custody for wounds suffered while he was allegedly planting explosives. The ministry said that
the man had provoked the policeman by insulting him. “Then the policeman lost control of his
feelings,” it said. — Reuters
UN demands release of
Islamic State hostages
AMMAN: The UN Security Council demanded
the immediate release of all hostages held by
the Islamic State group, as Jordan vowed to do
everything it can to save the life of a pilot captured by the militants. The 15-member council
condemned on Sunday the “heinous and cowardly” murder of a Japanese journalist after the
jihadist group claimed he had been beheaded.
“Those responsible for the killing of Kenji Goto
shall be held accountable,” the Security Council
said, demanding “the immediate, safe and
unconditional release of all those who are kept
hostage” by IS and other Al-Qaeda affiliates. The
government of Jordan, meanwhile, vowed to do
it all it can to save air force pilot Maaz AlKassasbeh, who was captured by IS after his
plane crashed in Syria in December.
IS militants have seized swathes of territory in
Iraq and Syria, ruling with a brutal version of
Islamic law. The group has murdered both locals
and foreigners, including two US journalists, an
American aid worker and two British aid workers. IS claimed in a video released online
Saturday that it had killed 47-year-old Goto-the
second purported beheading of a Japanese
hostage in a week-but made no mention of the
Jordanian pilot it had also threatened to kill.
Jordan’s King Abdullah II denounced Goto’s
murder as a “cowardly, criminal act” and said
every effort was being made “to seek the release
of the hero pilot Maaz Kassasbeh”. IS has been
demanding the release of an Iraqi jihadist on
death row in Jordan in exchange for Kassasbeh’s
life, and Amman said it would hand her over if
given proof he is still alive. The pilot’s father Safi
Kassasbeh has begged Amman to save his son’s
life “at any price”.
‘We will never forgive’
In Japan, Prime Minster Shinzo Abe condemned the “heinous and despicable terrorist
acts” of IS and vowed that his country would
“never yield to terrorism”. “We will never forgive
terrorists,” Abe told reporters in Tokyo, appearing
to fight back tears as he spoke.
“We will cooperate with the international
community to make them atone for their
crimes.” The video, released Saturday, shows
Goto, a respected war correspondent, wearing
an orange outfit similar to those worn by
Guantanamo Bay inmates, kneeling next to a
standing man dressed head-to-toe in black with
his face covered.
The man, who speaks with a British accent,
appears to be the same IS militant who has featured in previous videos showing the execution
of Western hostages. He addresses Abe, saying
the killing was the result of Tokyo’s “reckless”
decisions-a possible reference to aid it has grant-
ed for refugees fleeing IS-controlled areas in
Syria and Iraq-and would mark the beginning of
a “nightmare for Japan”. The brief video, whose
authenticity Tokyo said was “highly probable”,
ends with the image of a body and a decapitated head on top of it.
‘Chills down my spine’
In a statement, Goto’s wife Rinko said she was
“devastated” by the news. “While feeling a great
personal loss, I remain extremely proud of my
husband who reported the plight of people in
conflict areas like Iraq, Somalia and Syria,” she
said. “It was his passion to highlight the effects
on ordinary people, especially through the eyes
of children, and to inform the rest of us of the
tragedies of war.” The couple had a second child
just weeks before Goto left for Syria late last year
in a bid to find his friend Haruna Yukawa, whom
IS claimed it beheaded last week. He was then
captured himself. “I can’t find the words to
describe how I feel about my son’s very sad
death,” Goto’s sobbing mother Junko Ishido told
reporters.Officially pacifist, Japan has long
avoided getting embroiled in Middle East con-
flicts and is rarely the target of religious extremism, so the hostage crisis has been especially
shocking for the country.
Many braved Tokyo’s chilly streets to pick up
the Yomiuri newspaper’s special supplement
about the Goto video on Sunday. “It’s scary-they
(the militants) are saying they’ll target Japanese
people now,” said 21-year-old university student
Kyosuke Kamogawa. “That sends chills down my
spine.” World leaders reacted with outrage to the
video, with US President Barack Obama leading
international condemnation of the “barbaric”
murder. On Sunday IS added to its long list of
atrocities by claiming to have beheaded an Iraqi
police officer and a soldier, according to pictures
posted online.
IS had vowed to kill Goto and the pilot by
sunset on Thursday unless Amman handed over
Sajida Al-Rishawi, who is on death row for her
part in bombings in the Jordanian capital that
killed 60 people in 2005. Last week IS claimed it
had beheaded self-described Japanese contractor Yukawa after Tokyo failed to pay a $200 million ransom-the same amount it had promised
in non-military aid to the region. — AFP
AMMAN: Japanese Deputy Foreign Minister Yasuhide Nakayama (third right) attends a candle light vigil with Jordanian activities who gathered to condemn the killing of the two
Japanese hostages and to show their support for the people of Japan outside the Japanese
embassy.—AP
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2015
I N T E R N AT I O N A L
Ecuador prez fights back on social media
QUITO: Far from laughing along with those
who poke fun at him on social media,
President Rafael Correa has created a website
and Twitter account to marshal digital counterattacks by his supporters against the
“defamers.” “For every lying tweet that they
send out, we will send 10,000 that are truthful,” Correa said Saturday in his weekly TV
appearance.
To critics, the campaign is simply the latest
salvo in the war on freedom of expression by
a president they see as thin-skinned and
whom human rights groups criticize as intolerant. Since 2012, Correa has secured a $42
million criminal libel award against the country’s main opposition newspaper, forced top
political cartoonist Javier Bonilla to “correct”
his work and secured passage of a new media
law that made a government panel the
arbiter of journalistic fairness.
Satirical memes
Cesar Ricuarte, director of the
Fundamedios press freedom watchdog, said
Correa has anointed himself “the owner of
humor,” by trying to “tell Ecuadoreans what
should make us laugh.” Correa’s decision to
move decisively against satirical “memes” images that become instant online sensations - was a reaction in part to an online
satirist who goes by Crudo Ecuador. Last
week, he became a first target of the new
government website, www.somosmas.ec ,
meaning “We are more,” and its affiliated
Twitter account.
In jabs at Correa, Crudo Ecuador had posted on Facebook: A photo of the leftist president holding a shopping bag at a “luxury”
European mall just as Ecuadoreans face
potential belt-tightening over the plunge in
price of oil, their main export. In another
image, Correa stands beside the giant presi-
dential portrait bestowed on him Jan 6 in
China, where he obtained $7.5 billion in badly
needed loans. In the image’s “Part II,” the portrait has changed. Correa, pictured from chest
to knees, turns out empty pants pockets. The
title is “Ecuador’s Current Economic Situation.”
Correa was not amused.
Crudo Ecuador is participating in a “systematic, coordinated and financed attack” by
right-wing opponents, Correa alleged late last
month in announcing the social media counterattack. He also publicly identified three
Twitter users who he said were spreading
falsehoods. Crudo Ecuador’s author denies
the president’s claim that he’s a hired gun of
one of Correa’s opponents.
Born jokester
“I’ve been a jokester all my life,” he told The
Associated Press. “If I were getting paid, I
wouldn’t have credit card debts.” He said he’s
voted for the leftist economist, who is highly
popular for his social welfare spending, and
thinks he’ll vote for him again. “He’s the least
bad of Ecuador’s politicians,” said the man,
who spoke on condition of anonymity out of
fear for his safety, preferring the nickname
Crudo, which is synonymous with unrefined
petroleum.
While the new social media campaign is
quite public, some opponents of Correa say
his government has been privately using
underhanded tactics for months to try to stifle online criticism. One has been to employ a
Barcelona, Spain company, Ares Rights SL, to
invoke intellectual property rights in
demanding that certain high-profile Correa
critics take down online content including
logos of the governing Alianza Pais party, its
targets say.
Two critics of the government, Diana
Amores and Carlos Andres Vera, say they are
among the targets. Twitter suspended each of
their accounts three times in the past year,
they say, on the basis of complaints. Each suspension lasted from a day to a week before
Twitter apparently deemed the complaints
unfounded. Crudo Ecuador’s Twitter account
was also briefly suspended last month.
Twitter spokesman Nu Wexler said via email
that the company does not comment on individual accounts for privacy and security reasons.
In Amores’ case, however, a database
maintained by Twitter of complaints by governments confirms a Barcelona-based company last year sought to shut it down. Four
were on behalf of Alianza Pais, one on behalf
of state-run TV. The complaints claimed violations of the U.S. Digital Millennium Copyright
Act. Ares Rights did not respond to email
requests and a working telephone number
could not be located for the company. —AP
California’s gay police
chief revitalizes force
RICHMOND: In December, the openly gay,
white police chief of this tough, minoritydominated Northern California city held up
a sign reading “#blacklivesmatter” during a
protest over the deaths of two unarmed
black suspects at the hands of Missouri and
New York police.
The photo of Richmond Police Chief
Chris Magnus with the sign went viral,
sparking criticism from the local police officers’ union and debate over whether his
participation was appropriate. But the
episode also put a spotlight on a grassroots
policing style credited with turning around
a moribund department and helping drive
down crime in an industrial city plagued by
gang violence. While similar cities grapple
with vocal and sometime-violent unrest
over police relations, Magnus and his
department have won over many residents
and political leaders with an unconventional policing style that stresses community
outreach over show of force.
Black lives matter
“I have ambitious plans for policing in
general and Richmond in particular,”
Magnus said after the department’s monthly meeting of the command staff on Jan 12,
RICHMOND: Richmond Police Chief
Chris Magnus poses for a photo. Last
month the openly gay, white police
chief of this tough, minority-dominated
Northern California city held up a sign
reading “#blacklivesmatter” during a
demonstration protesting the deaths of
two unarmed black suspects.— AP
where the chief ’s focus on community
policing was on display. Code enforcement,
homeless outreach and a shake-up of command duties to build stronger ties to the
community were all on the agenda, along
with equipping patrol officers with body
cameras and a call for more social media
communications.
Magnus, 54, is soft-spoken, but he curses like the seasoned police officer he is.
Before formally taking over the Richmond
force in January 2006, Magnus served six
years as the chief of Fargo, North Dakota.
Before that, he rose to the rank of captain
in the Lansing, Michigan, police department during his 16-year career there.
Magnus says he steals many of his community policing ideas from other departments that have successfully implemented
them. He also says many of his policies are
adapted from the Police Executive
Research Forum, a nonprofit organization
that studies and teaches policing strategies. Magnus was an unlikely choice to take
over the troubled department when he
was lured from
Fargo, a city of roughly the same population as Richmond but a world apart in
terms of crime and demographic makeup.
The Richmond Police Department was a
mess internally, reeling from scandals, lawsuits and high turnover. City leaders decided to look outside the department for a
chief. One of the first things Magnus did
when he took over was to disband the
department’s “street teams,” units of heavily
armed officers deployed in high-crime
areas. The teams stopped “everything that
moved,” Richmond Police Capt. Mark Gagan
said, in hopes of finding suspects with warrants or carrying small amounts of illegal
drugs. Gagan said the strategy is still a popular one across the country, but Magnus
didn’t like it that many in the community
perceived the aggressive street teams as an
occupying army.
Magnus also eliminated the seniority
system that allowed officers to choose the
areas they would patrol. He required officers to take on more responsibilities on
their beats beyond responding to calls.
Beat officers are required to attend neighborhood meetings and to maintain a high
profile at churches, schools and businesses.
They’re encouraged to hand out their
mobile phone numbers and email addresses to residents.
Man with a plan
“A lot of people were skeptical at first ... I
know I was skeptical. I mean, not only was
he coming from outside the department,
he was coming from Fargo, of all places,”
said Officer Virgil Thomas, a 19-year veteran
of the force and the newly installed president of the police union. “But he came in
with a plan and stuck to it, and the image
of the city and of the police has changed
dramatically. Morale has improved greatly.”
The union initially objected to the police
chief’s participation in the Dec 9 demonstration. The association’s lawyer said
Magnus’ appearance in uniform “dishonored the department” and violated a law
barring political activity on duty. But
Thomas said the union backed away from
those claims after sitting down and talking
with Magnus about the demonstration.
“We talked about it, and I understand
what he was trying to do,” Thomas said.
“He’s trying to bridge the gap, like we all
are.” Magnus is unapologetic about his participation in the demonstration, saying it
was an opportunity to show Richmond that
its police department is in tune with a community roughly one-third white, one-third
black and one-third Latino. “We get it,”
Magnus said. By most metrics, the department has improved under Magnus’ stewardship.— AP
Parents should have choice
in kid vaccinations: Christie
CAMBRIDGE: New Jersey Gov Chris Christie,
a likely Republican candidate for president,
said yesterday that parents should have some
choice on whether to vaccinate their children.
Christie’s comments, made after a tour of a
biomedical research center during a threeday trade mission to the United Kingdom,
come as a measles outbreak centered in
California has sickened more than 100 people
in the US.
Christie said that he and his wife had vaccinated their children, describing that decision as “the best expression I can give you of
my opinion.” He said they believe doing so is
an “important part of making sure we protect
their health and the public health.” “But,”
Christie added, “I also understand that parents need to have some measure of choice in
things as well. So that’s the balance that the
government has to decide.”
A few hours after Christie spoke, his office
said in a statement that the governor
“believes vaccines are an important public
health protection and with a disease like
measles there is no question kids should be
vaccinated.” All states now require children to
get certain vaccinations to enroll in school,
although California and New Jersey are
among 20 states that let parents opt out by
obtaining personal belief waivers. Parents in
New Jersey seeking a medical exemption
have to submit a written statement from their
doctor or registered nurse indicating why the
exemption is needed.
No evidence against vaccines
Some people worry that vaccines can
cause developmental problems in children,
despite scientific evidence disproving any
link. Others object for religious or philosophical reasons. The New Jersey health department’s guidelines on vaccines say that objections “based on grounds which are not medical or religious in nature and which are of a
philosophical, moral, secular, or more general
nature continue to be unacceptable.”
Christie’s comments stand in contrast to
those of President Barack Obama, who said in
an interview with NBC News that all parents
should get their kids vaccinated. Those children who are not, he said, put infants and
those who can’t get vaccinations at risk.
“I understand that there are families that,
in some cases, are concerned about the effect
of vaccinations,” Obama said. “The science is,
you know, pretty indisputable.” The measlesmumps-rubella vaccine, commonly called the
MMR, is 97 percent effective at preventing
measles, according to the Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention. New Jersey requires
MMR vaccines for children between 12 and
15 months, and then a second at between 4
and 6 years. Measles is a highly contagious
disease that spreads through the air, with
symptoms that include fever, runny nose and
a blotchy rash. The current outbreak originated at Disney theme parks last month, and
Mexico and at least six other US states have
recorded measles cases connected to
Disneyland.—AP
IOWA: Former Arkansas Gov Mike Huckabee speaks during the Freedom Summit held on 24 January. — AP
Culture wars split
Republican focus
A crowded field of potential candidates
WASHINGTON: Republican presidential hopefuls delivered competing messages on Sunday
television talk shows, dividing their focus
between national security and culture wars.
Wisconsin Gov Scott Walker, relatively inexperienced on foreign policy, and Sen Lindsey
Graham of South Carolina, a veteran on the
issue, appeared open to sending US ground
forces to take on Islamic State militants. At the
same time, former Arkansas Gov Mike Huckabee
was trying to win voters by likening being gay to
using alcohol or profanity.
Each approach could ultimately prove successful; both highlight the challenge for the
crowded field of potential contenders to stitch
together a winning coalition of national security
hawks, evangelicals, social conservatives, business leaders and moderates who make up the
modern Republican Party.
The Iowa Poll, conducted last week for The
Des Moines Register and Bloomberg Politics,
showed Walker atop the list of potential candidates but statistically even with Huckabee, Sen
Rand Paul of Kentucky and 2012 nominee Mitt
Romney when likely caucus goers were asked
their top choice for president. The poll was taken
before Romney announced he was not running.
That only has increased the unsettled nature of
the campaign.
Walker spent his weekend in Washington,
wooing party leaders and recruiting aides to a
likely campaign. In remarks on Friday - and then
again on Sunday - Walker was seeking to cast
himself as more than just a Midwestern governor who rolled back unions’ bargaining rights.
“We need to take the fight to ISIS and any other
radical Islamic terrorist in and around the world,”
Walker said Sunday.
Everyone has a message
As the 2016 campaign is beginning to take
shape, each prospective candidate is testing
appeals to voters and, perhaps more important
at this early stage, donors. No one has taken the
formal step of becoming a candidate, yet all are
trying to hone a message. Take Walker, who has
garnered increased interest among the party’s
conservatives. He delivered a well-received
speech to Iowa conservatives last weekend.
Iowa’s caucuses traditionally lead off the stateby-state nominating contests.
IS Militants
Pushed on how he would combat the Islamic
State militants, Walker could only say, “We have
to be prepared to put boots on the ground if
that’s what it takes.” That position put him in line
with another 2016 hopeful, Graham. “An aerial
campaign will not destroy ISIL,” the South
Carolina Republican said, using another
acronym for the Islamic State group. “You are
going to need boots on the ground, not only in
Iraq but Syria.”
But that position could prove troublesome
for the political fortunes of Walker and Graham.
After more than a decade of war in Iraq and
Afghanistan, polls show most Americans, including Republicans, wary of greater US involvement
in conflicts overseas.
With a more domestic outlook, Huckabee is
trying to hone a message that plays well with
social conservatives. It’s a tactic he used during
his 2008 campaign, one that helped him solidify
his standing in Iowa.
Huckabee said Sunday that being gay is akin
to choosing to drink alcohol or use profanity lifestyle choices he says are appealing to others
but not to him. The former Baptist pastor also
claimed that forcing people of faith to accept
gay marriage as policy is the same as telling
Jews that they must serve “bacon-wrapped
shrimp in their deli.” That dish would run afoul of
dietary rules, much as Huckabee sees asking
Christians to accept same-sex marriages as contrary to biblical teaching.
“We’re so sensitive to make sure we don’t
offend certain religions, but then we act like
Christians can’t have the convictions that they
have had for over 2,000 years,” Huckabee said on
Sunday. Defending Christians’ rights is a staple of
Huckabee’s pitch and wins him many fans
among the deeply conservative corners of Iowa.
But same-sex marriage has lost some of its
potency since he used social issues to win Iowa’s
caucuses in 2008; gay marriages are now legal in
Iowa. — AP
NYC workers attempt to fix massive water leak
WAPPINGER: Workers are planning to go under
the river and through the rocks to replace part of
a massive tunnel leaking New York City’s drinking
water. They’re blasting through hundreds of feet
of shale and building a shaft on each side of the
Hudson River, about 60 miles north of New York
City. Once they reach about 600 feet below the
river next year, they will begin building a 2.5-mile
bypass tunnel between the shafts to replace a
profusely leaking section of the 85-mile Delaware
Aqueduct.
The work on the World War II-era tunnel illustrates the ingenious complexity of a water supply
system for 9 million people and the intricate
efforts to keep water flowing smoothly as the
sprawling network of tunnels ages. The Delaware
Aqueduct carries about half the city’s water and
will have to be temporarily drained for repairs in
2022 during the end stage of the project. A portion of the $1.5 billion price tag is devoted to
making sure other water sources continue to flow
smoothly during the shut-off.
“The goal of the city in constructing the waterworks was to construct something comparable to
the great works of Rome, to last through the ages,”
said Paul Rush, deputy commissioner of New York
City’s Department of Environmental Protection.
“It’s with that spirit and with that purpose that
this work here continues the tradition.”
The Delaware Aqueduct carries 500 million
gallons of water a day from four reservoirs in the
Catskill Mountains in southeastern New York state
to a distributing reservoir at the city’s doorstep.
The tunnel, wide enough to drive a car through, is
one of two major arteries that carry unfiltered
water from bucolic areas of the Catskill and
Delaware watersheds. The aqueduct, which the
city says is the longest continuous tunnel in the
world, relies solely on pressure and gravity. It’s an
engineering marvel, but it’s aging.
The aqueduct is so leaky in one stretch
through rural Wawarsing that New York City is
buying dozens of homes above it that were
plagued with flooded basements and squishy
lawns. The leaks are far worse where the tunnel
travels under the Hudson by Newburgh, but
homes are not affected. Between 15 million and
35 million gallons of water seep through cracks
each day, enough to quench a small city.
The bypass will permanently replace the
leakiest portion of the tunnel. The other cracked
stretch will be repaired. Before workers begin
digging the bypass tunnel next year, they first
need to complete the entry shafts on opposite
sides of the Hudson River at Newburgh and
Wappinger. — AP
NEW YORK CITY: A large bucket loaded with rock is lifted out of Shaft 6B in Wappinger. Crews
starting a project to fix a section of the Delaware Aqueduct that provides New York City with
about half its drinking water. —AP
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2015
I N T E R N AT I O N A L
Auschwitz officer charged with over 3k murder cases
BERLIN: A 93-year-old former Auschwitz
death camp officer will go on trial in
Germany in April charged with at least
300,000 counts of accessory to murder, a
court said yesterday. The German defendant, Oskar Groening, will face charges
over the 425,000 people believed to have
been deported to the camp in occupied
Poland between May and July 1944, at
least 300,000 of whom were killed in the
gas chambers.
The regional court in the northern city
of Lueneburg said the trial, expected to
be one of the last of its kind, would start
on April 21. Fifty-five co-plaintiffs, mainly
survivors and victims’ relatives, will be
represented at the trial. Groening, then a
member of the Nazi Waffen-SS, was
tasked with counting the banknotes
gathered from prisoners’ luggage and
passing them on to the SS authorities in
Berlin, prosecutors in the northern city of
Hanover said when he was charged in
September.
For this reason, he was known as the
“bookkeeper” of Auschwitz. The accused
also helped remove the luggage of victims so it was not seen by new arrivals,
thus covering up the traces of mass
killing, according to the prosecutors. They
said the defendant was aware that the
predominantly Jewish prisoners deemed
unfit to work “were murdered directly
after their arrival in the gas chambers of
Auschwitz”.
Ashamed for decades
Groening told German daily Bild in
2005 that he regretted working at
Auschwitz, saying he still heard the
screams from the gas chamber decades
later. “I was ashamed for decades and I am
still ashamed today,” said Groening, who
was employed from the age of 21 at the
camp, which was liberated 70 years ago
last week. “Not of my acts, because I never
killed anyone. But I offered my aid. I was a
cog in the killing machine that eliminated
millions of innocent people.”
The German office investigating Nazi
war crimes sent files on 30 former
Auschwitz personnel to state prosecutors
in 2013 with a recommendation to bring
charges against them. The renewed drive
to bring to justice the last surviving perpetrators of the Holocaust follows a 2011
landmark court ruling. For more than 60
years German courts had only prosecuted
Nazi war criminals if evidence showed
they had personally committed atrocities.
But in 2011 a Munich court sentenced
John Demjanjuk to five years in prison for
complicity in the extermination of Jews at
the Sobibor camp, where he had served as
a guard, establishing that all former camp
guards can be tried. About 1.1 million
people, mostly European Jews, perished at
Auschwitz-Birkenau, operated by the
Nazis from 1940 until it was liberated by
Soviet forces on January 27, 1945. —AFP
Ex-IMF chief Strauss-Kahn
goes on trial for pimping
Disgraced economist returns to court
LILLE: Ex-IMF chief Dominique
Strauss-Kahn went on trial yesterday for pimping as part of a prostitution ring, four years after a sex
scandal cost him his job and a shot
at the French presidency. The disgraced 65-year-old economist
found himself back in the dock-this
time in the northern French city of
his hands in his pockets in front of
the imposing stone bench, where
over 40 massive files were stacked.
He appeared on edge as he sat,
arms folded, while presiding judge
Bernard Lemaire read out the
charges against him and 13 coaccused, a colorful cast of characters including luxury hotel man-
applications, such as a request by a
lawyer for the former prostitutes
involved for hearings to take place
behind closed doors, were expected to dominate the first day of the
trial.
Lurid details of group sex and
high-end prostitution are likely to
emerge in the trial for “aggravated
LILLE: French-born pimp and defendant Dominique Alderweireld or “Dodo la Saumure” arrives
at the courthouse on the first day of the so-called “Carlton Case” trial. —AFP
Lille-accused of being at the centre
of a vice ring which hired prostitutes for sex parties in Brussels,
Paris and Washington.
A silver-haired Strauss-Kahn,
dressed in a dark suit, slipped past
a throng of journalists to arrive early in the wood-paneled courtroom,
where he paced up and down with
agers, police, and a brothel owner
nicknamed “Dodo the Pimp.”
“You are accused of aiding and
abetting the prostitution of seven
persons between March 29, 2008
and October 4, 2011, and of hiring
and encouraging the prostitution
of these same persons,” Lemaire
told Strauss-Kahn. Procedural
pimping in an organized group”, a
charge punishable by up to 10
years in prison and a fine of up to
1.5 million euros. The trial will be
the latest in a series of legal woes
offering a peek behind the bedroom door of a man once tipped as
a potential challenger to former
French president Nicolas Sarkozy.
The ex-head of the International
Monetary Fund, known in France
as DSK, saw his career implode in
2011 when he was paraded handcuffed in front of the world’s cameras after a New York hotel maid
accused him of sexual assault.
Those criminal charges were
dropped and the case settled in a
civil suit, but six months later
Strauss-Kahn’s name cropped up in
an investigation into a prostitution
ring in nor thern France and
Belgium. Investigators probing the
“Carlton Affair”-named after one of
the swish hotels in Lille where local
businessmen and police officials
organized sex parties-found some
of the prostitutes involved had
been hired to participate in soirees
attended by Strauss-Kahn.
Self-confessed ‘libertine’
Prostitution is legal in France
but procuring-the legal term for
pimping which includes encouraging, benefiting from or organizing
prostitution-is punishable by a
hefty jail term. The crux of the case
against DSK is whether he knew
the women lavishing their attention on him were prostitutes and
whether he played a role in organizing their presence.
DSK admits to being a “libertine”
who enjoys orgies but has steadfastly denied knowing the women
were paid. “In these circumstances
one isn’t always clothed, and I challenge you to tell the difference
between a prostitute naked and
any other woman naked,” DSK’s star
lawyer Henri Leclerc, 84, said in
2011. But even prosecutors have
been divided over whether there is
enough evidence to prove DSK was
more pimp than casual consumer.
In 2013 state prosecutor Frederic
Fevre called for the charges to be
dropped, but investigating judges
overruled him and ordered DSK to
stand trial. —AFP
Berlusconi released early
from community service
ROME: Silvio Berlusconi will not have to serve the
final 45 days of a one-year community service
order he received for tax fraud, a judge ruled yesterday. The former prime minister has been serving
the order by helping out with Alzheimer’s patients
at the Sacra Famiglia care home at Cesano Boscone
near Milan every Friday since last May.
The judge’s decision to trim the sentence on
good behavior grounds means he will be freed
and accepted a conviction we continue to regard
as unjust. He has purged his sentence and will continue to visit the Sacra Famiglia.” As of March 8,
Berlusconi will also regain his freedom of movement, which was restricted under the order,
enabling him to resume a higher-profile role in
national politics, despite still being banned from
public office. Media magnate Berlusconi was ousted from his seat in the upper-house Senate in
MILAN: Former Italian Premier Silvio Berlusconi smiles as he leaves the ‘Sacra
Famiglia’ foundation. —AP
from those duties on March 8, although a close
aide said Belusconi, who is 78 himself, would continue to visit the elderly patients. “It is very good
news, his good behavior was there for everyone to
see,” Giovanni Toti told TGCOM 24 television.
“He performed his social service very seriously
November 2013 and banned from public office for
six years under 2012 anti-corruption legislation.
The ‘Severino’ law provides for such bans for any
politician sentenced to prison for two or more
years.
After a series of appeals, Berlusconi was defini-
tively convicted of tax fraud in August 2013 and
sentenced to four years in prison. That was later
reduced to the community service order in line
with Italian judicial practice of not sending non-violent criminals over 70 to jail. As his Forza Italia party
essentially revolves around him with the backing of
his media empire, Berlusconi was able to retain its
leadership. The centre right grouping retains considerable influence in parliament but has slipped
badly in the opinion polls over the time its leader
has been making his visits to the care home.
Renzi pact
Under the terms of the community service,
Berlusconi needed permission to leave his residence over weekends and was subject to a nightly
curfew. That did not prevent him travelling regularly to Rome for negotiations with Prime Minister
Matteo Renzi, with whom he concluded a cooperation ‘pact’ in June 2014. That deal ensured that
Berlusconi delivered vital votes to help Renzi steer a
shake-up of Italy’s labor laws onto the statute book
and a new electoral law through the Senate. Renzi
was however widely seen as having betrayed the
pact last week by ignoring Berlusconi’s reservations
when he successfully pushed for his candidate,
Sergio Mattarella, to become Italy’s new president.
Mattarella, who once resigned as a minister over
a law favoring Berlusconi’s media empire, is due to
be sworn in on Tuesday. Berlusconi was widely seen
as wanting a more accommodating figure in the
hope that his ban from the Senate could be overturned by a presidential pardon. The tax case was
only one of a series of legal cases in which
Berlusconi has been embroiled for years. He was
convicted in 2013 of paying for sex with a minor, a
17-year-old dancer nicknamed “Ruby the
Heartstealer” who allegedly attended what became
known as “bunga bunga” parties at his villa in Milan
and other residences. An appeal court overturned
that conviction last year, saying there was insufficient evidence that Berlusconi knew Ruby was
under age.
The case will finally be concluded in the Court
of Cassation in a fresh hearing due to start in
March. Also still rumbling through the legal system is a case in which Berlusconi is charged with
bribing a Senator to join his party in 2006 as part
of a plot to destabilize the centre-left government
of the time. —AFP
LILLE: Defendant, Beatrice Legrain, partner and associate of French-born
pimp Dominique Alderweireld or ‘Dodo la Saumure’, talks to the press as she
arrives at the Lille courthouse. —AFP
High-end prostitutes used
to close business deals
PARIS: The trial of former French presidential hopeful Dominique Strauss-Kahn and
several businessmen on pimping charges
shone a light on the world of high-end prostitution in which sex is often used to sweeten business deals.
“I was considered a VIP and offered as a
gift to the heads of companies and politicians,” said Carole, 41, a former prostitute
who worked the champagne bars and
brothels of Belgium, where the trade is legal,
until 2013. She spoke ahead of the high-profile trial in Lille in northern France of StraussKahn, once head of the International
Monetary Fund. He is being tried along with
13 others for their alleged part in a wideranging prostitution ring used by local businessmen and police officials. “Companies,
sometimes big international ones, would
come to see us to ask if a girl could be
offered as a present,” she said.
She recalls a car company that wanted to
sell three trucks to a local business: “I had to
do whatever was necessary to make sure he
signed,” she said. Eric Dupond-Moretti, a
lawyer for one of the defendants in this
week’s trial, says “call-girls are 80 percent,
maybe 70 percent of the time solicited” to
conclude business deals.
Used to exert pressure
The practice is particularly prevalent in
professions where corruption and bribes are
common, said Jean-Sebastien Mallet, an
expert on the prostitution sector, highlight-
ing “construction, import-export and the
energy sector”. “In some Arab countries, a
businessman who doesn’t have a girl in his
bedroom will refuse to sign a contract,” he
said. Sex can also be used to exert pressure.
Carole said she was often sent as a “honeytrap” to seduce men in their hotels, creating
the possibility of blackmail down the line.
The girls for these top-end clients tend to
come from relatively comfortable backgrounds. “They are clearly not poor young
Romanians. Most work for networks of
brothels or Internet escort companies,” said
Yves Charpenel, head of anti-prostitution
group Fondation Scelles. “But even if the
prices are higher, 75 percent goes to the
traffickers.” Strauss-Khan’s trial is not the first
high-profile trial for pimping.
In 1995, renowned Italian designer
Francesco Smalto was convicted after sending a number of suits to Gabon’s President
Omar Bongo along with a group of call girls.
But getting prosecutions can be difficult,
since it tends to rely on prostitutes coming
forward as witnesses. Gregoire Thery, from
Mouvement du Nid, a support network for
sex workers, says the girls giving evidence in
this week’s trial have faced threats and pressure to back out. He adds that the common
practice of using prostitutes to conclude
business deals has an added pernicious
effect: creating another obstacle to gender
equality in the workplace. “When contracts
are being concluded in a brothel or a hotel
bedroom, it’s a job for the guys.” —AFP
All talk but no peace as
South Sudan stumbles
ADDIS ABABA: After 13 months of fighting
and six failed ceasefires, diplomats are being
forced to accept that any deal to end the war
in South Sudan will, at best, result in a return
to the status quo that precipitated the carnage in the first place. The latest peace proposal drafted in Addis Ababa by regional bloc
IGAD and seen by AFP would leave Salva Kiir
as president and re-install rebel leader Riek
Machar as his deputy, a position he held until
July 2013 when his sacking planted the seed
of a war that erupted five months later. Kiir
and Machar agreed a new ceasefire late
Sunday, but failed to reach agreement on the
power-sharing deal proposed by IGAD to end
a conflict that has left tens of thousands dead.
The ceasefire provides for a cessation of hostilities from Monday, with negotiations to
resume on February 20.
Hopes of formulating a comprehensive
peace deal that addresses South Sudan’s
underlying problems and tribal divisions have
faded. “That moment has passed,” a European
diplomat involved in the talks said before the
interim agreement was signed. “More and
more it’s moving towards an elite compromise, but at least that will stop the killing,”
said another Ethiopia-based diplomat.
Regional and international peace efforts have
repeatedly squeezed out promises of peace
from Kiir and Machar, but each one has been
broken within days, if not hours. South
Sudan’s Sudd Institute think-tank describes
the talks as “frustratingly slow”, gloomily
recalling a “plethora” of deals that had been
“subsequently dishonored” by one side or the
other. “The two parties will sign anything to
get out of Addis, but they have never given
up on the idea of solving this on the battlefield,” a diplomat said.
Hard drinking
Earning a reputation as slow talkers and
hard drinkers, the South Sudanese delega-
tions at the European Union-funded talks
held in luxury hotels in Ethiopia have already
cost at least 20 million euros, according to
diplomatic sources. Talks were first held at
the plush Sheraton Hotel, an imposing chunk
of beige stone on a hillside in the Ethiopian
capital. Delegates could choose from 11
restaurants and bars, bathe in a pool that
plays music underwater, visit the spa or simply enjoy the indoor fountains, decorative
ponds and mini-palm trees. Rooms cost
around $300 a night.
As the bills piled up as fast as the bodies
back home and progress proved glacial, the
talks were moved to a nearby hotel where
rooms are half the price. Delegates continue
to claim a 220 euro per diem for attending.
“The waste has been enormous,” a European
diplomat said, signaling that patience was
wearing thin.
“One could be forgiven for having the
impression that they’re interested in the per
diem, the luxury hotel, the bar and the minibar, enjoying the nightclubs of Addis Ababa,
and not peace,” said another European diplomat observing the talks.
“They don’t seem to have any sense of
urgency or responsibility to the people on
the ground who are dying. They have displayed total contempt for their own people.”
No overall death toll for the war has been
kept by the government, rebels or the United
Nations, but the International Crisis Group
says it estimates that at least 50,000 people
have been killed. South Sudanese are exasperated too. “Some people sit in Addis Ababa
discussing politics while on the ground other
people are fighting and dying,” the Catholic
bishops of South Sudan said in a statement.
“This war is about power not about the good
of the people.” A diplomat in Addis Ababa
echoed the bishops’ dim view. “It’s all about
two people and their cronies fighting to steal
the wealth of South Sudan,” he said. —AFP
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2015
I N T E R N AT I O N A L
Sri Lanka and US
eye deeper ties
WASHINGTON: The surprise defeat of Sri Lanka’s authoritarian
leader and the new government’s early steps to end repression have stirred US hopes that the South Asian island nation
can revive ties with Washington and distance itself to some
degree from Beijing.
Under former President Mahinda Rajapaksa, relations with
China intensified, with heavy Chinese investment in the
strategically located island along busy sea lanes between the
Persian Gulf and East Asia. Once-robust ties with the US deteriorated sharply, even as President Barack Obama pushed to
engage nations across Asia and consolidate America as a
Pacific power.
Washington took an important step toward rebuilding the
relationship with the Monday arrival of the top diplomat for
South Asia, the first visit by a senior State Department official
since former Rajapaksa ally Maithripala Sirisena won Jan 8
Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian
Affairs Nisha Biswal
elections. “Sri Lanka can count on the United States to be partner and a friend in the way forward,” Assistant Secretary of
State Nisha Biswal told reporters, speaking alongside Foreign
Minister Mangala Samaraweera. She said the new government has already taken many positive steps but “there is a lot
of hard work ahead and some difficult challenges.”
She also noted that no country in the world buys more Sri
Lankan products than the United States. Samaraweera is
expected to visit Washington later this month. Obama wants a
deeper partnership with Sri Lanka and US officials say the early signs are promising. Within a week or so of taking office,
Sirisena rolled back restrictions on the press and civil society.
He also vows to reduce powers of the presidency that been
inflated by Rajapaksa when his popularity ballooned during
the ending of Sri Lanka’s bloody civil war.
Strained relations
US-Sri Lanka relations were strained over Rajapaksa’s reluctance to investigate thousands of reported civilian deaths in
the final chapter of the quarter-century conflict in 2009, when
government forces crushed Tamil rebels who had been fighting for an ethnic homeland. Sirisena has been cautious about
promising action on accountability, but he did offer an early
fig leaf to minority Tamils, who supported him at the polls,
when he quickly replaced an unpopular ex-military governor
appointed by Rajapaksa in the former battle zone in the north
of the country.
The new government also says it is reviewing one of a
series of major Chinese-financed infrastructure projects: a $1.5
billion land reclamation for a “port city” in the capital,
Colombo. That’s a blow to Beijing’s progress in winning an ally
in the Indian Ocean. But officials in Colombo are also being
careful not to alienate Beijing. Rajitha Senaratne, a Cabinet
spokesman, said Sri Lanka does not “need to tilt towards any
side.”
“China has been a historical friend of ours, India is also the
same,” he told The Associated Press. “Our exports go to the E.U.
and US” The new government assured India it will not align
itself to any world power. Two recent port calls by Chinese
submarines at a Chinese-built terminal in Colombo, one
before a visit in September by China’s leader Xi Jinping, fueled
speculation that Beijing’s wants a “string of pearls” or port
access along sea lanes linking the energy-rich Persian Gulf and
economic centers in eastern China. The submarine visits
spooked India, which lies just 30 miles from Sri Lanka and
shares US uncertainty about Beijing’s intentions as China’s military power grows.
Strategic reasons
Washington has its own strategic reasons to be interested
in Sri Lanka. A 2007 agreement, sealed before relations with
Rajapaksa soured, permits the US and Sri Lanka to exchange
nonlethal supplies and refueling during humanitarian operations and joint military exercises. The US has a significant economic stake in the nation of 20 million people. US financial
institutions are major investors in Sri Lankan bonds, and the
US is the second-largest market for Sri Lankan exports.
“The United States should keep up the pressure on human
rights and reconciliation with ethnic minorities,” said Bharath
Gopalaswamy of the Atlantic Council think tank. “But that
should not be the only thing the relationship is built on. It has
to be broader engagement.” Sri Lanka also wants a better relationship with Washington. Rajapaksa’s government spent liberally on US-based lobbyists but with little apparent impact.
Acrimony with the US and others over human rights deepened when a U.N. body last year approved an investigation
into reports of civil war atrocities. The results are due in March.
Sirisena will be walking a fine line at home and abroad in
how he responds. He’s managing an unwieldy coalition of
majority Sinhalese and minority Tamils, and the government
could face parliamentary elections within months. — AP
BEINJING: Indian Foreign Minister Sushma Swaraj (left) and Chinese President Xi Jinping hold a meeting at the Great
Hall of the People. — AP
Xi praises India,
Russia relations
Talks enter new stage of growth
BEIJING: Chinese President Xi Jinping yesterday hailed his
country’s relations with India and Russia as Beijing looks to
increase its heft on the global diplomatic stage. Twin visits
by New Delhi’s foreign minister Sushma Swaraj and Sergei
Lavrov from Moscow come on the heels of a high-profile
trip to India by US President Barack Obama last week, and
with Russian leader Vladimir Putin globally isolated over
the conflict in Ukraine.
Xi told Swaraj that China-India ties “have entered a new
stage of growth” since he visited in September. “The positive side of China-India relations has been growing, the
momentum of our cooperation has been strengthening,”
he added. China and India are the world’s two most populous countries but ties between the nuclear-armed neighbors are still characterized by mutual suspicion, in large
part as a legacy of a brief but bloody war in 1962 and a
continuing border dispute.
‘Whole new level’
But Swaraj was similarly effusive, telling Xi that “relations between our two countries have risen to a whole new
level”. The Indian and Russian ministers’ trips to Beijing-for
a three-way meeting with their Chinese counterpart-came
after Obama last week visited India. The US and India share
an interest in curbing Beijing’s growing regional influence.
Although neither mentioned China by name during the
three-day visit, Obama welcomed what he called a “greater
role for India in the Asia-Pacific”. Freedom of navigation in
the region must be upheld, he added. Beijing claims sovereignty over most of the South China Sea. To Lavrov, meanwhile, Xi expressed his satisfaction with China-Russia ties.
Beijing and Moscow, allies and then adversaries during
the Cold War, have found common ground internationally
and often take similar stands at the UN Security Council
where they have permanent veto powers. They have also
forged increasingly closer economic ties as China is hungry
for the vast hydrocarbon resources of Russia, which is seeking stable markets amid Western sanctions over its annexation of Crimea and fighting in eastern Ukraine. “Over the
past year, we have together been advancing the development of the overall strategic relationship between China
and Russia,” Xi said.
“Our joint efforts have yielded rich results... our cooperation grows ever deeper,” he added. Lavrov pointed out
that Xi and Putin met five times last year. “The consensus
reached at the highest level between the two leaders has
played an extremely important role in pushing the development of relations in the right direction,” he said. — AFP
12,000 skulls
exhumed
at prison
BEIJING: Men stand in front of a board with a 2015 Year of the Sheep mascot at a press conference for the China Central Television’s annual hours-long Spring Festival Gala. — AP
Lunar New Year TV gala
set for global audience
BEIJING: China says its annual Lunar New
Year gala TV show is all set to go international. State broadcaster China Central
Television says it’s making rights available
to foreign broadcasters for the first time,
and plans to promote the Feb. 18 show on
Twitter and other social media. CCTV touts
its annual hours-long Spring Festival Gala
as the world’s longest-running and mostwatched variety show. A staple of holiday
celebrations since the 1980s, the evening
show also has been widely mocked for
cheesy performances and stilted staging.
This year’s show will be broadcast in several languages, including English, Hindi,
Arabic, Portuguese and German, under
agreements with 24 foreign media outlets,
said Ma Runsheng, general manager of
CHNPEC, the CCTV-owned agency which
deals with its copyrights. Ma said greatest
hits from past shows - including the best
moments of traditional Chinese opera - will
be encapsulated to promote the gala on
YouTube, Google Plus and Twitter, which
are blocked in China.
“Our purpose is to make our gala avail-
able to more overseas Chinese and overseas foreign viewers who love Chinese culture and want to learn about Chinese culture through this festive celebration,” Ma
said at a news conference yesterday. This
year’s theme is “Family Harmony Yields
Success.” The gala is already broadcast live
on multiple T V channels and on some
Chinese websites. Last year, more than 700
million people watched the show live or a
replay a week later on CCTV or other channels, and 110 million people watched it
online, according to Zheng Weidong,
deputy managing director of CSM Media
Research, which pulls together ratings.
When the gala started in 1983, relatively
few Chinese families had their own TV sets,
but it evolved into a major annual viewing
event. Now, many younger viewers prefer
watching something else online. Last year,
to try to increase its appeal, organizers
hired acclaimed film director Feng
Xiaogang to direct it, but he reportedly
complained that he didn’t have the freedom to do what he wanted, and many critics gave the show a thumbs-down. — AP
PHNOM PENH: Cambodia’s UN-backed
court yesterday heard a former prisoner
say he helped dig up more than 12,000
skulls in mass graves outside Phnom
Penh, as the genocide trial of two Khmer
Rouge leaders continued. Nuon Chea, 88,
known as “Brother Number Two”, and former head of state Khieu Samphan, 83,
face charges over the killing of ethnic
Vietnamese and Muslim minorities, forced
marriage and rape during the 1975-1979
regime. In August, the pair were given life
sentences for crimes against humanitythe first top Khmer Rouge figures to be
jailed-after a two-year trial focused on the
forced evacuation of Cambodians from
Phnom Penh into rural labor camps and
murders at an execution site. The pair
have been accused of playing a critical
role in the “Killing Fields” era, a genocide
which left up to two million people dead
in the late 1970s.
Former prisoner Keo Chandara, 63,
said he helped exhume more than 12,100
skulls from eight mass graves at Kraing Ta
Chan prison in Takeo province, around 80
kilometers south of Phnom Penh shortly
after the regime fell in 1979. “We did not
excavate all the pits. I was ordered to dig
the up pits... I did the excavation at those
eight pits,” he said.
The prosecution witness also gave
graphic testimony of Khmer Rouge
cadres torturing prisoners including a
woman with metal pincers and then sulphuric acid. “She was screaming and there
were about 10 prisoners who were
ordered to sit and watch the torture,” Keo
Chandara said. “At that time they didn’t
take people through a court like this
court. They just simply killed people,” he
added. When the court resumed the
genocide trial last month, the prosecution’s first witness told judges that Khmer
Rouge soldiers slit the throats of hundreds of inmates at the prison and ate
their gall bladders. The complex case
against Nuon Chea and Khieu Samphan
was split into a series of smaller trials in
2011 to try to obtain a faster verdict
against the pair given their advanced
ages and frail health.—AFP
China cult pair executed for McDonald’s killing
BEIJING: A father and daughter who belonged
to a fringe Chinese religious group were executed yesterday for beating a woman to death
at a McDonald’s restaurant, reportedly after she
rebuffed their attempts to recruit her. The pair
were among a group of five members of the
banned Quannengshen cult convicted of
attacking the woman, surnamed Wu, after she
refused to give them her phone number.
“For the crimes of intentional homicide, and
organizing an evil cult to undermine the law,
Zhang Fan and Zhang Lidong were put to
death,” the Intermediate People’s Court of
Yantai city said on its official microblog
account. China uses both lethal injection and
shooting for executions, but the method was
not specified. Zhang Fan was previously said by
state media to be Zhang Lidong’s daughter.
Followers of Quannengshen, whose name can
be translated as Church of Almighty God,
believe that Jesus has been reincarnated as a
Chinese woman. They refer to the ruling
Communist Party as the “great red dragon”. On
its website-where one section is headed “The
Maturer the People Become, the Sooner the
Great Red Dragon Will Collapse”-the group
describes the authorities as “the persecutor of
God and the enemy of God”.
The organization was outlawed by the government in the mid-1990s and its founders
moved to the United States in 2000, the official
Xinhua News Agency said. Shortly after the
May incident, an online video emerged showing a man resembling Zhang Lidong striking
out angrily with a pole, shouting “Damn you,
devil! Go to hell!” as a woman yelled “Kill her!
Beat her to death!” The three minutes of
footage, apparently shot on a mobile phone at
the McDonald’s in the eastern province of
Shandong, only included a fraction of a second
showing the person thought to be the victim.
The three others convicted over the attackincluding another daughter of Zhang Lidong’swere given prison terms ranging from seven
years to life. State media gave the executions
prominent coverage yesterday, with broadcaster
CCTV showing footage of the convicts in court
as well as replaying the attack film.—AFP
GUANDONG: This picture shows participants (center) competing in a tofu (beancurd) wrestling
competition. Participants, mostly women, fight it out in an inflatable pool which is filled with
nearly two tons of fresh milk and tofu, in a promotion to attract tourists for the upcoming
Chinese Lunar New Year holiday. — AFP
Prisoners escape by scaling
walls with tied bed sheets
NEW DELHI: Scores of inmates staged a mass
breakout from an Indian young offenders detention centre yesterday by tying bedsheets together and then scaling down the walls of the threestorey building, police said. A total of 91
inmates, including several convicted murderers,
managed to flee the facility in Meerut overnight,
although 35 have since been recaptured, said
the city’s superintendent of police Om Prakash.
“They removed an iron grille from a window
at the back of the building while police were
guarding the front,” Prakash said from Meerut in
the northern state of Uttar Pradesh. “This was
done so professionally that no one got a whiff,”
Prakash added. Those still on the run included
inmates convicted of crimes such as murder,
rape, theft and banditry, Prakash added. All are
aged under 18.
Police say the break-out was staged sometime between 1:00am and 3:00am and the alarm
was only raised when officers who were
patrolling near the centre spotted some of the
fugitives trying to flag down public transport.
Inmates from the same centre beat a policeman
to death in December after he objected to their
lewd behavior with a woman during a court trial.
More than 31,000 inmates are being held at
young offenders institutes in India, according to
the latest available set of official statistics.
Although they are meant to be under lock and
key overnight, inmates usually sleep in dormitories rather than individual cells.
Potential IS recruits freed
Meanwhile, Indian authorities have released
nine people who had been deported from
Turkey after allegedly trying to enter an area of
Syria controlled by the Islamic State militant
group, police said yesterday. Police in the southern city of Bangalore said the nine Indians were
released late Sunday, after they admitted during
questioning that they had planned to cross over
to territory controlled by IS but denied being
members of the organization, which is banned
in India.
“We set them free as no incriminating material or any evidence was found against them,”
Bangalore police chief MN Reddi told reporters
Monday. “No case was registered but they were
warned against making such attempts in future,”
he said. Turkish authorities detained the nine
people-a family of seven and two engineers who
were in the country on tourist visas-as they were
trying to enter Syria on Friday. Police quoted the
group as telling their interrogators that they had
only wanted to help civilians who had been
affected by the fighting in Syria and Iraq, large
parts of which are also controlled by IS.
Thousands of foreign jihadists are believed to
have joined IS which has seized swathes of territory in Iraq and Syria, ruling with a brutal version
of Islamic law. The group has murdered a number
of foreigners, including American, British and
Japanese hostages. India banned the Islamic
State group in December after police found a
sympathizer who was running a Twitter account
and was suspected of online recruitment.
Although India has the third largest number of
Muslims in the world, only a few are so far reported to have joined the militant group. — AFP
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2015
I N T E R N AT I O N A L
Japan PM defends govt
handling of hostage crisis
‘Japan will continue fight against terrorism’
TOKYO: A man chants a mantra while beating a drum during an interfaith prayer vigil for two Japanese hostages
purportedly beheaded by militants from the Islamic State
group. — AP
TOKYO: Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe defended
his policy toward terrorism, as the flag at his official residence flew at half-staff yesterday in a mark of mourning
for two hostages killed by the Islamic State group. During
a long day of parliamentary debate, Abe parried numerous questions about his handling of the hostage crisis,
which came to a grisly end with news early Sunday that
journalist Kenji Goto had been beheaded by the extremists.
Abe said his announcement of $200 million in nonmilitary aid for the fight against the Islamic State group,
made during a visit to the Middle East just days before
the militants demanded a $200 million ransom for the
two hostages, was meant to convey Japan’s strong commitment to battling terrorism and fostering peace and
stability in the region. Some have questioned that decision, saying Abe should have been more cautious and not
mentioned the Islamic State group by name. Responding
to a question by an opposition lawmaker, Abe confirmed
that he was aware of the hostage situation when he
made the announcement.
Increased risks
Abe said he wished to publicize Japan’s contribution to
the fight against extremism, and rejected the idea of a
more cautious approach. “As international society seeks to
restore peace and stability in the Middle East ... I thought it
would be the most appropriate destination to visit, and that
I should broadcast my message to the world from there,”
Abe said. “I thought announcing Japan’s contribution to fulfill its responsibility would contribute to the international
community’s effort to fight against terrorism and prevent
its expansion.” Abe said he did not see an increased terrorist
risk following threats in a purported Islamic State group
video that vowed to target Japanese and make the knife
Goto’s killer was wielding Japan’s “nightmare.”“The terrorists
are criminals,” Abe said. “We are determined to pursue them
and hold them accountable.” Still, Japan has ordered
heightened security precautions for airports and other public transport and at Japanese facilities overseas, such as
embassies and schools. The government also has called on
journalists and others in areas near the conflict to withdraw,
given the risk of further kidnappings and other threats.
Mourning continues
The flag outside Abe’s official residence was lowered
to half-staff to mourn Goto and the other hostage, gun
aficionado and adventurer Haruna Yukawa, who reportedly was killed earlier. Goto’s wife, Rinko Jogo, said in a
statement released yestrerday that she was devastated
but proud of her husband. Jogo requested privacy for
her family as they deal with their loss, and thanked those
who had supported them.
“I remain extremely proud of my husband, who
reported the plight of people in conflict areas like Iraq,
Somalia and Syria,” she said in the statement, issued
through the British-based journalist group Rory Peck
Trust. “It was his passion to highlight the effects on ordinary people, especially through the eyes of children, and
to inform the rest of us of the tragedies of war,” she said.
Goto left for Syria in late October, just a few weeks after
the birth of the couple’s youngest daughter, apparently
hoping to rescue Yukawa, who had been seized by the
militants last summer. Soon after, he was captured by the
extremists. — AP
Korean Air boss’s
daughter treated
crew ‘like slaves’
SEOUL: The daughter of the boss of Korean Air, on trial in a
case popularly known as “nut rage”, treated flight crew like
“feudal slaves”, a chief steward said in court yesterday.
Heather Cho, daughter of Korean Air Lines chairman Cho
Yang-ho and the former head of in-flight service, is on trial
for breaking aviation laws and conspiring with other company executives to force crew members lie about the Dec 5
incident.
Cho had demanded the chief steward, Park Chang-jin,
be removed from a flight at New York’s John F Kennedy airport after a first class flight attendant served her
macadamia nuts in a bag, not on a dish. The plane, already
taxiing towards the runway, returned to the gate. Park said
Cho “was like a beast that found its prey gritting its teeth as
she became abusive, not listening to what I had to say at
all”.
“I don’t think Cho showed an ounce of conscience, treating powerless people like myself like feudal slaves, forcing
us to sacrifice and treating it as if it was the natural thing to
do,” Park said, fighting back tears. Cho resigned from her
posts at the airline, including vice-president, in the face of
public anger and ridicule over her behavior, which raised
questions about the power of the country’s “chaebol” conglomerates.
Park appeared in court in his uniform after returning to
work over the weekend after a leave of absence. Cho’s
father apologized in court on Friday to Park and promised
he would not face any reprimand. Cho’s lawyers previously
told the court that she was sorry for her actions, but that
they did not merit punishment. They also denied that she
used violence. Park and prosecutors had said he was
forced to kneel down and Cho poked his palm several
times with a folder. Heather is the oldest of Cho Yang-ho’s
three children. Her siblings are also executives with the
airline. — Reuters
US couple murder
trial proceeds
in Indonesia
BALI: An Indonesian court decided yesterday to
go ahead with the trials of an American couple
charged with murdering the woman’s mother
while vacationing on the resort island of Bali last
year. The three-judge panel overruled defense
arguments that the indictment submitted by
prosecutors had inaccuracies and should be
annulled. Hearings will resume Wednesday at
Denpasar District Court in the provincial capital
of Bali. “The indictment is fully qualified both formally and materially according to the law,” said
presiding judges Made Suweda. “Therefore, the
defense objections are rejected.” The badly beaten body of Sheila von Wiese-Mack, 62, was
found in a suitcase in the trunk of a taxi outside
an upscale hotel in August.
Heather Mack, 19, and her boyfriend Tommy
Schaefer, 21, both from Chicago, are being tried
separately with the same judges and prosecutors. They are charged with premeditated murder and face a maximum penalty of death by firing squad if found guilty. Their lawyers argued
earlier that inaccuracies in the indictment could
lead to multiple interpretations of the suspects’
activities and the crime scene, raising questions
of whether other people had entered the victim’s
room and killed her.
They also objected to the citing of communications between the defendants on cellphones
as evidence of premeditated murder, arguing
that cellphone communications are prone to
manipulation. Prosecutors have alleged that the
couple sent text messages about their initial
plan to disguise a murder as suicide on the
beach. Both defendants sat quietly as the decision to proceed with the trials was read out by
judges.
Unlike previous hearings, Schaefer didn’t shed
tears. In their indictment, prosecutors said the
couple plotted the murder because von WieseMack did not endorse their relationship, and that
Mack once suggested that Schaefer hire someone to kill her mother for $50,000 before their
visit to Bali. It said that an argument over the
hotel bill made Mack’s mother angry and she
scolded Schaefer, using a racial slur, and Schaefer
then battered her with a fruit bowl handle. Mack,
who is seven months’ pregnant, helped stuff her
mother’s body in the suitcase by sitting on it to
enable Schaefer to close it, the indictment said.
They then hired a taxi and placed the suitcase in
the trunk and told the driver they were going to
check out of the hotel and would return, but
never did. — AP
Muslim rebels
must prove
sincerity
BANGKOK: Thai policemen patrol at the site of two small explosions on a walkway leading to a luxury shopping mall. — AP
Bomb blasts in Bangkok
mall injures shoppers
BANGKOK: Police in Thailand yesterday were investigating a pair
of bombings outside a luxury shopping mall in the heart of
Bangkok, the first such violence reported in the capital since last
year’s army coup. One person was slightly injured in the blasts
Sunday night, and police said the small homemade bombs were
designed to sow panic, not kill.
The explosions occurred about 8 pm between the upscale Siam
Paragon shopping mall and a mass transit elevated train line,
which was undamaged but briefly shut as a precaution. Siam
Paragon was titled the world’s most photographed location on
Instagram in 2013 and is a trendy meeting place in Bangkok that
claims to have more than 100,000 Thai and foreign visitors a day.
Police initially said the explosions were caused by a malfunctioning transformer, but National Police spokesman Lt Gen. Prawut
Thawornsiri later said they were caused by devices that were probably not meant to hurt anyone. Service at the station was suspended for about an hour.
“The explosions were caused by two pipe bombs, but the flash
powder that was used had low pressure. You can see that the damage was not much,” national police spokesman Lt Gen Prawut
Thawornsiri told reporters Monday. “It showed the perpetrators
intended only to cause panic, threaten or stir up chaos.” “We have
not ruled out a possibility that it was politically motivated but we
are pursuing all kinds of motives,” he said.
The explosive ordnance disposal team said the two bombs
were controlled by digital clocks and one of them was hidden
behind a transformer, which sent out some plume of smokes near
the busy sky train station, according to police Col Kamthorn
Auicharoen, who heads the unit. He said a Thai man was slightly
injured in his left hand. Kamthorn said police were looking for two
male suspects seen on closed-circuit television footage and will
likely issue arrest warrants for them in a few days.
Rising political temperature
The incident came at a time of slightly raised political temperatures in Thailand, as the country’s ruling junta has tightened its clampdown on critics of its rule. It came a little more than a week after the
impeachment of former Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra.
Thailand has been under martial law since the army seized power in
a May 22 coup that toppled her elected government.
There has been little open opposition, and virtually no violent
opposition, to the military regime that took over from an elected
civilian government after the coup d’etat. Martial law remains in
effect under the dual administration of the junta and a militaryappointed interim Cabinet, and any dissent is strongly discouraged. Junta-leader-cum-Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha said
Monday that security measures will be tightened and asked the
public to help prevent such an incident from happening again.
Thailand has a history of conspiratorial politics, and political
protests in the capital, especially aggressive street demonstrations,
have become more common since a 2006 coup toppled Yingluck’s
brother, Thaksin Shinawatra, from the prime minister’s job. — AP
MANILA: Muslim rebels who signed a
ceasefire with the Philippine government
must cooperate with an investigation into
the killing of 44 policemen by some of
their fighters, a presidential official said
yesterday. President Benigno Aquino’s
spokesman Edwin Lacierda hinted that
this might even involve calling on the
Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) to
turn over some members to face criminal
charges.
“We have said that the MILF must
demonstrate its sincerity that they are full
partners in the peace process. We certainly
will encourage them to help us find things
that we need to search for the truth,”
Lacierda told reporters. He said Justice
Secretary Leila de Lima has been preparing
charges against those responsible for the
January 25 killings.
“We would hope that part of their
good faith is to show us... the truth. We
want to seek justice. That kind of justice
that we want is a justice that seeks
accountability,” he said Lacierda stopped
short of stating the MILF must give up its
fighters but said it should return the
firearms it captured from the slain policemen. A police board of inquiry is already
investigating the killing of the police commandos, who were on a mission in the
southern island of Mindanao to capture or
kill Malaysian bomb maker Zulkifli Bin Hir,
alias Marwan. Marwan, a leading member
of the Jemaah Islamiyah group which
staged the 2002 Bali bombings in
Indonesia, is believed by authorities to
have been killed in the raid.
But the commandos were later
ambushed by Muslim armed groupsincluding fighters of the MILF which
signed a peace agreement with the government last March. MILF officials said they
were acting in self-defense and the raid
should have been coordinated with them
under the terms of the ceasefire. However
the killings have angered the nation and
threatened efforts to pass a law that would
create a Muslim autonomous area as part
of the peace process. Legislators are seeking their own investigation of the incident
before they will act on the bill, which
Aquino wants passed before his term ends
in 2016. Lacierda stressed that the peace
process could not be abandoned, saying
that nearly 120,000 people had died since
the Muslim separatist insurgency began in
1972. “This is a period of grief. It’s a period
of mourning. It’s a period of rending our
garments out of anger, out of frustration.
But... there is no alternative to peace. It’s
too costly for us,” he said. — AFP
HONG KONG: In this picture taken yesterday, demonstrators march for democracy in Hong Kong. A disappointing turnout at Hong Kong’s first democracy rally since the end
of mass street demonstrations shows the city is suffering from “protest fatigue” and new longer-term strategies are needed to drive reform, analysts say. — AFP
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2015
NEWS
A projection turns and throws images onto a wall during the light festival in Ghent, Belgium on Sunday. More than 40 light installations were on display during the festival, which takes places
every three years. — AP
Alarab off air hours after launch
Continued from Page 1
A source familiar with the affairs of the news channel
said Bahraini officials had delivered the suspension order
on a visit to the station over issues of “journalistic neutrality”. A brief front-page article in the pro-government
Akhbar Al-Khaleej newspaper said the channel’s broadcasts had been suspended because they did not conform
to Gulf norms. It did not cite its sources. In a column in the
same newspaper, editor-in-chief Anwar Abdulrahman
asked: “Is Alarab really Arab?” He condemned the channel
for hosting Marzouq, who is “radical to the core”. “Resorting
to muscle flexing in news coverage, with the hope of proving that you are an independent channel, is not going to
work,” he wrote.
Viewers tuning into the channel yesterday morning
were only able to see prepackaged promotions for the network, not news programming. Marzouq is a former deputy
parliament speaker who is a senior member of Al-Wefaq,
the country’s main Shiite political bloc. He was cleared of
allegations of instigating violence and having links to a
protest faction that authorities blame for bombings and
other attacks in a closely watched case last year. He was
asked on to discuss Bahrain’s decision Saturday to revoke
the citizenship of 72 people. The list included Turki AlBinali, a 30-year-old who is one of the Islamic State group’s
leading ideologues. It also included several Shiite activists
living in exile.
Al-Wefaq welcomed Alarab’s launch in a statement yesterday and said it has submitted a request to launch a
Bahrain-based channel of its own. Alarab is headquartered
in Bahrain’s twin-towered World Trade Center, one of the
landmark buildings in the capital, Manama. Bahrain hosts
the US Navy’s 5th Fleet and is part of the US-led coalition
striking the Islamic State group. It is connected by a causeway to Saudi Arabia, and its royal family has close political
and security ties to the OPEC kingpin.
Bahrain has faced four years of instability following
widespread anti-government protests in February 2011
that were dominated by the country’s Shiite majority,
which seeks greater political rights from the Sunni monarchy. Bahraini authorities, backed by security forces from
neighboring Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates,
crushed the initial uprising, but street protests, petrolbomb attacks and other low-level unrest continue.
The channel’s decision in late 2011 to locate its headquarters in Bahrain rather than a larger media hub such as Dubai,
United Arab Emirates, was seen as a key endorsement of the
country’s prospects despite its political unrest. Alarab’s general manager, Jamal Khashoggi, told reporters in December
that the network “will cover all views” and would not shy
away from sensitive topics in Bahrain. Alarab is backed by
Saudi royal family member Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, whose
Kingdom Holding Co investment firm has stakes in several
well-known companies, including Citigroup Inc, Apple Inc,
News Corp and Twitter. — Agencies
Activist’s jail term upheld as tweeters freed
Continued from Page 1
The court of appeals meanwhile upheld a four-year
jail term against online activist Ahmad Abdulaziz Fadhel
for allegedly insulting the judiciary and making derogatory remarks against a number of judges on Twitter. The
criminal court handed the same sentence in October on
Fadhel, who has been in jail for the past six months.
In another development, the National Assembly’s
health and labour committee yesterday discussed a part
of the first draft law to regulate the affairs of domestic
helpers in Kuwait. Head of the committee MP Saadoun
Hammad said the panel completed 47 articles of the 73article bill and will meet again on Thursday to complete
the rest of articles. Among articles approved by the panel is an article stipulating that domestic helpers can
transfer their residence permits after working for two
years with their first sponsor, Hammad said. Sponsors
who make the transfer before the two years will lose
their financial guarantee.
MP Abdulhameed Dashti called on the Assembly to
debate human rights situation in Kuwait in a special session or at least allocate two hours for the debate. He
said the Assembly should debate recommendations
made to Kuwait by a large number of countries last
week at the United Nations Human Rights Council,
which heard Kuwait’s report on its human rights situation. Dashti said that Kuwait must be ready to respond
to these recommendations at a meeting to be held by
the Council on June 29.
MP Abdulrahman Al-Jeeran said he has submitted a
proposal to amend the election law to prevent those
who receive jail terms for serious felonies from contesting the election before the lapse of 15 years if
they repeat the crime. Under the current law, people
who have been sentenced for crimes can contest elections after they are rehabilitated. The same applies to
recidivists.
UN: 2014 ‘hottest year on record’
Continued from Page 1
Also notable was that the 2014 record occurred in
the absence of a fully-developed El Nino system - a periodic weather phenomenon that has an overall warming
impact on Earth’s climate. High temperatures in 1998 the hottest year before the 21st century - occurred during a strong El Nino. The WMO report is a consolidation
of leading international datasets, including research by
NASA, the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration (NOAA), the Met Office’s Hadley Centre
and the University of East Anglia’s Climatic Research
Unit. Some of the data goes back to 1850. Scientists
warn that a 4 C warmer Earth would be hit by more cat-
astrophic droughts, floods, rising seas and storms, with
wars likely fought over ever-scarcer resources like water.
Fraught UN negotiations for a climate-saving pact,
scheduled to enter into force from 2020, are at a difficult
phase and campaigners and observers fear a weak compromise as nations continue to disagree of some of the
very fundamentals. Countries have committed to make
emissions-curbing pledges before the Paris gathering starting next month for those nations in a position to
do so. Emissions must be slashed by 40-70 percent by
2050 from 2010 levels and to near zero or below by
2100 for a good chance of reaching two-degree warming, the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate
Change said in a report last year. — AFP
Greste speaks of ‘angst’ over colleagues...
Continued from Page 1
Canada said Greste’s release was “positive” news and
that it remained “very hopeful” that Fahmy would also be
freed soon.
Greste’s family expressed their joy after speaking to
him on the phone. The Australian’s mother, Lois, told a
news conference in their hometown of Brisbane: “I’m
ecstatic. I just can’t say how happy I am about it.” His father
Juris said it was not clear when he would arrive home. “He
is gathering his thoughts for the trip home,” said his brother Andrew. “He is safe, healthy, very, very happy to be on
his way home.” Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott
spoke of his “personal delight and our nation’s relief” at
Greste’s release. He also voiced support for a free media
and thanked Sisi.
Al-Jazeera vowed to pursue the campaign to free the
other two journalists. But Heather Allan, head of newsgathering at the channel, admitted she wasn’t confident
that Mohamed would be released. “I can’t say I am confident, no. I just don’t know, honestly. Are we going to keep
on fighting it? Absolutely - we are not going to leave him
there,” she said.
She said Mohamed “must be feeling pretty isolated at
the moment”, but the Qatar-based broadcaster was in
constant touch with the producer’s family. “We might
have to try some other tactics because we don’t have a
foreign country involved, but our commitment to getting
him out is just as strong as it ever was.” Mohamed’s family
has pinned their hopes on a presidential pardon or his
acquittal on appeal.
Amnesty International said Greste’s release should not
overshadow the ongoing imprisonment of Fahmy and
Mohamed. “All three men are facing trumped up charges
and were forced to endure a farcical trial marred by irregularities,” said Amnesty’s Hassiba Hadj Sahraoui. The
European Union described Greste’s release as a “positive
step” but called for his colleagues’ to be freed, adding that
“journalists must be able to work in a safe working environment”.
The high-profile trial, at which Greste and Fahmy were
sentenced to seven years in prison and Mohamed to 10,
proved a public relations nightmare for Sisi, who has
cracked down on Islamists since toppling president
Mohamed Morsi in July 2013. The verdict was overturned
and a court in January ordered a retrial for the three.
Egyptian police arrested the journalists at the peak of a
diplomatic row between Cairo and Qatar, which owns AlJazeera. The broadcaster had been critical of the deadly
crackdown on Morsi’s Muslim Brotherhood following the
Islamist leader’s overthrow. Qatar has since moved to
mend ties with Egypt, and Al-Jazeera has closed its
Arabic-language Egyptian affiliate which backed the
Brotherhood.
The rapprochement reflected growing international
acceptance of the crackdown on Egypt’s Islamist opposition and militants who have killed scores of police and soldiers since Morsi’s overthrow. The crackdown, which has
left at least 1,400 people dead, had tested Egypt’s ties
with the United States, which temporarily froze part of its
annual $1.3 billion military aid in 2013. Greste worked for
multiple news organisations before joining Al-Jazeera
English. He was the BBC’s Kabul correspondent in 1995
and returned there after the US-led invasion in 2001. From
2009, he was based in Nairobi, winning the broadcasting
industry’s prestigious Peabody Award in 2011. — AFP
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2015
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Focus
‘Protest fatigue’ as
Hong Kong activists
struggle on strategy
By Laura Mannering, Dennis Chong
A
disappointing turnout at Hong Kong’s first
democracy rally since the end of mass street
demonstrations shows the city is suffering from
“protest fatigue” and new longer-term strategies are
needed to drive reform, analysts say. A procession of
yellow umbrellas, the symbol of the democracy movement, edged slowly through the centre of the city on
Sunday afternoon - the first time demonstrators had
gathered after more than two months of street blockades ended in December when protest camps were
cleared.
Organisers said that 13,000 people attended the
march - with police estimating 8,800 - far below the
50,000 hoped for and a fraction of the 100,000 who
took to the streets at the height of the rallies. China has
pledged that Hong Kong can choose its own leader for
the first time in 2017, but says the candidates must be
vetted by a loyalist committee, which campaigners dismiss as “fake democracy”.
In the face of their failure to achieve any concessions over political reform, some supporters are now
questioning whether it’s worth taking to the streets.
“Beijing has played the game quite smartly. They have
convinced most Hong Kong people that even if they
were to replay Occupy Central, that would not be sufficient to sway Beijing,” says political analyst Willy Lam, a
professor at the Chinese University of Hong Kong.
The city is now divided over whether to accept
Beijing’s version of universal suffrage - which will go
before Hong Kong lawmakers this year - and hope for
improvements later, or to veto the plans, said Lam, who
added that a “tangible roadmap” from the democracy
camp could help galvanise public support. With little
chance of a sudden change of mind from Beijing on
reforms, student activists and campaigners are advocating longer-term strategies.
The founders of the Occupy Central group have said
they are now pushing for greater education about the
democracy movement and a social charter. There is
also a drive to get young voters to the polls and student leaders elected. “The movement should be done
in a different way if going to the streets to protest
doesn’t work,” says 33-year-old computer programmer
Robert, who was a regular at the protest camps but
who did not attend Sunday’s march. “We can try to
make a difference within the system. Can student
activists try to influence others by joining lower level
elections, then make changes as they move up the
ranks?”
Robert says he has turned his back on the street
protests because, in his view, they made no difference.
“I just don’t have the motivation. Occupying the roads
was the most radical thing I have ever done, and still
nothing was achieved,” he told AFP.
‘Sleeping Tiger’
Author and political analyst Michael DeGolyer
agrees that street protests now are ineffective - but
says that the public is waiting to see what happens as
the key political reform package moves through the
Hong Kong legislature. The bill to enact Beijing’s framework of reforms will be put to a legislative council vote,
expected in June, and pro-democracy lawmakers have
vowed to block it - a move which could result in Hong
Kongers having no vote at all in 2017 elections. “The
public don’t see the point of marching right now.
Nothing has happened to bring people back to the
streets,” says DeGolyer, a professor of government and
international studies at Hong Kong’s Baptist University.
Activists had “misread” public sentiment by organising Sunday’s rally, he said. DeGolyer warned that if the
government pushes through unpopular policies it
would trigger “a second Occupy movement... likely to
be much more violent than anything we’ve seen up to
this point”. “(City leader) CY Leung is sitting on a volcano very close to erupting. The tiger is asleep but not
dead.”
Hong Kong’s democracy movement is now in a “transition period” said Ivan Choy, a political analyst at
Chinese University, with organisers and supporters
recovering after the “exhausting” street blockades.
“People have to take a rest and equip themselves for further action,” he said, suggesting this could take a different form than previously. “Leaders should think about
their next steps: Traditional peaceful protests may not
attract some people anymore,” says Choy. “They might
prefer a more radical form of protest.” —AFP
All articles appearing on these
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the writers. Kuwait Times takes no
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therein. Kuwait Times invites readers to voice their opinions. Please
send submissions via email to: [email protected] or via snail
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The editor reserves the right to edit
any submission as necessary.
Hurdles stack up on Iran nuclear deal
By Arthur MacMillan
T
here are some in Tehran convinced a
final nuclear deal between Iran and
world powers has already been
sealed. Others are adamant there will never
be a pact. But as uncertainty persists over
talks aimed at ending the 12-year standoff
on Iran’s disputed atomic program, hurdles
to an agreement are stacking up. In
Washington, lawmakers are considering
imposing new sanctions on Tehran despite
calls from the White House to give the
negotiations more time. Hardline Iranian
MPs have responded with threats of their
own and are drafting two bills that would
undermine the talks.
With the going already tough - the level of uranium enrichment Iran can conduct
and a timetable for lifting sanctions are
said to be blocking a deal - analysts say
pressure is being ratcheted up. “Those who
oppose any diplomacy between Iran and
the West are already seeking to end the
process,” said Ellie Geranmayeh, an Iran
specialist at the European Council on
Foreign Relations. “With time, they will gain
further ammunition.”
Although the June 30 deadline for a
final agreement between Iran and the P5+1
powers - Britain, China, France, Russia and
the United States plus Germany - is some
way off, two earlier deadlines were missed.
In the Iranian capital, officials say the
United States and other world powers need
to show more flexibility in nailing down the
hard details of a deal. Iran’s negotiators
have given no indication a compromise is
in the offing and supreme leader Ayatollah
Ali Khamenei, who has the final word, last
month voiced doubt that the US could be
trusted.
New Sanctions will ‘Torpedo’ Talks
Israel is lobbying hard against a final
deal and Saudi Arabia is also wary, analysts
say, and the negotiations could be scuttled
if there is no definitive progress soon. The
biggest threat, they say, is the possibility of
new US sanctions on Iran, which Foreign
Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif has said
would effectively “torpedo” the talks. Such
an outcome is likely the aim of Israeli Prime
Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s address to
the US Congress about Iran’s nuclear efforts
on March 3.
In a signal of White House disapproval at
such a high-profile and untimely intervention - an outline agreement with Iran is due
on March 31 - President Barack Obama will
not meet Netanyahu. Two US senators,
Republican Mark Kirk and Democrat Robert
Menendez, have said they will decide by
March 24 whether to table new legislation.
If they can convince enough Democrats in
the Republican-controlled Congress to
back sanctions, they could have the supermajority needed to pass veto-proof legislation.
“(Menendez) will have an easier time
collecting sponsors if there is no movement in the talks,” Geranmayeh said. In
Tehran, MPs are considering two bills, one
tearing up an interim deal that has reined
in Tehran’s nuclear activities and another
allowing the Islamic republic’s atomic scientists to speed up their operations.
Time for a ‘Positive Signal’
Evidence of the souring atmosphere
was clear when 21 hardline lawmakers
recently condemned Zarif for taking a 15minute stroll with US Secretary of State
John Kerry during a break at negotiations
in Geneva. “Aversion to the deal has always
had robust and noisy constituencies in
Tehran and Washington, but both governments need to rise above the din if they
want an agreement,” said Siavush RandjbarDaemi, a lecturer on Iran and the Middle
East at Manchester University. Kerry and
Zarif may meet again this week in Munich
and the two “need to thrash this out directly, hopefully through less controversial
walks,” Randjbar-Daemi said.
Amir Mohebbian, a Tehran-based analyst
close to hardliners and several top figures,
said the growing pressure could actually
push the discussions forward. But too much
delay could cost President Hassan Rouhani who raised hopes of a return to prosperity
via a nuclear deal - vital public support.
When past deadlines were missed, Rouhani,
a moderate in stark contrast to his hardline
predecessor Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, went
on state television to insist the talks were
close to a result. Iranians will now be looking for signs of more concrete progress,
Mohebbian said. “With the anniversary of
the Islamic revolution on February 11, it
would be a good time to send a positive
signal to Iran’s people.” —AFP
Podemos rises with stark portrait of Spain
By Michaela Cancela-Kieffer
and Gabriel Rubio - Giron
L
ess than a week after the victory of its hard-left ally Syriza
in Greece, Spain’s Podemos
party launched an election-heavy
year by assembling more than
100,000 supporters for a rally in
Madrid. Podemos used its “March
for Change” Saturday to assail
government austerity measures,
and paint a portrait of Spain in
starkly contrasting hues of “privileged” versus “humiliated” social
camps. In doing so, Podemos
amped up the populist themes
that have won it considerable
support in its mere year of existence - and without detailing
many concrete proposals to right
the wrongs it denounces.
“Pablo Iglesias and his
Podemos party have without
doubt scored a victory with the
Puerta del Sol rally,” conceded
Sunday’s edition of Spanish centre-right newspaper El Mundo,
which has openly opposed the
populist left-wing group since its
founding in March 2014. The
event also served as an unofficial
kick-off of a busy election year in
Spain, starting with regional
polling in Andalusia, Catalonia
and elsewhere from MarchNovember, municipal balloting in
May, and legislative voting in
November - when the conservative government of Mariano Rajoy
will seek to retain power.
Given the results of recent
opinion polls, its understandable
why Podemos was first out of the
gates to rally backers. Surveys
show Spain’s youngest party leading the Socialist (PSOE), and in
some polls bettering Rajoy’s ruling Progressive Party (PP). In carefully preparing Saturday’s show of
force, Podemos worked social networks to mobilise maximum participation by supporters from all
over Spain, who converged on
Madrid’s Puerta del Sol plaza quickly filling it to capacity.
As hoped for by organisers,
the photo of that large crowd ran
on front pages and as lead stories
on media around the world cov-
ering the massive turnout. “We
will win elections against the PP,”
in 2015 vowed Iglesias, 36, sending ripples of excitement through
the tightly-packed crowd. Prior to
that Inigo Errejon, 31, and JuanCarlos Monedero, 52 - number
two and three officials in
Podemos respectively - described
a modern Spain in which two
contrasting camps co-existed
‘Courageous Dreamers
“We need courageous dreamers to defend those on the bottom.
We need more Don Quixotes,”
urged Iglesias, evoking Cervantes’
famous character. Podemos rose
from the “Indignados” movement
born in the streets of Madrid in
May 2011 with denunciations of
financial markets and political corruption it blamed for the enduring
messages from the heart to people
already dedicated to the cause,”
noted Catalan paper El Periodico
Sunday. Ignacio Urquizu, a sociology professor at the Complutense
University of Madrid that Iglesias
hails from, drew a similar conclusion.
Though Urquizu says that criticism of Indignados for failing to
propose any remedial policies “was
On Saturday it continued airing
a list of rather generic pledges that
included battling corruption,
reversing the widening wealth
gap, and defying the so-called
“troika” imposing austerity on
indebted European states by
demanding the restructuring of
Spanish debt - which currently
represents 96.8 percent of GDP.
In doing so, Podemos says it is
Demonstrators gather at Puerta del Sol during the “March for Change” organized by leftwing party Podemos in Madrid on
Jan 31, 2015. —AFP
with increasingly difficulty.
They spoke of a Spain “on top”
versus one “on the bottom,” of
“the powerful” opposing “workers,” and of a “privileged” caste
lording over the descendants of
Spaniards who toiled “to build a
country where no one would be
cold”. And those people, Iglesias
echoed, now suffer “humiliation
and increasing poverty,” and want
to take their fate back into their
hands.
hardship of average Spaniards.
Four years on - and despite Spain’s
economy beginning to grow after
six years of brutal recession - joblessness still stands at a crushing
23 percent.
In organising Saturday’s rally,
Podemos was careful to note its
purpose was neither to demand or
propose concrete action, but
instead mobilise backers for looming elections. “Speeches were not
political, they were emotional
unfair, because it was a citizens’
protest movement,” the same critique of Podemos is valid because
it “seeks power in our country
while demonstrating the same failing,” he wrote in Sunday’s El Pais.
Podemos’ vague program is
inspired by the socialism of late
Venezuelan president Hugo
Chavez,
and
progressive
Scandinavian progressive parties.
The movement even refuses to be
labelled leftist.
responding to the hopes of many
Spanish voters who no longer
believe in the PSOE and PP that
have alternated stints in power for
more than three decades. “Voters
don’t read 400 page party programs,” noted political analyst Jose
Ignacio Torreblanca, adding the
PSOE itself rose to power in the
1980s using similar inspirational
methods - and nearly the exact
“For Change” slogan that Podemos
marched under Saturday. —AFP
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TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2015
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Junaid out of World Cup
KARACHI: Pakistan left-arm fast bowler Junaid Khan has been ruled out of the
World Cup after failing a fitness test on a hamstring injury. “Junaid has been
found not fit to play in the World Cup,” a Pakistan Cricket Board spokesman said
yesterday. Junaid was due to leave with the Pakistan team for New Zealand last
month but the PCB held him back and sent Bilawal Bhatti instead. “Junaid had
sustained a hamstring injury while bowling during the short conditioning camp
in Lahore prior to the team’s departure for New Zealand,” the spokesman said.
Junaid, 25, has been Pakistan’s leading paceman in the last two years
with 65 test and 75 one-day international wickets. “It is very disappointing to miss out on such a major event but I don’t want to let
anyone down and can’t play without being 100 percent fit,”
Junaid told Reuters. “I tried my best to make a full recovery but I
am still not comfortable while bowling,” he said. Pakistan were
already without leading spinner Saeed Ajmal who is suspended
for an illegal bowling action and there are doubts over
whether all-rounder Mohammad Hafeez will be allowed
to bowl.—Reuters
Huth joins Leicester
LONDON: Stoke City defender Robert Huth became Leicester City’s third
signing of the transfer window yesterday when he joined on loan from
their Premier League rivals until the end of the season.
However he is ineligible to play in Saturday’s match at home to Crystal
Palace as he completes a two-match ban for breaching FA rules by interacting with a Twitter account that asked users to guess the gender of individuals in explicit pictures.
The 30-year-old former Germany international, who has also played for
Chelsea and Middlesbrough, has been signed to bolster a Leicester
defence that has conceded 37 goals in 23 matches. The Foxes are propping
up the table but, with only nine points separating the bottom nine clubs,
they have a chance of avoiding an immediate return to the Championship
after winning promotion from the second tier last season.
Leicester and Stoke confirmed the deal for Huth on their websites on
deadline day and he will link up with his ex-Middlesbrough team mate,
goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer, and club record signing, Croatian Andrej
Kramaric, who signed in January.—Reuters
Hamburg sign Diaz
BERLIN: Troubled Hamburg SV have signed Chilean defensive midfielder
Marcelo Diaz from Swiss side Basel to bolster their backline as they battle to
avoid relegation from the Bundesliga.
Chile international Diaz signed a contract to 2017 after passing a medical in Hamburg on Monday, the club said. “We saw Marcelo’s qualities at
the World Cup last summer,” Hamburg sporting director Peter Knaebel
said. “He is someone who wants the ball, wants the game focused
on him even in difficult situations.
“He can be a bridge (from defence to attack) for our game
when we go forward. That is what I expect from him and that is
what he has already done at top level.” Hamburg, who have
seen billionaire Klaus-Michael Kuehne pump more than
18 million euros ($20.4 million) into the debt-laden
club, have also boosted their frontline by bringing in
experienced Croatian striker Ivica Olic from VfL
Wolfsburg. Hamburg are in the relegation playoff
spot in 16th place on 17 points.—Reuters
Hirscher and Vonn among
Alpine Ski Worlds favorites
BEAVER CREEK: Three-time defending
World Cup overall champion Marcel
Hirscher and US star Lindsey Vonn, the
most successful female skier ever, lead top
global racers into the Alpine Ski World
Championships. The world’s top skiers
return to North America this week as the
global event is contested in the United
States for the first time in 16 years.
Americans Vonn and Mikaela Shiffrin will
compete over two weeks for the title of
homecoming queen while Austria’s
Hirscher, seeking an unprecedented fourth
World Cup overall crown in a row, leads a
host of men’s contenders in tackling the
treacherous Birds of Prey course. “It is awesome having the World Championships in
the US,” said American ski racer Ted Ligety.
“It is something I have never experienced
before so it is going to be a lot of fun having a big event in the US.”
There have been only five worlds on US
snow and none since 1999. The Americans
also hosted this event in 1950, 1960, 1980
and 1989. The mighty Austrians have had
the most success at Beaver Creek since the
World Cup circuit started racing on the layout in 1988 but the Americans aren’t far
behind. Austria has six World Cup wins
while US skiers has five. “It is the worlds.
You got to risk everything. It is about a
medal,” said American Steven Nyman. The
26-strong US team will be the largest followed by Austria with 25, France with 22,
Switzerland with 21 and the small but
powerful Norwegian team will have nine
racers, led by World Cup downhill points
leader Kjetil Jansrud.
The Austrian charge will be led by
Hirscher, who seeks a fourth World Cup
overall crown to move one behind Marc
Girardelli’s all-time men’s record. Hirscher
leads the World Cup overall standings with
1,014 points compared to Jansrud’s 834.
The Americans hope for a home snow
advantage with a team featuring an
intriguing mix of veterans like Body Miller,
who appears to be on his last legs, and rising stars like Shiffrin and Travis Ganong.
And then there is Vonn, whose miracle
comeback this season follows two knee
surgeries and two years of on and off
rehab work. She took her record 63rd
career World Cup victory two weeks ago
and is a favorite in downhill and Super-G,
leading both in the World Cup standings.
Miller, Svindal uncertain
Miller, 37, has yet to race this year and is
the oldest member of the team as well as
the biggest question mark. It’s not even
known if Miller will race in Beaver Creek
and team boss Patrick Riml said they aren’t
expecting much from Miller, who is in his
eighth worlds. “We are going to see how
he feels day-by-day and whether we put
him in a race,” Riml said. “Everyone else is
skiing on a very high level.” Norwegian
speed veteran Aksel Lund Svindal was
named to the world team but like Miller
will be day-to-day.
Norway has plenty of firepower with
Olympic super-G champ Jansrud, who is
fully recovered from blowing out his knee
at the 2013 Worlds, and 20-year-old phenom Henrik Kristoffersen.
“We have a mix of young and established performers for this year’s World
Championships,” said team director Claus
Johan Ryste. “There is greater competition
in each discipline than ever before. “We
will be in the fight for medals in all disciplines on the men’s side.” Germany has one
of the largest teams with a dozen skiers,
including eight men. Stefan Luitz is hoping
to make his return from injury at Beaver
Creek. Italy’s Daniela Merighetti is also
expected to compete after suffering a
recent injury. Swiss Dominique Gisin, who
suffered a fracture in a recent fall, will consult with team doctors before deciding
whether she can ski.— AFP
ST LOUIS: Blues left wing Jaden Schwartz threads the puck between two defenders in this file photo. —AP
Blues overcome Capitals
WASHINGTON: Alexander Steen had two goals
and an assist, and Brian Elliot stopped 33 shots
as the streaking St Louis Blues held on to beat
the Washington Capitals 4-3 on Sunday. Dmitrij
Jaskin and Vladimir Tarasenko also scored, and TJ
Oshie added three assists for St Louis. The Blues
have won five straight and 10 of 11.
Washington’s Alex Ovechkin scored twice, giving
him a NHL-leading 31 goals, and had an assist.
He became the fifth player in NHL history to
start his career with 10 30-goal seasons.
Ovechkin has 15 goals in his last 15 games. Karl
Alzner also scored for Washington. The Capitals
are 1-4-2 in their last seven.
COYOTES 3, CANADIENS 2
Lauri Korpikoski scored two power-play goals
for Arizona as Montreal-area native Louis
Domingue made 18 saves to win in his first NHL
start. The 22-year-old Domingue helped end the
Canadiens’ five-game winning streak. Domingue
made his NHL debut Saturday in relief of Mike
Smith during the third period in a 7-2 loss in
Ottawa. His first start got off to a rough beginning when Alex Galchenyuk scored twice on
Montreal’s first four shots in the opening 4:55.
Oliver Ekman-Larsson also scored for the
Coyotes.
PREDATORS 4, PENGUINS 0
Carter Hutton made 21 saves for this second
career shutout in Nashville’s first regulation vic-
Lindsey Vonn in action in this file photo.
tory in Pittsburgh in 11 years. Gabriel Bourque,
Roman Josi, Eric Nystrom and Mike Fisher
scored. Hutton improved to 3-1-2 while temporarily filling in as Nashville’s No. 1 goalie while
All-Star Pekka Rinne recovers with a sprained
knee that will sideline him for at least another
week.
WILD 4, CANUCKS 2
Devan Dubnyk stopped 35 shots to help
Minnesota beat Vancouver. Zach Parise, Jared
Spurgeon, Thomas Vanek and Jason Zucker scored
for the Wild. Zucker sealed it with an empty-net
goal with 55 seconds left. Ronalds Kenins and
Daniel Sedin scored for the Canucks.—AP
NHL results/standings
Arizona 3, Montreal 2; St. Louis 4, Washington 3; Nashville 4, Pittsburgh 0; Minnesota 4, Vancouver 2.
Anaheim
San Jose
Vancouver
Calgary
Los Angeles
Arizona
Edmonton
Nashville
St. Louis
Chicago
Winnipeg
Dallas
Colorado
Minnesota
Tampa Bay
Western Conference
Pacific Division
W
L
OTL
GF
32 12
6
147
27 17
6
139
27 18
3
131
27 20
3
144
21 16
12
134
18 26
6
116
13 28
9
115
Central Division
32 11
6
149
32 13
4
160
31 17
2
155
26 17
8
142
23 19
7
157
21 18
11
131
23 20
6
135
Eastern Conference
Atlantic Division
32 15
4
166
GA PTS
134 70
135 60
124 57
129 57
132 54
170 42
166 35
115
120
115
132
159
141
140
70
68
64
60
53
53
52
133
68
Montreal
Detroit
Boston
Florida
Ottawa
Toronto
Buffalo
32 14
3
130 111 67
29 12
9
149 129 67
27 16
7
134 124 61
21 16
10
115 132 52
20 19
9
136 136 49
22 25
4
144 156 48
14 33
3
94 179 31
Metropolitan Division
NY Islanders
32 16
1
158 139 65
Pittsburgh
28 14
8
145 129 64
NY Rangers
28 15
4
139 112 60
Washington
25 15
10
147 129 60
Philadelphia
22 22
7
140 151 51
New Jersey
19 22
9
113 138 47
Columbus
21 24
3
120 151 45
Carolina
17 26
6
105 129 40
Note: Overtime losses (OTL) are worth one point in the
standings and are not included in the loss column (L).
Tina eager to bounce
back at worlds
BEAVER CREEK: Liechtenstein skier Tina
Weirather can’t shake the Sochi Olympics.
The occasional ache in her right leg serves
as a reminder.
She crashed in a downhill training run
last February and badly banged her shin,
an injury that still lingers. “I have days
where I can 100 percent attack and go to
my limit, where I feel confident and strong.
But I have days where it doesn’t work,” said
Weirather, who will compete in the superG, downhill and giant slalom at the world
championships that begin Tuesday with
the women’s super-G race. “I’m working on
it, having more of the good days.
“If I can figure that out, I can be really
good.” Because when healthy, Weirather is
as fast as anyone. The difficult part has
been staying healthy. The 25-year-old has
torn the ACL in her right knee three times.
In Sochi, she was among the favorites until
her crash.
“I’ve had a lot of disappointments to
deal with,” said Weirather, whose best finish
at worlds was 13th in the downhill two
years ago in Austria. “I can’t say that my
confidence is super, super high, but I think
everything is possible. The skiing is there.”
No question about that. She has finished
third in two races this season, including a
super-G in Italy two weeks ago. Ski racing is
all she has wanted to do since she was 3
years old - all she ever answered when anyone asked.
Not surprising, really, considering skiing
runs in the family. Her mother, Hanni
Wenzel, was a two-time gold medalist at
the 1980 Lake Placid Olympics. Her father,
Harti Weirather, won the downhill at the
1982 world championships as he represented Austria.
“This has always been my dream. That’s
never changed,” she said. “Then, after so
many injuries, of course I had to think
about it.” Sometimes, Weirather can’t help
but wonder just how good she would’ve
been at her other favorite sport - tennis.
She does have a mean backhand. And her
serve-and-volley game isn’t bad, either.
Weirather said she used to train with the
mother of Swiss standout Martina Hingis the same Martina Hingis who won an
Australian Open mixed doubles title Sunday
- and that Weirather once was told she had
what it took to be a top-flight player. “She
really believed in me,” recounted Weirather,
who also cross trains by biking, wind surfing
and hopes to one day take up paragliding.
“But in tennis, you always have to fight
against someone. “That’s why I love skiing,
where it’s just you and the mountain and
when you finish, you see your time.”—AP
SWITZERLAND: Tina Weirather, of Liechtenstein, takes a jump during a training session for an alpine ski women’s World Cup downhill event in
St. Moritz. —AP
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MotoGP ready for India ride: Ezpeleta
MUMBAI: MotoGP is ready for a foray
into India convinced it has a better
future than Formula One in the world’s
second largest motorcycle market, the
sport’s commercial chief Carmelo
Ezpeleta said yesterday. India first hosted
a Formula One grand prix in 2011 to positive reviews from the global community
but was dropped from the calendar after
the third race in 2013. Problems over taxation, with Formula One classified as
entertainment rather than a sport in
India, as well as the considerable
bureaucracy in bringing equipment into
the country have been seen as obstacles
to the race returning. Calling India a
“ver y, ver y important market” for
MotoGP, Ezpeleta, the chief executive of
Dorna Sports, which holds the television
and commercial rights to the sport, was
hopeful they had the right mix to be successful in India, which is the world’s second largest motorcycle market after
China.
“It’s different, Formula One is another
aspirational level. Motorbikes are something very popular in India and are much
closer to normal people,” Ezpeleta told
Moto3 world championship as a constructor and will supply motorcylces to
four teams, including former MotoGP
rider turned team owner Jorge
Martinez’s Aspar team. “We need three
things to be successful in a country like
India. First a manufacturer being part of
the deal and in this case we have
Mahindra,” Ezpeleta said. “Secondly, we
need to have Indian riders but unfortunately we have none presently and for
that we have the Asian talent Cup. And
finally we need to have a grand prix.”
Weekend MotoGP races feature reg-
Reuters in an interview. “We need to
focus on different things here like we
have no (local) promoter. But the cost of
organizing a MotoGP race is less than
Formula One and we have a manufacturer in Mahindra who are participating in
the Moto3 world championship. “I think
we are putting all our first steps right to
be successful in India but nothing is easy
from the beginning.”
Mahindra enters
India’s leading utility vehicle manufacturer Mahindra is entering the 2015
ularly on television channels in India,
which is crucial for the promotion and
popularity of the sport in the country,
feels Ezpeleta. Although satisfied with
M otoGP ’s growth in recent years,
Ezpeleta believes Asia has a lot more
potential. “We have a lot of demand for
grand prix all around the world especially from Asia and we are talking to
different countries here,” he said. The
2015 MotoGP season will have 18 races
and the target for the promoters is to
increase it to 20 in the nex t t wo
years.—Reuters
SPAIN: Mercedes Formula One racing driver Lewis Hamilton of Britain (right) and teammate Nico Rosberg of Germany sit on the new Mercedes F1 M06 car at the Circuito de Jerez. —AP
Rosberg searching for small margins to make a difference
JEREZ: Nico Rosberg is studying how he
breathes as he looks to overhaul Formula One
world champion and Mercedes teammate Lewis
Hamilton. Rosberg missed out on the title in
dramatic fashion last year and wants to find
improvements. The German driver has tried perfecting new breathing techniques in order to
find the “one or two percent” that could make all
the difference this season. Rosberg did better
than Hamilton in qualifying last year, securing
11 pole positions compared to seven, but
Hamilton dominated him - 11 wins to five - on
race day.
That has been bugging Rosberg, who is
determined to find the small margins that will
work in his favor. “I learned some things in the
winter. For example, my breathing was something I could work on, my breathing in the race
car,” Rosberg explained. “Because when we go
through fast corners we hold the breath,
because we have so much g-force. Of course I
want to give you some insights, but not compromise my secrets.”
He’s also stepped up his training regime. “To
be that little bit more fit at the end of races, a little bit more on it,” the 29-year-old Rosberg said.
“That one or two percent that makes the difference in the end.” Hamilton beat Rosberg by 67
points - but the margin was exaggerated by the
double points on offer in the last race. Rosberg
could have clinched the title, for example, if he
had won and Hamilton placed third. But
Hamilton won and Rosberg, blighted by technical problems, ended up 14th and out of the
points. He insists it did not take him long to get
over it. “Life went back to normal for me very
quickly, one or two days,” he said. “I’m always
motivated, but (this time) I have an extra little
bit. To have this memory from last year. I know
how awesome it feels to win races and how
great it feels when I beat Lewis.” Feelings were
heightened last year due to the tension
between the drivers. It led to several feuds, with
Hamilton accusing his teammate of deliberately
crashing into him at the Belgian GP in August.
Tensions were eased after Rosberg warmly congratulated Hamilton - his friend since their
teenage years racking karts against each other but Mercedes Head of Motorsport Toto Wolff
does not rule out a repeat scenario.
“I have no illusions that 2015 will be an easier
year,” Wolff said. “At this stage in their lives, they
are teammates and competitors. This is how it is.
It makes no sense to hope for harmony when no
harmony can be expected.” Mercedes could
have defused the situation after the Spa incident by imposing team orders, but, despite the
animosity it generated, let them continue racing
against each other providing they did not create
further controversy. “That is when a team is getting pushed forward. The downside - the
intense competition - we will live with,” Wolff
said. “We have learned from last season. We
have matured as a team, including the drivers.”— AP
WCup adds spice to the Six Nations
SCOTTSDALE: Brooks Koepka holds the trophy after winning the Phoenix Open golf
tournament. —AP
Koepka wins his first
PGA title in Phoenix
PHOENIX: Well-traveled American Brooks
Koepka used an eagle-three at the 15th
hole to jump ahead of a crowded leaderboard and win the Waste Management
Phoenix Open by one stroke on Sunday for
his first PGA Tour victory. The 24-year-old
Koepka, who broke into professional golf in
Europe, rolled in a 51-foot putt from the
fringe short of the green at the par-five
15th to vault over four players.
Koepka, ranked 33rd in the world, carded a five-under-par 66 for a total of 15under-par 269, one better than Masters
champion Bubba Watson (65), 22-year-old
Japanese Hideki Matsuyama (67) and
American Ryan Palmer (66). “It feels amazing,” said Floridian Koepka. “The last few
weeks I put in a lot of hard work, changed
my putting stroke completely and everything seems to be going right.” Scotsman
Martin Laird, the 54-hole leader, was tied
with Koepka until he bogeyed the driveable par-four 17th with his first three-putt
after going 95 consecutive holes without
one.
Laird then found water with his drive at
18 and took a double-bogey to register a
72 for 12-under, a total shared by Spanish
amateur and Arizona State student Jon
Rahm, who closed with a 68. The selfassured Koepka, who claimed his first
European Tour victor y at the Turkish
Airlines event in November after winning
four times on the European Challenge Tour,
began the round three shots behind Laird.
It was Matsuyama who made the first
charge. Matsuyama, who was three back,
got off to a flying start when he holed out
from a sand-filled divot in the fairway 129
yards from the cup for an eagle-two at the
first hole to reach 12-under.
Birdies at the third and fifth lifted
Matsuyama, who won last year’s Memorial
Tournament, into a tie with Laird at 14under, and a birdie at the par-five 13th
gave the Japanese a one-shot lead. One
hole later there was a three-way tie for first
at 14-under and another hole later it was
four-way tie with Palmer joining
Matsuyama, Laird and Watson. Then
Koepka rolled in his eagle putt to vault into
first at 15-under, a total matched by Laird
with a birdie at the same hole before the
Scotsman unraveled at the end. Koepka
has now shot par or better in all 12 rounds
on the tour this season.— Reuters
LONDON: The Six Nations Championship is
always an event in itself but this year’s edition will also indicate the strength of the
European challenge at a World Cup in
England just seven months away. That the
shadow cast by the Webb Ellis Trophy is
inescapable can be seen from the fact that
Friday’s Six Nations opener in Cardiff sees
Wales against England, with the old rivals in
the same 2015 World Cup pool. For an
injury-hit England, victory at the Millennium
Stadium would help ease the pain of a crushing defeat in the Welsh capital two years ago.
It would also establish Stuart Lancaster’s side
as serious title contenders, with England not
having won the Six Nations since 2011 when
Martin Johnson was in charge.
England have finished runners-up three
times under Lancaster and the coach said:
“We are frustrated that we haven’t nailed
down that Championship win-it does burn
inside us.” England’s much-vaunted playing
depth is set to be put to the test with No 8
Ben Morgan, lock Joe Launchbury and flyhalf Owen Farrell all ruled out of the entire
Six Nations, with several other players currently sidelined. “ We still have a lot of
strength in depth and we’re still confident
we’re still going to have a strong team,”
Lancaster said.
Ireland expects
Ireland may like to portray themselves as
perennial underdogs but the defending Six
Nations champions will rightly start the 2015
tournament as favourites. Under Joe
Schmidt, one of three New Zealanders providing 50 percent of the competition’s
coaches ( Wales’s Warren Gatland and
Scotland’s Vern Cotter are the other two),
Ireland were the form European side during
the November internationals. Ireland, who
have risen to three in the world rankings
behind world champions New Zealand and
South Africa, defeated the Springboks and
Australia in November.
Now they begin their quest for back-toback titles-something they last achieved in
1949 — away to I taly on Saturday.
Inspirational centre Brian O’Driscoll may
have retired and star fly-half Jonathan
Sexton be ruled out by concussion protocols,
but Ireland still have lock Paul O’Connell
leading the way. “The work ethic and confi-
dence you gain from getting over the line
against the likes of South Africa and Australia
should put us in good stead for 2015,” said
Schmidt. “The players will have an expectation of themselves now, and to be honest we
want that expectation of ourselves.”
Wales have a relatively settled side featuring several British and Irish Lions, with
Gatland sufficiently confident of his squad’s
quality to warn talented wing George North
not to take his place for granted. Gatland
insisted the Six Nations was not just a warmup for the World Cup, saying: “This tournament is definitely about winning...The expectation in Wales is for us to win.” However,
Gatland said the World Cup could not be
ignored completely. “It’s important you win
and get some confidence and the in back of
our minds we’re all thinking about the next
six months in terms of preparation for the
World Cup.” France have not won the Six
Nations since a 2010 Grand Slam but a
November win over Australia, in which wing
Teddy Thomas demonstrated his potential,
gave coach Philippe Saint-Andre some
respite.
If not k nowing what to expect from
France is one of rugby’s enduring truisms, it
is one Saint-Andre endorsed when asked
about what to expect from his side in the Six
Nations. “You don’t know. To be honest, I
don’t know,” he said.
“The confidence is back, we had some
good games in November.” Scotland too
reckon they have grounds for optimism
under Cotter after a November series which
yielded wins over Argentina and Tonga allied
to a narrow loss to New Zealand. “There’s a
great buzz, partly off the back of the autumn
(November),”said Scotland captain Greig
Laidlaw.
“I believe we have some individuals in our
team to cause other teams problems.” And
Italy captain Sergio Parisse believes his side
can bounce back from losing all five matches
last year, having won twice in 2013. “They’ve
written us off, but that’s fine,” said Parisse. “It
will be great to surprise everybody.”—AFP
PARIS: This is a Saturday, March 15, 2014. file photo of Ireland’s Brian O’Driscoll as he celebrates with teammates after winning the Six Nations Rugby Union tournament at the stade de
France stadium. —AP
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TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2015
S P ORTS
Kuwaiti shooters top KSSC tourney
By Abdellatif Sharaa
KUWAIT: Kuwait Shooting Sports Club organized Kuwait
Sporting Shooting Championship, on the heels of HH the
Amir 4th Annual International Grand Prix at Sabah AlAhmad Olympic Shooting Complex. The Championship
saw Kuwaiti shooters dominate in all events.
Shooter Jasim Al-Raihan won first place in the professionals category, followed by Fahad Lafi Al-Mutairi and
Mansour Al-Rashidi was third, UAE’s Marwan Al-Amiya
emerged fourth, Saud Al-Rashidi fifth and Mohammad
Nayef Al-Daihani sixth.
In the women’s category, Kuwait’s shooter Afrah Adel
Abdelrahman took first place, followed by Sarah
Abdelrahman Al-Hawal and Iman Al-Shamma.
In the pioneers category, Eng Duaij Khalaf Al-Otaibi, the
President of the Arab and Kuwait Shooting Federations
snatched first place following a friendly competition with
Masoud Jouhar Hayat, who is one of the founders of
Kuwait Shooting Club and supporter of Kuwait shooters.
Al-Otaibi hit 44 targets while Hayat hit 43 out of 50.
Hussam Al-Roumi took place after hitting 40 out of 50 targets. The competitions were carried out according to the
rules of international federations for sporting shooting
located in Paris.
The championship was supervised by technical experts
from Belgium and Portugal, while Kuwaiti referees officiated. Kuwait Shooting Sport Club prepared and designed a
special international range for this sport, and is among the
best range in the world.
Asia confident of
shift at World Cup
Brandt Snedeker
Technical focus bad for
Snedeker’s putting touch
SCOTTSDALE: If proof was ever needed
for the average club hacker that even
the very best players can struggle in
golf, then look no further than at putting maestro Brandt Snedeker.
Widely viewed as one of the game’s
leading putters over the past eight
years, the fast-talking American has
recently been struggling on the greens
after clouding his mind with too much
focus on technique. A six-times winner
on the PGA Tour, Snedeker has not triumphed on the U.S. circuit since the
2013 RBC Canadian Open and he fell
short of his customary high standards
last season when he made 20 of 25 cuts
but posted only three top-10s.
“Obviously my game hasn’t been
anywhere near where it needs to be,”
the fast-talking American told Reuters at
the Waste Management Phoenix Open
where he is playing his fifth event of the
2014-15 season. “But I feel like after
making a change last year to (swing
coach) Butch Harmon that my game is a
lot better now than it has been for the
last year-and-a-half. The thing that has
been holding me back is my putting, I
haven’t been putting any good.
“I kind of made some changes that
are really, really star ting to come
through and I feel like I’m on the right
path. I just need to see some (putts) go
in. You see some go in and everything
changes.” Snedeker is not only
renowned for his extraordinary putting
touch but also for his old-style ‘pop’
stroke which is made with minimum of
fuss in relatively fast fashion.
PERFECT TECHNIQUE
However, having long been an everpresent at the top of the PGA Tour’s putting charts, Snedeker has dropped well
down the pecking order over the past
year mainly due to a fixation with perfect technique. “I’ve kind of gotten away
from what I do and trying to put a perfect stroke on every putt is not the way I
putt,” said the 34-year- old from
Nashville, who carded a one-under-par
70 in the opening round at the TPC
Scottsdale.
“I kind of got too much into that,
making sure my stroke is on plane and
path and everything is good instead of
getting back into reading putts and just
hitting them.
“So I’m getting more back into that
and seeing some good results and seeing what I want to see out there. I just
need to see a couple go in, see a couple
go in and it comes right back so I’m not
too worried about it.” Snedeker, who
clinched the PGA Tour’s FedExCup title
in 2012, led the Tour’s ‘strokes gained
over the field’ putting statistic that year
and was placed fourth in that area in
2013.
However last year, he dropped to
27th in strokes gained while this season he is surprisingly languishing in
110th spot. “The putts outside 10 feet
will come,” Snedeker said. “Inside 10
feet, I’ve been struggling with those
five, six, seven-footers, which you need
obviously to make to shoot a good
number.”—Reuters
NEW DELHI: Conventional wisdom says Asian
teams usually succumb on the bouncy wickets
of Australia or the seaming pitches in New
Zealand, making them vulnerable and rank outsiders for the World Cup. Co-hosts Australia and
New Zealand, alongside the mighty South Africa,
are the bookmakers’ favorites to win one-day
cricket’s biggest prize, with Asian teams way
down in the pecking order. But those already
writing off Asia’s big three-India, Pakistan and Sri
Lanka-will do so at their own peril. And not just
because of the unpredictable nature of the limited-overs game.
The only other time the tournament was held
Down Under, in 1992, it was Pakistan which won
the title beating England by 22 runs in the final
at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.
Australia did not even make the knock-out
rounds, while the Kiwis, like the South Africans,
crashed out in the semi-finals.
Home advantage clearly does not count for
much. Defending champions India are the only
team to have won the World Cup on home soil,
while Sri Lanka won it in Pakistan as co-hosts of
the 1996 event. Barring major upsets, like in
2007 when India and Pakistan were knocked out
in the first round, Asia should have three teamseven more if Bangladesh, Afghanistan or the
United Arab Emirates cause an upset-in the
quarter-finals.
After that, three victories will ensure a team
the title-a task easier said than done but one
that gives the eight qualifiers a reasonable shot
at the title.
Kapil Dev, under whom India won its first
World Cup in 1983 by shocking overwhelming
favourites West Indies at Lord’s, said picking a
winner was not easy.
“Once you enter the quarter-finals, anything
can happen,” Dev told AFP. “Every team has a
chance, including the ones from Asia. It all
depends on how you play on that day.
“But if a side has to have an off-day, it better
be during the first round where one can recover.
Can’t afford that in the knock-outs.” In 2011,
India and Sri Lanka finished second in their
respective groups and yet entered the final as
pool A winners Pakistan fell in the semi-finals
and pool B leaders South Africa went out in the
quarter-finals.
While India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka have the
batting to take on the rest, much will depend on
how their meagre bowling resources are able to
contain the opposition.
Sri Lanka, finalists on the last two occasions,
boast the top three run-getters in one-day cricket among those still playing in Kumar
Sangakkara, Mahela Jayawardene and
Tillakaratne Dilshan.
Sangakkara and Jayawardene, members of an
exclusive club of five batsmen with more than
12,000 one-day runs, are in top form to raise
hopes of making their last World Cup appearance a memorable one. World bowling recordholder Muttiah Muralitharan believes this could
be Sri Lanka’s World Cup after coming so near in
2007 and 2011.
“We have been just about the most consistent side around in major tournaments over the
past decade, regularly reaching semi-finals and
finals,” Muralitharan told the tournament’s official website. “I have faith this group of players
can achieve the dream again and I hope they
have that faith too.” Pakistan, faced with bowling
suspensions of Saeed Ajmal and Mohammad
Hafeez due to faulty actions, will look to make
amends through their batting which includes
captain Misbah-ul Haq, Younis Khan and Shahid
Afridi.
“If we play to our potential, we can win,” said
Misbah, whose 56-ball hundred against Australia
last year equalled Viv Richards’ record for the
fastest Test century.
“The boys are focused on achieving the best
result. They have the hunger and passion to
work for it.” In Rohit Sharma, the only batsman
with two 200s in one-day internationals, Virat
Kohli, Suresh Raina and skipper Mahendra Singh
Dhoni, India possess destructive batting firepower to tame the best attacks. “Never write
India off, they will always be formidable in oneday cricket,” said former skipper Sourav Ganguly.
“This side is capable of repeating 2011.”—AFP
PERTH: England’s Stuart Broad bowls a delivery during a training session in Perth. —AP
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2015
S P ORTS
AFRICAN NATIONS CUP
Ghana, Ivory Coast through
as Tunisian row bubbles on
MONACO: Lyon’s Nabil Fekir (left) vies with Monaco’s Portuguese defender Ricardo
Carvalho (right) during the French L1 football match. —AFP
Monaco frustrate Lyon
as PSG, Marseiile close
PARIS: The Ligue 1 title race narrowed on
Sunday after leaders Olympique Lyonnais
found no way through Monaco’s steely
defense in a goalless draw in the principality. The result left OL, who were without talismanic striker Alexandre Lacazette, with
49 points from 23 games, two ahead of
Olympique de Marseille and Paris St
Germain-second and third respectively
after posting 1-0 wins.
Monaco, who have not conceded a goal
in their last eight league games, are fifth
on 40 points, behind St Etienne on goal
difference after Les Verts lost 1-0 at Caen
earlier on Sunday. Lyon had to make do
with the absence of Ligue 1 top striker
Lacazette, who was ruled out for three
weeks after sustaining a thigh injury last
Sunday. The hosts conceded possession
but were barely threatened in the first half.
They had the first clear chance in the 17th
minute when Dimitar Berbatov’s header
from Fabinho’s cross smashed against the
bar. Lyon’s best opportunity in the first half
was Corentin Tolisso’s 30-metre free kick
that was boxed away by Danijel Subasic in
the 28th.
Monaco defender Andrea Raggi sustained a possible knee injury and was substituted by Ricardo Carvalho seven minutes
from the interval. The home side stepped
up a gear and Moutinho had a goal disallowed for offside before they were denied a
penalty after Yannick Ferreira Carrasco had
been brought down. Lyon, however, had a
clear chance at the hour when Yoann
Gourcuff’s brilliant pass set up Nabil Fekir in
the box, only for the forward’s low shot to
go wide. Monaco, whose last defeat was on
Nov 29, have conceded only one goal in
their last 13 competitive games.
Champions Paris St Germain stayed in contention on Friday with a 1-0 win at home
against Stade Rennais with arch rivals
Marseille also beating Evian Thonon
Gaillard 1-0 on Saturday.—Reuters
Barcelona accused of tax
fraud in Neymar signing
MADRID: Spanish public prosecutors have
asked for Barcelona and their former president Sandro Rosell to be tried for two
charges of tax fraud committed in the signing of Brazilian star Neymar.
Meanwhile, prosecutors have also asked
for the investigation of current Barcelona
president Josep Maria Bartomeu and the
club on an extra tax charge in 2014, which
could rise to 2.85 million euros.
In a judicial file released on Monday,
prosecutor Jose Perals Calleja suggests that
Rosell and Barca declared an inferior fee to
that which they paid for Neymar in 2013.
The prosecutors believe that Neymar
cost in excess of the 57 million euros ($64.3
million, £42.7 million) declared to the
Spanish tax man.
They cite the figure at a cost of
82,743,485 euros divided into separate
contracts that secured the signing.
According to the calculations of the
Spanish tax authorities, Barcelona owe a
total of 12,148,696 million euros in tax on
the deal, which would see the overall cost
of the operation rise to 94.8 million euros.
Rosell resigned as president over the
affair just over a year ago when a complaint
brought by one of the club’s members for
misappropriation of funds was taken to
court.
In his testimony before a judge on the
case in July of 2004, Rosell insisted that
Neymar cost the club 57 million euros, 17
of which went to his former club Santos
and 40 million paid to N&N, a company
owned by the player’s father.
However, following Rosell’s resignation,
Barcelona also confirmed a number of extra
agreements including a 10 million euro
signing bonus for the player and scouting
and collaborative agreements between the
two clubs taking the total to 86.2 million
euros. In February of last year, the club
announced that they had made a voluntary
payment of 13.5 million euros to the
Spanish tax authorities regarding the transfer. —AFP
MALABO: Ghana and Ivory Coast took
their regular places in the African
Nations Cup semi-finals by beating
Guinea and Algeria on Sunday as the
tournament returned to normal after
recent controversy. Wilfried Bony finally
came to life, scoring twice for the Ivory
Coast, and a late Gervinho goal completed a memorable 3-1 win for the
Elephants as they reached the last four
for the fourth time in six tournaments.
Four-times champions Ghana comfortably dispatched surprise packages
Guinea 3-0 to reach the semi-finals for
the fifth time in a row. The Black Stars
will face the hosts in Malabo on
Thursday and the Ivorians, whose only
title was in 1992 before the emergence
of the so-called golden generation, play
Democratic Republic of Congo in Bata
tomorrow.
Off the pitch, Tunisian Football
Federation president Wadie Jary
resigned from the Confederation of
African Football (CAF) in protest at the
manner of his team’s exit in a tumultuous tie against hosts Equatorial
Guinea. Tunisia were dumped out in
Saturday’s controversial and thrilling
match when the hosts were awarded a
contentious stoppage-time penalty to
equalise before beating the enraged
North Africans 2-1 in extra-time. The
game ended with the Tunisians chasing
the referee into the tunnel as riot police
stepped in. Tunisia’s critics, however,
pointed out that they were allowed to
get away with brutal tackles and blatant time-wasting while leading 1-0.
The omens did not seem to be on
Ivory Coast’s side when coach Herve
Renard was ordered to cover his
favorite white shirt early in the game
with a pink vest because it clashed with
the Algerians’ strip. Renard, who wore
the shirt in all six games when he led
unheralded Zambia to the title three
years ago, looked less than happy but
his mood changed in the 26th minute
when Bony headed in Max Gradel’s
cross. Arbi Soudani equalized early in
the second half after exposing Ivory
Coast’s defensive fragility only for Bony
to strike again, leaping superbly to
power a Yaya Toure free kick past Rais
M’Bolhi against the run of play.
Despite several late scares, the
Ivorians clung on to their lead before
Gervinho added a third in the dying
moments, Christian Atsu scored twice,
the first after three minutes and the
other a delightful curling effort in the
second half, and Kwesi Appiah was also
on target for Ghana as they and Guinea
opened the double bill in Malabo.
“Every game we are better than the
game before,” said Ghana coach Avram
Grant. “ There were chances, many
chances and we scored beautiful
goals.”— Reuters
EQUATORIAL GUINEA: Ghana’s Christian Atsu (right) is tackled by Guinea’s Djibril Tamsir Paye during
their African Cup of Nations quarter final soccer match. —AP
Preview
Januzaj hopes for
Cambridge chance
MANCHESTER: Manchester United winger
Adnan Januzaj hopes today’s FA Cup fourthround replay at home to lowly Cambridge
United will help him to prove his worth to manager Louis van Gaal. The 19-year-old Belgium
international was one of the few success stories
during the disastrous reign of van Gaal’s predecessor, David Moyes. At the corresponding
stage of last season, he had made 24 appearances and scored three goals, including two in a
2-1 victory at Sunderland that heralded his
arrival on the Premier League scene.
But under van Gaal, Januzaj has been
involved in only 14 games to date this season,
with his start in Saturday’s 3-1 victory over
Leicester City just his fourth of the campaign
and first since November. “I’ve not been playing
for so long so it was good to get 90 minutes,
even if I was really tired in the last 15 minutes
and got cramp,” said Januzaj. “Of course we want
to win the FA Cup and this is a big chance to win
it. We were good going forward against Leicester
and could have scored more than three goals,
but hopefully we can take this into today night
and win the game.” Van Gaal was more expansive when discussing the future of Januzaj, who
turns 20 this week.
It was predicted that the youngster would be
allowed to leave the club on loan during the
January transfer window, but the United manag-
Cruyff backs Van Praag
for FIFA presidency
THE HAGUE: Football legend Johan Cruyff
has thrown his weight behind fellow
Dutchman Michael van Praag in the race
for FIFA’s presidency, saying his friend was
somebody “you can count on.”
Writing for popular daily tabloid De
Telegraaf yesteday, Cruyff said if Van Praag
“ever asked for my support, he’s got it.” “I’ve
known him for fifty years and we remain
good friends. He’s someone you can count
on.” Dutch football chief Van Praag a week
ago threw his hat in the ring in the bid to
dethrone FIFA president Sepp Blatter, saying he would stand for one term only.
Van Praag said he wanted to modernise
football’s world governing body “which has
lost all credibility.” The former Ajax chairman presented backing from the Dutch,
Belgian, Swedish, Scottish, Romanian and
Faroe Islands’ football federations.
He is among four candidates announced
Monday for the FIFA candidacy including
Blatter himself, considered to be the
favorite. Another candidate is former
Portugal international Luis Figo, who Cruyff
described as an “excellent candidate” but
one lacking management experience.
“Therefore it would be good for Figo to
support Van Praag,” this time, Cruyff
writes.Known as the “Flying Dutchman” for
his explosive style, Cruyff is considered by
many as one of football’s all-time greats. In
his prime he led Ajax to three straight
European Cup triumphs from 1971-1973
and he also led the Netherlands to the
1974 World Cup final, winning the Ballon
d’Or award as Europe’s best footballer three
times in the process.
As a coach, among others he won the
Champions League with Barcelona in 1992
and shaped the club’s celebrated youth system.—AFP
Adnan Januzaj
er has been impressed by Januzaj’s efforts of late
and chose instead to keep him at Old Trafford.
“He has a lot of talent, but you have to perform
that talent in the matches. And also in the training sessions,” van Gaal told reporters. “I’m not
making the line-up. The players themselves are
making the line-up. You don’t believe that, I
think! “I look at players every day. I observe and I
communicate with my players what I want. And
the moment I think, ‘OK, he is now ready to play,’
then maybe I can let them play.”
Pressure ‘all on United’
The FA Cup is the only competition that
United stand a realistic chance of winning and
with Manchester City, Chelsea and Tottenham
Hotspur among the teams to have fallen by the
wayside, the field has opened up.United, embarrassed by a 0-0 draw in the first meeting
between the sides, therefore seem certain to
field a strong line-up, with van Gaal claiming he
will resist the temptation to hand a debut to
new goalkeeper Victor Valdes.
Perhaps distracted by the prospect of the trip
to Old Trafford, Cambridge’s league form has not
matched their efforts in the cup, with Richard
Money’s side collecting just one point from their
last two League Two games. Saturday’s 3-2
defeat at Luton Town, which left Cambridge in
the bottom half of the English fourth tier, provided a wake-up call. The replay will give an opportunity for midfielder Luke Chadwick to return to
the club where he started his career, while
winger Ryan Donaldson also has some experience of the stadium.
Aged 17, Donaldson sat on the bench at Old
Trafford for his former club Newcastle United.
“Kevin Keegan was the manager. I never got on,
but it was a fantastic atmosphere,” he recalled.
“And the pitch seemed huge. Maybe that will
suit me if I am in a wide role again. “But no matter what happens, it will be an incredible night.
And the pressure is all on them, isn’t it?” The winners of the game will visit either Preston North
End or giant-killers Sheffield United, who fell to
Tottenham in the League Cup semi-finals last
week. The two third-tier sides meet at Bramall
Lane. In today’s other replay, Premier League
Sunderland visit Fulham, while Liverpool travel
to second-division Bolton Wanderers on
Wednesday with a fifth-round trip to Crystal
Palace up for grabs.— AFP
Koepka wins his first
PGA title in Phoenix
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2015
16
Ghana, Ivory
Coast through
as Tunisian row
bubbles on
19
MotoGP ready for India ride: Ezpeleta
Page 16
GLENDALE: New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski holds up Vince Lombardi Trophy after the Patriots defeated the Seattle Seahawks in the NFL Super Bowl XLIX football game. — AP
Patriots win Super Bowl thriller
GLENDALE: Tom Brady and the New England Patriots rallied to edge Seattle 28-24 in Super Bowl 49 on Sunday,
scuttling the Seahawks’ bid for a second straight NFL
championship in dramatic style.
With their fourth Super Bowl triumph-and first in a
decade-the Patriots reconfirmed their status as the league’s
dominant team of the 21st century, a mantle they aren’t
prepared to hand over to the Seahawks just yet. “Whatever
it takes,” said Brady, whose three-yard touchdown pass to
Julian Edelman gave the Patriots a lead they wouldn’t relinquish with 2:02 remaining.
“We were playing a great defense and they’re a great
team. Took everything all the way to the last play. “I’m just
proud of our effort and our determination,” added Brady,
whose team recovered from a lackluster start to the season
and dealt all week with suggestions they purposely underinflated footballs used in a playoff win over Indianapolis.
“It’s just a great win,” Brady said. “We left it all on the
field.” The Patriots rallied from a 24-14 third-quarter deficit,
becoming the first team in Super Bowl history to trail by
double digits in the second half and win the game. Rookie
Malcolm Butler’s goal-line interception of a pass by Seattle
quarterback Russell Wilson with 20 seconds left preserved
the victory in a title showdown that lived up to its billing as
a clash of titans.
SUPER BOWL MVP
Brady threw two of his four touchdown passes in the
fourth quarter to rally the Pats against the most feared
defensive unit in the league.
Brady, making a record sixth Super Bowl start at quarterback, joined boyhood idol Joe Montana and Terry
Bradshaw as the only quarterbacks with four Super Bowl
wins, having also led New England to the title after the
2001, 2003 and 2004 seasons.
He set the record for most career Super Bowl touchdown passes, taking his tally to 13 to surpass the 11 of
Montana, and matched Montana with his third Super Bowl
Most Valuable Player award.
The Seahawks, who rallied in the final minutes of the
National Conference final to book their return to the Super
Bowl, looked like they might pull off another miracle.
Wilson hit Marshawn Lynch with a 31-yard pass to put
the Seahawks in Patriots territory. Then Jermaine Kearse
came up with a stunning catch as he fell to the turf, corralling a ball that had appeared to have been certainly
deflected out of his reach. That put Seattle on the 5-yard
line. Lynch was stopped just short of the goal line on the
ensuing play, but the Seahawks didn’t go to their superstar
running back on the next play.
Instead, Wilson attempted a short pass to Ricardo
Lockette that Butler seized to end Seattle’s hopes. “I just
guessed and went and made a play,” said Butler. “It’s crazy
man.”
Seahawks coach Pete Carroll said it was his decision not
to run the ball, saying he thought the match-ups were
wrong. “It’s a miraculous play that kid made to get in front
of that route,” Carroll said. “I hate that we have to live with
that because we did everything right to win the football
game.”
INTENSE START
The Patriots wasted a first-quarter scoring chance when
Brady was picked off near Seattle’s goal line, but went up 70 with a methodical 65-yard scoring drive capped by
Brady’s 11-yard touchdown pass to Brandon LaFell. Wilson
and the Seahawks offense, meanwhile, got off to a stuttering start, finally firing when Wilson connected with Kearse
on a six-yarder, followed by a deep ball down the sideline
to little used receiver Chris Matthews-who made the first
catch of his NFL career.
Matthews’ acrobatic effort set up a 3-yard touchdown
run by Lynch. The Pats struck back with an 80-yard, eightplay drive that ended with a 22-yard touchdown pass to
Rob Gronkowski with 31 seconds remaining in the first half.
But Wilson piloted the Seahawks 80 yards in 29 seconds
and hit Matthews with an 11-yard touchdown pass that
made it 14-14 at the break.
The Seahawks took their first lead on Stephen
Hauschka’s 27-yard field goal in the third quarter and
pushed the lead to 24-14 after capitalizing on another
Brady interception to score.
Brady answered with a 68-yard drive that ended with a
four-yard touchdown pass to Danny Amendola, cutting the
deficit to 24-21. “Hard work pays off,” Amendola said. “All
the work pays off. All the work we’ve put in all year, all the
adversity, dealing with everything that we have, it’s paying
off and it’s the best feeling in the world.” — AFP
Last play will linger,Brady’s
class showed in Patriots’ win
PHOENIX: New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady holds up his Pete Rozelle
Trophy during a news conference after the NFL Super Bowl XLIX football game. — AP
GLENDALE: Seattle Seahawks head coach
Pete Caroll won plenty of praise for his brave
decision making in the AFC Championship
win that took his team to the Super Bowl
but was facing the heat after Sunday’s loss
to the New England Patriots. Just as they did
against the Green Bay Packers two weeks
ago, the Seahawks had come back from a
slow start, finding their rhythm on offense
and it looked as if a second straight Super
Bowl win was on the cards. Despite being
the second-best throughout the first two
quarters, Seattle went in level 14-14 at halftime, thanks again to Carroll’s positive
approach. With six seconds remaining in the
half, many teams might have settled for a
field goal but the Seahawks used the opportunity to the full - with Russell Wilson finding Chris Matthews with an 11-yard touchdown pass.
But few will remember that call after the
strange decision at the end of the game
which practically gifted the win to the
Patriots. Trailing by four and on second
down, a yard from goal, the most obvious
decision would have been to hand the ball
to Marshawn Lynch, who having put up 102
yards on 24 carries, was averaging 4.3 yards
per carry. Instead Carroll went for a pass play
and quarterback Russell Wilson’s attempt to
reach Ricardo Lockette with a low zipped
pass turned into disaster as undrafted rookie
corner Malcolm Butler showed brilliant
anticipation and agility to make the interception.
It was game over and to most observers
and the millions watching on television, it
was an inexplicable decision from Carroll.
“There’s really nobody to blame but me, and
I told them that clearly,” said Carroll. “And I
don’t want them to think anything other
than that. They busted their tails and did
everything they needed to do to put us in
position, and unfortunately it didn’t work
out,” he said. Carroll’s explanation was that
with New England’s goal-line defense on the
field and his wide-receiver set, it made no
sense to run the ball on that play-especially
with the option of running on third or fourth
down.
Arguments over that logic and the decision that it prompted will no doubt rage for
weeks but it would be unfair if that crucial
call became all that was remembered of
what was a great game. New England quarterback Tom Brady won the MVP despite
throwing two interceptions largely because
of his four touchdown passes and 37 of 50
passing for 328 yards, but also because of
the way he managed the Patriots offense.
The Patriots have a relatively small receiver corps and their value, especially in the
slot, was amply evident throughout. Julian
Edelman was a livewire throughout, as he
put up 109 yards on nine receptions with
Shane Vereen adding 64 yards receiving and
Danny Amdendola contributing another 48
yards. The last offensive drive from the
Patriots, which concluded with a three-yard
Brady touchdown pass to Edelman was New
England at their very best. All nine passes
were completed as Brady took the team 64
yards in four minutes 50 seconds and the
quarterback chose four different receivers
on his march down the field. — Reuters
Business
Gulf banks likely to need
$35bn of capital by 2019
Page 22
NBK most valuable
banking brand in Kuwait
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2015
Page 23
Bahrah Trading Co holds spectacular field show for
Al-Babtain launches
all-new Renault
Bobcat Captur in Kuwait
Page 26
Page 25
WASHINGTON: News cameras get a look as President Barack Obama’s new $4 trillion budget plan is distributed by the Senate Budget Committee as it arrives on Capitol Hill in Washington, early yesterday. — AP
Obama sends $4tn budget to Congress
Foreign profits tax tied to big public works spending
WASHINGTON: President Barack Obama sent Congress a $4
trillion budget yesterday that calls for huge spending on
infrastructure funded by a one-time tax on profits US companies have amassed overseas. The business-friendly
Republican-controlled Congress is all but certain to say no.
The foreign earnings tax would be part of a broader administration plan to overhaul corporate taxes by ending certain
tax breaks and lowering rates, a challenging task that
Obama and Republican congressional leaders insist they are
poised to tackle this year.
The spending document for the 2016 fiscal year beginning Oct 1 also reflects goals Obama set out in his State of
the Union speech, particularly higher taxes on wealthy
Americans to shrink the growing gap between high-income
and middle-class citizens.
The administration said the budget represented a strategy to strengthen the middle class and help “hard-working
families get ahead in a time of relentless economic and
technological change.” Obama’s fiscal blueprint, for the
budget year that begins Oct 1, proposes spending $4 trillion $3.99 trillion before rounding - and projects revenues
of $3.53 trillion.
That would leave a deficit of $474 billion. Obama’s budget plan never reaches balance over the next decade and
projects the deficit would rise to $687 billion in 2025.
The administration contends that various spending cuts
and tax increases would trim the deficits by about $1.8 trillion over the next decade, leaving the red ink at manageable levels. Congressional Republicans say the budgets they
produce will achieve balance and will attack costly benefit
program like Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid.
The question is what kind of negotiated middle ground,
if any, will emerge in a climate of the overwhelming partisan divide separating Obama and his Democrats from
Republicans, many of whom have made their goal to stop
or reverse virtually all of the president’s domestic initiatives.
Obama, in an NBC interview before the Super Bowl, disputed a suggestion that he and Congress are so far apart
that his budget proposals have no chance of winning
approval. “I think Republicans believe that we should be
building our infrastructure,” Obama said. “The question is
how do we pay for it? That’s a negotiation we should have.”
Obama’s new budget offers an array of spending programs and tax increases on the wealthy that Republican
lawmakers have already rejected.
The likely meeting ground is the tax rate on US companies. The current 35 percent top tax rate for corporations in
the United States, the highest among major economies,
Oil’s fresh rally lifts Saudi
MIDEAST STOCK MARKETS
DUBAI: A rebound in global oil prices
and decisions by state-controlled
companies to pay cash bonuses to
employees boosted Saudi Arabia’s
stock market yesterday, while other
Gulf bourses were mixed in choppy
trading. Brent crude fell in early trade
on news of a US refinery strike and
weak Chinese manufacturing data,
but bounced back later in the day
and traded above $54 per barrel by
the time Saudi Arabia’s market
closed.
The Saudi stock index rose 0.8 percent as petrochemicals firm Saudi
Basic Industries, the kingdom’s
largest listed company, jumped 2.4
percent; other stocks in the sector
also climbed. Petrochemical prices
are linked to oil and the sector was hit
hard in a sell-off triggered by oil’s
plunge last year.
Retailers also performed well yesterday: Fawaz Alhokair surged 8.8
percent and Jarir Marketing jumped
2.6 percent. This followed announce-
ments by large companies such as
Saudi Electricity and Saudi Telecom
that they would pay out hundreds of
millions of dollars in bonuses to their
workers, following last Thursday’s
order by the new king that Saudi
state employees would receive two
months of extra salary to mark his
accession.
Part of the corporate bonuses is
expected to be spent on consumer
goods, boosting the retailers’ revenues and profits. Investors were less
enthusiastic about the companies
which will use their resources to pay
out the cash; shares in Saudi
Electricity edged up 0.6 percent,
while Saudi Telecom fell 0.8 percent.
UAE, EGYPT
Other Gulf markets had closed
when oil was still in the red and their
performances were mixed. Dubai’s
index fell 1.1 percent; the benchmark
had surged 4.5 percent in the previous session. But shares in property
developer DAMAC shot up 6.8 percent after it reported an 11 percent
rise in fourth-quarter profit yesterday,
according to Reuters calculations.
Abu Dhabi’s index edged down
0.6 percent as most blue chips pulled
back. Oman’s market was nearly flat,
while Kuwait edged up 0.3 percent.
Qatar’s benchmark added 0.5 percent, largely on the back of Islamic
lender Masraf Al-Rayan, which
jumped 3.9 percent. The bank reported estimate-beating fourth-quarter
results and a dividend hike last week.
Meanwhile, shares in Qatar
National Bank dropped 2.0 percent as
they no longer carried the 2014 dividend. Egypt’s bourse edged up 0.5
percent as property developers continued to gain on hopes that
Egyptians will use real estate as a
hedge against the weakening pound.
Talaat Moustafa Group rose 1.2 percent, Amer Group added 0.8 percent
and Palm Hills Development gained
0.2 percent. — Reuters
serves as a disincentive and many US companies with overseas holdings simply keep their foreign earnings abroad.
The question remains whether there will be sufficient
flexibility in negotiations to keep Obama from vetoing the
budget, a move that would force, yet again, last-minute
emergency talks, a possible government shutdown or a socalled continuing resolution that would fund the government at current levels. Under Obama’s plan, the top corporate tax rate for company profits earned in the U.S. would
drop to 28 percent. While past foreign profits would be
taxed immediately at the 14 percent rate, going forward
new foreign profits would be taxed immediately at 19 percent, with companies getting a credit for foreign taxes paid.
Opposition
Republicans are opposed virtually across the board to
anything that would increase taxes, such as closing loopholes. They also are against taxing foreign profits and will
likely block that avenue for funding Obama’s infrastructure
plans. The White House believes it has some leverage on
taxing foreign earnings by linking the revenue to construction projects that could potentially benefit the home districts of every member of Congress.
The budget will call for the one-time 14 percent manda-
tory tax on the up to $2 trillion in estimated US corporate
earnings that have accumulated overseas. That would generate about $238 billion, by White House calculations. The
remaining $240 billion would come from the federal
Highway Trust Fund, which is financed with a gasoline tax.
Obama is releasing his budget as the federal deficit drops
and his poll numbers inch higher. Although Republicans
will march ahead on their own, they ultimately must come
to terms with the Democratic president, who wields a veto.
Ahead loom big challenges. Obama is proposing to ease
automatic cuts to the Pentagon and domestic agencies
with a 7 percent increase in annual appropriations. He
wants a $38 billion increase for the Pentagon that
Republicans probably will want to match. But his demand
for a nearly equal amount for domestic programs sets up a
showdown with Republicans.
Another centerpiece of the president’s tax proposal is an
increase in the capital gains rate on couples making more
than $500,000 a year. The rate would climb from 23.8 percent to 28 percent. Obama wants to require estates to pay
capital gains taxes on securities at the time they are inherited. He also is trying to impose a 0.07 percent fee on the
roughly 100 US financial companies with assets of more
than $50 billion. — AP
Philippines may surpass China
as Asia’s fastest growing economy
MANILA/JAKARTA: The Philippines may surpass China to be
Asia’s fastest growing economy this year, but its bigger challenge
is working out how to sustain and share the gains of the past five
years to secure longer-term prosperity. Since President Benigno
Aquino came to power in 2010 and embarked on a reform and
governance push, the Philippines has become a hot investment
favorite and one of the fastest-growing economies in the world.
Investors now want to know how the Southeast Asian country
will be able to sustain fiscal and economic policies that have
spurred growth and reduced poverty after Aquino’s term ends
next year.
“We think that 2016 is critical in terms of the long-term outlook of the Philippines,” said Eugenia Victorino at ANZ bank. The
Philippines defied the region’s slowdown in the fourth quarter by
regaining momentum, bringing full-year growth to 6.1 percent the fastest expansion in Asia after China.
This year, Aquino is aiming for growth of 7-8 percent, while
China’s growth is expected to slow to around 7 percent.
MORE INCLUSIVE
Aquino has fought corruption and prioritized infrastructure
improvements that are pivotal to raising growth potential.
However, the economy is still mired with high unemployment.
The World Bank has said Philippine growth is now “more
inclusive”, and there are signs benefits are trickling down. More
than one million jobs were created in 2014 and unemployment
fell to 6 percent, the lowest for at least a decade. But job creation
has still struggled to match the number of people looking for
work; 42 percent of the population still live on less than $2 per
day. Vibrant sectors, such as booming back-office firms, earn foreign exchange but don’t spread a lot of prosperity. “To have one
of those jobs, you need some skills. At a minimum, decent command of English and computer literacy, but often a bit more than
that,” said Dan Martin at Capital Economics.
Manufacturing, the sector probably best able to raise productivity and the income of low-skilled workers, could benefit as low
wages and a competitive currency help the Philippines grab
some of the production that is leaving China because of rising
costs.
AFTER AQUINO
Aquino, limited by the constitution to a single term in office,
has improved public finances and boosted investment in roads,
ports and schools through public-private partnerships. Last
summer, wrangles with the Supreme Court caused a seize-up of
government spending, but it resumed after Congress passed a
supplementary budget in December.
“We’re very hopeful that the Aquino government will be able
to release the funds to continue with its infrastructure programs,” said Victorino. The outlook from mid-2016, following the
elections for a new president and half of Congress, is far less certain.— - Reuters
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2015
BUSINESS
Gulf banks likely to need
$35bn of capital by 2019
Regulation, tight pricing cloud capital-boosting bonds
DUBAI: Fast-growing Gulf Arab banks plan
to bolster their reserves by issuing capitalboosting bonds, but uncertainty over regulation and ultra-tight pricing increase the
risks for issuers and investors. Basel III standards, now being phased in around the
world, will require banks to hold more capital. While Gulf banks have very high capital adequacy ratios, their rapid expansion,
and the fact they operate in emerging
markets with lower sovereign ratings than
the core developed economies, mean they
will be hungry for more capital in coming
years.
The banking sector of the six-nation
Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) is expected to need an additional $35 billion of capital by 2019, according to a study by consultants Strategy.
Retained earnings and equity issuance
will provide some but not all of that money. So banks are turning to other instruments, especially perpetual bonds with
equity-like characteristics that boost Tier 1,
or core, capital. Contingent capital securities known as “CoCos”, convertible into
shares in certain circumstances, may also
be used.
Kuwait’s Burgan Bank and Abu Dhabi’s
Al Hilal Bank issued Tier 1 bonds designed
to be Basel III-compliant last year. Dubai
Islamic Bank (DIB), the United Arab
Emirates’ largest Islamic bank, sold $1 billion of Tier 1 Islamic bonds last month at
6.75 percent.
Qatar Islamic Bank, Qatar’s Doha Bank
and Oman’s Bank Dhofar have all
announced plans to issue Tier 1 bonds
since the start of this year. Capital-boosting bonds are good options for banks in
the region as they provide efficiency, flexibility and diversification, said Christoph
Paul, head of Middle Eastern and North
African capital markets at Morgan Stanley.
Regulation
But the trend to issue such bonds has
been slower in the Gulf than in many other
parts of the world, for a good reason: details
of how national regulators will treat the
instruments remain unclear in some countries. Saudi Arabia, a member of the committee which drafted Basel III, as well as
Kuwait and Bahrain, have clarified what
conditions the bonds must meet for their
regulators to count them towards Tier 1
capital totals.
The United Arab Emirates, Qatar and
Oman have not yet finalized their guidelines, however. This creates considerable
uncertainty for the issuing banks - in theory, they could issue bonds only to discover
Pricing
In these circumstances, the tight pricings
being achieved by GCC issuers of Tier 1
bonds are remarkable, and not necessarily
healthy. In developed markets, the pricing
difference between Tier 1 bonds under Basel
III and Basel II has been about 250 to 300
basis points, bankers said. DIB, however,
achieved a tiny difference.
A regional asset manager noted that $1
billion of Tier 1 sukuk from DIB, callable in
2019, were issued under Basel II rules in
2013 at 6.25 percent. He calculated that represented a spread of only about 25 bps to
the bank’s latest sukuk, taking into account
the fact that DIB’s latest issue is not callable.
Such a small spread may mean investors are
not fully appreciating the much higher risk
of loss embedded in the new Basel III structures. The willingness of some Gulf investors
to shoulder this risk threatens to price international investors out of the market.
“In reality, these new-style notes should
pay a much higher premium since they
don’t seek a rating and stand way behind
existing subordinated bonds because of the
loss absorption trigger,” said one senior
Dubai banker. “Consequently, they would
be wiped out before the old-style bonds in
the event of bankruptcy, however unlikely
this is.” —Reuters
months or years later that their national
regulators do not recognize the instruments as capital-boosting.
“We are in that limbo where everybody
is trying to figure out what is required or
not to issue capital instruments,” said a
senior banker at a UAE lender, declining to
be named because he was not authorized
to speak to media.
A key issue is loss absorption: unlike the
previous Basel II regulatory regime, Basel III
rules call for all capital instruments to
absorb losses fully when a bank becomes
non-viable, but leave it to national regulators to decide exactly how and when
investors would shoulder the losses. GCC
governments have in the past been very
supportive of their banking systems - most
of the big banks have large state shareholdings - so in some cases, banks seem to
be assuming that their regulators would
never take the inconvenient step of disallowing their Tier 1 bonds.
But making such assumptions is not
comfor table for some institutional
investors, who tend to prefer legal and regulatory certainty. One risk is that an issuer,
finding its outstanding bond was not Basel
III-compliant, might decide to try to revise
the terms - a strategy which India’s IDBI
Bank adopted last year, angering investors.
Saudi Electricity,
other big firms
to pay bonuses
DOHA/DUBAI: Several of Saudi Arabia’s largest companies
announced yesterday they would pay out hundreds of millions of
dollars in bonuses after the new king ordered that Saudi state
employees should receive two months of extra salary. Saudi
Electricity Co will distribute 545 million riyals ($149 million)
among its Saudi employees, it said in a bourse statement. The
government owns 81 percent of the Gulf’s largest utility, according to Reuters data.
Saudi Telecom Co (STC), 70 percent state-owned, will pay an
extra 395 million riyals to its Saudi employees, it said in a similar filing, adding that the payout would be recorded in its first-quarter
earnings. Last week, Saudi Arabia’s King Salman ordered the immediate payment of two months of bonus salary to all state employees and pension to retired government workers, marking his accession to power after the death of his brother King Abdullah. “The
Saudi Electricity Company has decided to grant two months’ salary
for all key Saudi staff and trainees,” the company said in a statement
to the kingdom’s stock exchange, adding that the bonus paid to
each staff member would not exceed 50,000 riyals.
Southern Province Cement, which is majority-owned by state
funds, said it would pay two months’ salary to Saudi employees
and half a month’s pay to non-Saudis. King Salman’s announcement did not give a monetary figure, but analysts said the payout
to state employees could be worth some 70 billion riyals, while
additional handouts to pensioners, students and others could
make total spending much larger. —Reuters
i n
b r i e f
Dinar stable against
dollar at KD 0.294
KUWAIT: The exchange rate of the US dollar against
the Kuwaiti dinar was stable at KD 0.294 yesterday,
while the euro rose to KD 0. 333 compared to yesterday’s rates. The Central Bank of Kuwait said in its daily
bulletin that the sterling was stable at KD 0.444, the
Swiss franc dropped to KD 0.318, while the Japanese
yen was unchanged at KD 0.002. Meanwhile, the US
Federal Reserve released reports on a decreasing level
of inflation and a strong growth of economic activities in January 2015 compared to a medium growth
last December. As for the euro-zone, the focus is on
Greece which is working on a new economic program, as the government is determined to call off all
austerity measures. Meanwhile, inflation rates had
decreased in Germany last January compared to the
same month in 2014.
UAE’s NBAD to meet
investors from today
DUBAI: National Bank of Abu Dhabi (NBAD) plans to meet
fixed income investors starting today for a potential U.S.
dollar-denominated bond issue, a document from lead
managers showed yesterday. Rated AA- by Standard and
Poor’s and Fitch, NBAD will meet investors in Asia and
Europe, it said, adding that it would issue a bond during
the course of 2015 subject to market conditions. NBAD,
owned 70 percent by the government of Abu Dhabi, mandated Citibank, HSBC, Standard Chartered and itself to
arrange the investor meetings.
Egyptian pound
weakens to new low
CAIRO: Egypt’s pound weakened to 7.53 per dollar,
from 7.51 at the last sale, at a central bank auction yesterday, the weakest level it has been allowed to reach
since auctions began in December 2012. The bank
offered 40 million dollars and sold 38.4 million at a cutoff price of 7.5301 pounds per dollar, the central bank
said. The rates at which banks are allowed to trade dollars are determined by the results of central bank sales,
giving the bank effective control over official exchange
rates, though there remains an active black market in
the pound.
Saudi buys 690,000tn
of hard wheat
HAMBURG/ABU DHABI: Saudi Arabia bought 690,000
tons of hard wheat via a tender, the country’s main state
grain agency Grain Silos and Flour Mills Organization (GSFMO) said yesterday. The wheat, with 12.5 percent protein
content, is for shipment during April and May, GSFMO said
in a statement. The accepted origins are the European
Union, North America, South America and Australia at the
option of sellers, the GSFMO said. “I think there will be
expectations that some of the purchase will be sourced in
Europe, perhaps in Germany or Poland,” one trader said.
Saudi Arabia has become a major importer of hard and soft
wheat since abandoning plans for self-sufficiency in wheat
in 2008 as farming in the desert drained away precious
water supplies. The country aims to steadily reduce agriculture and plans to be completely reliant on imports by
2016 to save water.
HEART: Afghan blacksmiths work in a shop in Herat yesterday. Afghanistan’s economy has improved
significantly since the fall of the Taleban regime in 2001 largely because of the infusion of international assistance. —AFP
DAMAC sees property price pause in 2015
DUBAI: Dubai developer DAMAC expects the
emirate’s property sector to steady in 2015 before
supply shortages boost prices in 2016-17, its chief
executive said yesterday, after the company
reported an 11 percent rise in fourth-quarter profit. Dubai house prices fell 49 percent from a peak
in the third quarter of 2008 to the market bottom
in the second quarter of 2009, according to consultants Cluttons, following a supply glut and the
emirate’s debt crisis.
Prices subsequently recovered as an influx of
cash and people from troubled parts of the
Middle East helped spark a rebound, although
Cluttons estimates house prices remain about 18
News
percent below 2008 peaks.
DAMAC made a profit of $249.8 million in the
three months to Dec. 31, according to Reuters calculations based on a company statement. This
was up from $225.1 million a year earlier.
DAMAC’s 2014 full-year profit was $937 million,
up from $641.5 million, the company said in a filing to London’s bourse.
“I see Dubai’s property marketing stabilizing in
2015, but 2016-17 there could be some shortage
in supply,” DAMAC chief executive Hussain
Sajwani told Reuters. “After consolidating, we see
the market nosing up.”
The consensus view is for prices to fall slightly
sheet, cash flows and growth requirements, I
don’t see a huge need for additional capital,” said
Adil Taki, DAMAC chief financial officer.
DAMAC’s value of properties under construction rose by 20 percent to $2.33 billion at 2014end, largely due to increases in its land bank. “I
don’t expect we will buy a huge amount of land
this year, although there will also always be some
depending on location and availability,” added
Sajwani. DAMAC will also de-list its global depository receipts (GDRs) from London by mid-March,
having bought out 97.4 percent of holders. Shares
in DAMAC, which joined Dubai’s main bourse in
January, ended 6.8 percent higher. —Reuters
in 2015 as increased property sales taxes, stricter
mortgage rules and a lack of affordability reverses
market momentum. Sajwani said four developers
now controlled 90 percent of Dubai’s property
sector-DAMAC, plus government-linked trio
Dubai Properties, Emaar Properties and Nakheel.
“These are all long-established companies
with strong cash flows and that is helping the
market mature,” said Sajwani. DAMAC’s fourthquarter revenue was $440.4 million versus $431.8
million a year earlier, Reuters calculations showed.
The firm booked sales worth $3.1 billion in
2014, up from $2.5 billion in 2013. It delivered
3,553 units last year. “If you look at our balance
New rules to align UAE
insurers with European
solvency requirements
DUBAI: The United Arab Emirates Insurance Authority has
issued new rules for conventional and Islamic insurance
(takaful) firms, clarifying policyholders’ rights and setting
investment limits for the sector, the regulator said yesterday.
Insurers will have between two and three years to fall in
line with the new rules, which align the UAE with European
solvency requirements, the regulator said in a statement.
Among the investment limits, firms will have to keep
aggregate exposure to real estate to a maximum of 30 percent of invested funds, and have a minimum 5 percent exposure to cash and deposits. The new takaful rules include provisions on the distribution of surplus funds to policyholders
and segregation of assets of participants’ and shareholders’
accounts.
The UAE issued its first set of takaful rules in 2010, but
regulation of the industry is inconsistent across the region,
hurting the industry’s profit margins and credit ratings,
according to a report by global insurance rating agency A.M.
Best. —Reuters
EXCHANGE RATES
Al-Muzaini Exchange Co.
Japanese Yen
Indian Rupees
Pakistani Rupees
Srilankan Rupees
Nepali Rupees
Singapore Dollar
Hongkong Dollar
Bangladesh Taka
Philippine Peso
Thai Baht
Irani Riyal transfer
Irani Riyal cash
Saudi Riyal
Qatari Riyal
Omani Riyal
Bahraini Dinar
UAE Dirham
ASIAN COUNTRIES
2.519
4.788
2.928
2.218
3.012
219.930
38.159
3.795
6.713
9.068
61.555
121.740
GCC COUNTRIES
78.754
81.297
768.910
785.970
80.588
ARAB COUNTRIES
Egyptian Pound - Cash
39.349
Egyptian Pound - Transfer
39.041
Yemen Riyal/for 1000
1.381
Tunisian Dinar
153.580
Jordanian Dinar
417.270
Lebanese Lira/for 1000
1.985
Syrian Lira
2.109
Morocco Dirham
31.468
EUROPEAN & AMERICAN COUNTRIES
US Dollar Transfer
295.800
Euro
337.210
Sterling Pound
448.370
Canadian dollar
334.420
Turkish lira
120.970
Swiss Franc
325.050
Australian Dollar
232.790
US Dollar Buying
294.600
20 gram
10 gram
5 gram
GOLD
238.100
121.740
61.560
UAE Exchange Centre WLL
COUNTRY
Australian Dollar
Canadian Dollar
Swiss Franc
Euro
US Dollar
Sterling Pound
Japanese Yen
Bangladesh Taka
Indian Rupee
Sri Lankan Rupee
Nepali Rupee
Pakistani Rupee
UAE Dirhams
Bahraini Dinar
Egyptian Pound
Jordanian Dinar
Omani Riyal
Qatari Riyal
Saudi Riyal
SELL DRAFT
219.49
236.45
326.46
337.06
296.00
448.76
2.56
3.797
4.781
2.219
2.982
2.927
80.43
785.62
38.93
420.58
767.63
81.51
78.85
SELL CASH
216.49
237.45
324.46
338.06
299.00
451.76
2.58
4.067
5.081
2.654
3.517
2.790
80.90
787.69
39.53
426.23
774.93
82.06
79.25
2.565
3.980
82.205
47.700
10.005
121.335
Sierra Leone
Singapore Dollar
South African Rand
Sri Lankan Rupee
Taiwan
Thai Baht
0.000065
0.215787
0.019614
0.001880
0.009283
0.008719
0.000071
0.221787
0.028114
0.002460
0.009463
0.009269
Bahrain Exchange Company
Bahraini Dinar
Egyptian Pound
Iranian Riyal
Iraqi Dinar
Jordanian Dinar
Kuwaiti Dinar
Lebanese Pound
Moroccan Dirhams
Nigerian Naira
Omani Riyal
Qatar Riyal
Saudi Riyal
Syrian Pound
Tunisian Dinar
Turkish Lira
UAE Dirhams
Yemeni Riyal
Arab
0.778155
0.036603
0.000082
0.000196
0.413157
1.000000
0.000147
0.022718
0.001206
0.762292
0.080538
0.078243
0.001754
0.149705
0.121372
0.079554
0.001336
0.786155
0.039703
0.000083
0.000256
0.420657
1.000000
0.000247
0.046718
0.001841
0.767972
0.081751
0.078943
0.001974
0.157705
0.128372
0.080703
0.001416
Syrian Pound
Nepalese Rupees
Malaysian Ringgit
Chinese Yuan Renminbi
Thai Bhat
Turkish Lira
COUNTRY
Belgian Franc
British Pound
Czech Korune
Danish Krone
Euro
Norwegian Krone
Romanian Leu
Slovakia
Swedish Krona
Swiss Franc
Turkish Lira
Dollarco Exchange Co. Ltd
Rate for Transfer
US Dollar
Canadian Dollar
Sterling Pound
Euro
Swiss Frank
Bahrain Dinar
UAE Dirhams
Qatari Riyals
Saudi Riyals
Jordanian Dinar
Egyptian Pound
Sri Lankan Rupees
Indian Rupees
Pakistani Rupees
Bangladesh Taka
Philippines Pesso
Cyprus pound
Japanese Yen
Selling Rate
295.750
234.575
446.970
335.350
272.710
786.690
80.895
82.060
79.060
417.445
38.786
2.219
4.785
2.926
3.795
6.688
725.940
3.515
Australian Dollar
New Zealand Dollar
America
Canadian Dollar
US Dollars
US Dollars Mint
Bangladesh Taka
Chinese Yuan
Hong Kong Dollar
Indian Rupee
Indonesian Rupiah
Japanese Yen
Kenyan Shilling
Korean Won
Malaysian Ringgit
Nepalese Rupee
Pakistan Rupee
Philippine Peso
SELL CASH
Europe
0.007707
0.440486
0.004078
0.041049
0.329643
0.034240
0.084848
0.008700
0.031865
0.316867
0.121372
SELLDRAFT
0.008707
0.449486
0.016078
0.046049
0.337643
0.039440
0.084848
0.018700
0.036865
0.327067
0.128372
Australasia
0.221853
0.209571
0.233353
0.219071
0.228188
0.291700
0.292200
0.236688
0.296400
0.296400
Asia
0.003499
0.046174
0.036053
0.004466
0.000019
0.002436
0.003280
0.000260
0.078661
0.003024
0.002691
0.006565
0.004099
0.049674
0.038803
0.004867
0.000025
0.002616
0.003280
0.000275
0.084661
0.003194
0.002971
0.006845
Al Mulla Exchange
Currency
US Dollar
Euro
Pound Sterlng
Canadian Dollar
Indian Rupee
Egyptian Pound
Sri Lankan Rupee
Bangladesh Taka
Philippines Peso
Pakistan Rupee
Bahraini Dinar
UAE Dirham
Saudi Riyal
*Rates are subject to change
Transfer Rate (Per 1000)
294.250
348.000
448.650
247.700
4.738
41.135
2.222
3.770
6.590
2.928
783.450
80.150
78.600
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2015
BUSINESS
Warba Bank operating revenues
rise at 79% to reach KD 18.53m
Financing portfolio grows at 78% reaching KD 388.16m
NBK most valuable
banking brand in Kuwait
KUWAIT: National Bank of Kuwait (NBK) was
recognized as the most valuable banking
brand in Kuwait in 2015 according to Brand
Finance, the renowned brand valuation
agency. NBK ranks among the Top Tier of the
Most 500 Valuable Brands in the world from
all sectors.
According to Brand Finance, NBK’s Brand
value reached USD 1.04 billion, up 32% yearon-year. Also, NBK’s brand rating increased to
AA, among the top in the region. This recognition reflects customers and shareholders’
trust in NBK as well as the bank’s strong reputation locally and regionally.
David Haigh, Brand Finance CEO, said: “In
common with much of the GCC, Kuwait’s
bank brands are growing strongly. NBK
stands out however, by adding $250m to its
brand value in a year, it has overtaken its
competitors to become the nation’s premier
banking brand. With a total brand value of
USD 1.04 billion, it has now joined the elite
‘billion dollar brands club’.”
Brand Finance’s valuation assesses the dollar value of the reputation, image and intel-
lectual property of the brand. It considers a
number of relevant attributes such as financial performance, revenue forecasts, growth
rates, sustainability, and analysts’ insights,
amongst others.
NBK continues to collectively enjoy the
highest ratings from the three international
rating agencies; Moody’s, Fitch Ratings and
Standard and Poor’s. The Bank’s ratings are
supported by its high capitalization, prudent
lending policies, and its disciplined approach
to risk management, in addition to its highly
recognized and very stable management
team. In 2014, NBK was also named among
Global Finance’s list of the 50 safest banks in
the world for the ninth consecutive time.
NBK has the widest banking presence with
more than 170 branches worldwide. NBK’s
international presence spans many of the
world’s leading financial centers including
London, Paris, Geneva, New York and
Singapore, as well as China (Shanghai).
Meanwhile, regional coverage extends to
Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq, Egypt, Bahrain, Saudi
Arabia, the UAE, and Turkey.
KUWAIT: Warba Bank has announced its annual
financial results for 2014 demonstrating remarkable growth across all indicators of the Bank supported by significant increases in the operating
revenues and the Bank’s financing portfolio.
For the year ending 31 December 2014, Warba
Bank has reported operating revenue of KD 18.53
million at 79 percent increase compared to KD
10.32 million for the year ended 31 December
2013. The financial statements demonstrated that
the Bank generated a net profit of KD 115,000 for
the 12 months ending 31 December 2014 at an
increase of 103 percent compared to a loss of KD
3,709 Thousand for 2013.
The Bank’s total assets grew reaching KD 594.8
million as in December 2014 compared to KD
405.51 million by the end of 2013, while maintaining high asset quality. Realized profits before provisions increased at 302 percent reaching KD 1.92
million compared to losses of KD 0.95 million for
the previous year. This is mainly due to the much
higher increase in operating revenues than the
increase in the total operating expenses.
The Bank’s financing portfolio witnessed significant increase of 78 percent reaching KD 388.16
million as on 31 December 2014 compared to KD
218 million by the end of 2013.
Commenting on the 2014 financial results,
Emad A Al-Thaqeb, Chairman of Warba Bank, said:
“These positive results achieved across the Bank’s
operations in 2014 reflect the Bank’s excellent
operational status, the assets quality, success of the
strategy adopted by the Bank for seizing growth
opportunities in high quality assets with minimal
risks for generating robust returns over the shortto-medium term.”
Al-Thaqeb emphasized that the profits of Warba
Bank resulted from an increase in operating revenues with a parallel decrease in expenses. This is
due to the high quality and diversity of the Bank’s
asset portfolio while maintaining high growth rates
in an intensive competitive environment in the
banking sector. With regard to risk management,
The Bank enjoys a high quality financing portfolio
with non performing finances at only 0.28 percent
which is one of the best rates internationally. The
Bank’s Capital Adequacy Ratio at the end of 2014
far exceeded the designated ratio stipulated by
Basel III requirements and the Central Bank of
Kuwait instructions reflecting the Bank’s robust
financial position and solid platform supporting
the Bank’s future business growth.
He added: “We have recently set our strategy for
the coming three years. This strategy is a roadmap
guiding our endeavors for improving and developing the Bank’s performance by applying the best
Chairman of Warba Bank Emad A Al-Thaqeb
Warba Bank Vice Chairman & Chief Executive
Officer Jassar Al-Jassar
established practices in the banking industry
across various fields. The Strategy also aims at
enhancing the Bank’s position and role in the local
and regional markets, taking into account all recent
economic and social volatilities in Kuwait and the
region”.
Jassar Al-Jassar, Warba Bank Vice Chairman &
Chief Executive Officer, said: “The financial results
of the year 2014 reflect significant growth in all
financial indicators illustrating the Bank’s solid and
sound trend; The operating revenues continue to
grow reaching KD 18.53 million for the year ending
31st December 2014 at an increase of 79 percent
compared to 2013 where the operating revenues
reached KD 10.32 million in addition to continuous
asset growth where the total asset increased at 47
percent reaching KD 594.8 million for the year ending 31st December 2014 compared to KD 405.51
million by the end of 2013. This is achieved while
maintaining high asset quality and continuous
growth in the financing portfolio by 78 percent
reaching KD 388.16 million for the period ending
31st December 2014 compared to KD 218.03 million by the end of 2013.”
“In 2015, we will continue satisfying the financing requirements of our corporate and retail customers for banking and financing services. We
always seek to get closer to our customers through
current and future branches in addition to our
focus on providing new technological applications.
The Bank also pays due attention to supporting
and financing small- and medium-sized enterprises
which significantly contribute to the development
of the national economy and creating new job
opportunities. We would like to reaffirm that our
relationship with our individual and corporate customers and investors is based on business partnership for the benefit of depositors, customers and
investors” added Al-Jassar.
Al-Jassar concluded “In addition to our continuous focus on the operational aspects of the Bank,
we strongly believe in the significance of human
capital resources particularly Kuwaiti nationals
which is a key fundamental to our success.
Accordingly, we have been committed from the
outset to care for our employees, enhance and
develop their skills for providing attractive business environment that cater for creativity and innovations in order to provide our customers with the
highest quality services. From the beginning,
Warba Bank has been keen on investing in Kuwaiti
skilled labor where Kuwaitization in the Bank now
exceeds 60 percent. The Bank always seeks to
recruit Kuwaiti calibers and develop employee’s
skills and talents in order to ensure that the customer receives the best services at the highest professional levels in line with the international quality
standards. Customer service officers at the Bank
have the highest professional certificates in this
field.”
It is worthy to mention that Warba Bank has
recently added a new tribute to its achievements
record. The Bank has won the “2014 Best Call
Centre Award” from Banker Middle East Magazine
for Banking Products And Services in Kuwait by CPI
FINANCIAL. This prestigious award reflects the successes that the Bank has achieved in Kuwait and
the excellent services offered to its customers by
satisfying all their Sharia-compliant financing and
investment requirements.
Kuwait trade surplus narrows
to KD5.3 billion in Q3 2014
NBK ECONOMIC REPORT
KUWAIT: Kuwait’s trade surplus narrowed slightly to KD 5.3 billion in the
third quarter of 2014, as oil exports fell
and import growth strengthened. The
surplus remains strong, though it narrowed to its lowest level in three years
mainly on lower oil prices. The decline
in non-oil exports and strong rise in
import demand have also added downward pressure on the trade balance
recently. With oil prices falling further
since 3Q14, we can expect the surplus
to narrow further in the coming quarters. Still, Kuwait’s external buffers are
substantial, with a relatively large trade
surplus projected at 47 percent of GDP
for 2014.
Oil export earnings fell by 9 percent
year-on-year (y/y) in 3Q14 and currently
stand at KD 7.4 billion. Oil export earnings were mainly driven lower by a
decline in oil prices. Kuwait Expor t
Crude (KEC) price fell by 4.2 percent y/y
in 3Q14, after rising by 4.4 percent y/y in
the previous quarter. Oil export volumes
witnessed a rebound in 3Q14, growing
by a solid 26 percent y/y, after declining
by 4.3 percent y/y in 2Q14. The jump in
oil export volumes was not enough to
counteract the decline in oil prices. Oil
export revenue growth is projected to
soften further in the near- to mediumterm, as oil prices continue to average
lower. By early 2015, KEC had reached
$40 per barrel, approximately 60 percent lower than the average price witnessed during the same period in 2014.
Non-oil exports declined by 9.6 percent y/y in 3Q14 after growing by 5.9
percent y/y in the previous quarter.
Non-oil exports were mainly driven lower by further declines in ethylene prices.
With ethylene prices expected to maintain their weakness in the mediumterm, non-oil export growth is set to
remain soft.
Imports continued to strengthen
into 3Q14, growing by 10.4 percent y/y.
Import levels climbed to a new high of
KD 2.3 billion in 3Q14, thanks in large
part to a stronger Kuwaiti dinar. The
dinar is pegged to a basket of major
currencies and has been on a strengthening streak since mid-2014 mainly due
to a stronger US dollar. Imports are likely to continue to climb on the back of a
stronger currency, healthy consumer
demand and the pickup in economic
activity as investment spending gains
momentum.
DEARBORN: Tom Peters looks at material for roof rails on the production line for the 2015 Ford F-150 at the Dearborn
Truck Plant in Dearborn, Michigan. The Institute for Supply Management reported on a survey about US manufacturing
production and orders yesterday. — AP
US consumer spending slips
in Dec as auto sales weaken
WASHINGTON: US consumer spending slipped in
December, as the pace of motor vehicle sales slowed and
more Americans saved their money. The Commerce
Department said yesterday that consumer spending fell 0.3
percent in December, compared to a 0.5 percent increase in
November. Cheaper gasoline and fewer auto sales accounted for most of the decline. Energy prices tumbled 5.2 percent in December for the sixth straight monthly decline.
Personal income rose 0.3 percent in December, aided by the
steady wave of hiring over the past year. But rather than
spend those gains, consumers saved 4.9 percent of their disposable income, up from 4.3 percent in November. Despite
the decrease, several indicators show that Americans are
growing more comfortable about the economy and are
spending money again.
“Further big real income gains and soaring confidence
point to serious strength in spending,” said Ian Shepherdson,
chief economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics. “(W)e would
not be surprised to see gains approaching 5 percent annualized in the spring.” Consumer spending rose at an annual
clip of 4.3 percent during the final three months of 2014, the
strongest pace since early 2006, the government reported
Friday. That surge helped drive overall economic growth of
2.6 percent, as roughly 70 percent of gross domestic product stems from consumer activity.
The University of Michigan reported that its consumer
sentiment index stood at 98.1 percent in January, the highest reading since 2004. Half of the consumers surveyed
expect the current expansion to continue for the next five
years.
Construction spending
US construction spending accelerated in December as
building activity increased for new houses and governmentbacked highways. The Commerce Department said yesterday that construction spending rose 0.4 percent in
December. Total construction spending in 2014 increased
5.6 percent to $961 billion, with the gains slightly below the
pace of 5.7 percent in 2013. Spending on single-family houses rose 1.2 percent in December from the prior month.
Highway and street construction grew by 2.1 percent and
factory-building by 1.9 percent. Construction of schools and
commercial centers fell in December. Over the course of
2014, spending on offices, power plants, factories and lodgings climbed significantly, potentially signaling broader economic growth in 2015 that could further boost residential
construction.
Sales of new home sales climbed 11.6 percent in
December to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 481,000,
the Commerce Department said in a recent report. That represents a marked improvement from the total sales of
435,000 for all of 2014.
Solid job growth should spillover into construction.
Employers added nearly 3 million jobs in 2014, the most
since 1999. Economists surveyed by FactSet ahead of
Friday’s jobs report say that employers likely added 230,000
jobs in January. The strong hiring should lead to additional
demand for hotels and office buildings, according to the
American Institute of Architects’ forecast for 2015. The trade
group expects that construction spending will increase 7.7
percent this year on non-residential buildings, led primarily
by new offices, hotels, factories and retail development projects. —AP
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2015
BUSINESS
European stocks gain as Greece talks debt
LONDON: Europe’s main stock markets rose yesterday as Greece’s new anti-austerity government seeks support for a renegotiation of the country’s 240 billion euro
($270 billion) bailout in the face of German opposition. Greek stocks rallied 4.63
percent, with Greek Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis meeting his British counterpart — the latest stop on his European charm offensive.
US President Barack Obama, who yesterday put forward a $4-trillion budget
loaded with spending and tax reforms, warned the world that continued imposition of tough austerity programs on Greece could backfire on its creditors. “You
cannot keep on squeezing countries that are in the midst of depression,” Obama
told CNN.
“At some point, there has to be a growth strategy in order for them to pay off
their debts to eliminate some of their deficits.”
In late morning deals, London’s benchmark FTSE 100 index was up 0.18 percent
at 6,761.76 points.
Frankfurt’s DAX 30 index climbed 0.49 percent to 10,746.28 points, and in Paris
the CAC 40 edged up 0.04 percent to stand at 4,606.16 compared with Friday’s
close. The euro increased to $1.1353 from $1.1284 late in New York on Friday. In
Asia, Shanghai stocks tumbled yesterday after two gauges of Chinese manufacturing activity showed contraction in January.
US markets had provided a negative lead after the Department of
Commerce said Friday that the American economy expanded at an annual
rate of 2.6 percent in the fourth quarter, well below the 5.0 percent in the
previous three months. In corporate movement yesterday, shares in Ryanair
slid 4.1 percent to 9.97 euros as the no-frills Irish airline gave a cautious out-
look after swinging into profit during its third quarter.
Ryanair said its profit growth expectations were “modest” for next year as its
expects rivals to cut fares because of cheaper oil prices. “It is important that analysts are mindful of this likely increased price competition when revising their forecasts,” chief executive Michael O’Leary said in the statement.
Oil prices fell yesterday as dealers took profits from steep gains in volatile
month-end trading last week. The oil market has lost more than half its value since
June last year when the commodity was sitting at more than $100 a barrel, largely
owing to a surge in global reserves boosted by robust US shale oil production.
The problem was exacerbated in November after the OPEC oil cartel insisted
that it would maintain output levels despite plunging prices. The 12-nation group
pumps about 30 percent of global crude. —AFP
Oil prices rally above
$55 as investors pile in
LONDON: Crude oil prices rose yesterday
as investors shrugged off bearish Chinese
data and news of a US refinery strike and
focused on a falling US rig count that signalled lower production down the line.
“There were a lot of people on the sidelines waiting for an opportunity to buy,”
said Bjarne Schieldrop, chief commodity
analyst at SEB.“Brent has moved sideways
for a while but it closed above the 20-day
moving average on Friday for the first
time since July, and that has encouraged
people to come in.” At 1109 GMT Brent
crude futures were up $1.81 at $54.80 a
barrel, after leaping as high as $55.62 and
dipping as low as $51.41, as the bulls battled with the bears.
US crude was up $1.44 at $49.68 a bar-
rel, after touching an intraday high of
$50.56 and slumping to $46.67 in Asian
trading. Both contracts had rallied about
8 percent on Friday, fuelled by month-end
short-covering and a record weekly drop
in the number of US oil rigs employed,
according to industry data from Baker
Hughes. The count is now down 24 percent from its October peak.
On Sunday, workers at nine US refineries and chemical plants went on strike in
an effort to pressure oil companies to
agree to a new national contract. “So far
only a handful of refineries have been
affected, but the last time they went on
strike like this, in 1980, it lasted for three
months,” said Ole Hansen, senior commodity strategist at Saxo Bank. —Reuters
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2015
BUSINESS
Al-Babtain launches all-new
Renault Captur in Kuwait
Renault Captur is the urban crossover that people will really notice
A
bdulmohsen Abdulaziz Al-Babtain Co, the exclusive
dealer of Renault cars in Kuwait is proud to
announce the launch of the all-new Renault Captur,
the latest from the renowned automaker in Kuwait today.
The all-new urban crossover has a powerful presence,
offering a unique blend and the best of three different
worlds: The expressive styling and driving position of an
SUV, the cabin space and modular interior of an MPV and
the agility and driving enjoyment of a compact saloon car.
The Renault Captur emerges as a clear segment leader.
The Renault Captur interior molds to your personality
and surrounds you with a stylish touch. The continuous
shape of the dashboard and the interior panels envelops
you like a cocoon. Likewise, the rear passengers enjoy
knee room of up to 21.6 cm for maximum comfort. The
folding rear bench as well has 3 seats, converts into a flat
floor and slides on rails, allowing the Captur’s volume to
be adjusted and its passenger compartment arranged to
suit all needs.
The brand-new seat design as well enhances the passenger compartment’s modern look. The customizable
seat covers are made of soft and comfy fabric available in
a variety of colors and five different patterns providing
ample possibilities for personal taste and preference.
Built on innovation, it boasts a list of technologies and
features to lead the segment. Renault Captur has a regulated air-conditioning system that fits perfectly with the
climate and dusty weather in Kuwait. The air-conditioning system is fitted with a combined pollen/activated carbon sensor that reduces particulate matter and pollutants from entering the cabin. If a high pollution level is
detected, the system automatically shuts the ventilation
maintaining a safe and contaminant free air for all passengers.
It not only builds on the tremendous Renault heritage, but
it also gives crossover owners a spacious, comfortable and
feature-filled interior.
Mohamed Shalaby COO Al-Babtain Group said, “Captur
crossover is considered one of the best models offered by
Renault. It exemplifies the new strategy Renault is implementing and at the same time it draws on the company’s
extensive expertise and long lasting history in car manufacturing, which is apparent through its superb design,
functionality and the latest in terms of technology. We are
greatly pleased to launch Renault Captur in Kuwait at the
dawn of 2015. We are confident that Captur will be a trend-
tance control for an easier driving experience. Four rear
parking sensors, with reversing camera depending on the
version. The camera sends the image to the navigation
system screen and displays guidance aids allowing the
driver to navigate smoothly around unseen obstacles.
The all-new Renault Captur delivers a strong personality with an original two-tone paint. It offers much greater
personalization with its five themed collections: The Ivory
Diamond & Black Roof, the Mocha Brown & Ivory Roof, the
Arizona Orange & Ivory Roof, the Pacific Blue & Ivory Roof,
and last but not least the Diamond Black & Arizona
Orange Roof theme that offer as well abundant personalized possibilities according to each customer’s interest.
To make it unique to the last detail, Renault provides its
customers the option to choose the trim and level of customization each desires. The Captur is offered in three
trims; PE, SE, and the full option LE, which includes on top
Renault Captur can also be fitted with a 7” touch screen
multimedia tablet with voice recognition to control essential functions, enjoying 3D Sound music via audio streaming, Bluetooth, and hands-free telephone system. The
Captur’s network-connected multimedia tablet allows you
to access contacts and music at all times via the touch
screen or the steering wheel-mounted controls. It also
provides a new high-tech look and allows the driver to
customize the home page with a touch of a finger. The
Driving Eco2 program as well makes it easy to control fuel
consumption depending on its customized daily advise.
The Renault Captur is also fitted with a parking dissetter for small crossovers in Kuwait.”
Mohamed Shalaby noted that, “Renault Captur is
expected to be a huge success in Kuwait market. More
importantly, it is the only vehicle in the segment that provides customers the option to personalize and distinguish
their vehicles to the last bit of detail, from the interior to
the exterior. Its compact size with high ground clearance,
large wheels and underbody protection allows you to
explore all facets of everyday life. If there is one thing commentators agree on when talking about the all new
Renault Captur, is that it is an urban crossover that people
will really notice.”
of the standard options two color exterior paintwork, 17”
alloy wheel rims, chrome strip on tailgate, 7” touchscreen,
rearview camera, and electric foldable door mirrors.
To top it all, the new urban crossover is crafted to deliver reliability, sturdiness and fuel economy. The Renault
Energy petrol engine does not forget the qualities it owes
to Formula 1: technology, fuel economy, endurance and
outstanding performance. Driving pleasure and fuel economy are the common denominators of Captur’s 100 percent 1.2L turbo engine. Responsive, lively and agile, it is
both powerful and quiet. Likewise, for even greater driving pleasure, it is connected to a 6-speed dual-clutch EDC
(Efficient Dual Clutch) automatic gearbox.
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2015
BUSINESS
Bahrah Trading Co holds spectacular field show for Bobcat
Open Day demonstrates field capabilities of Bobcat Skid-Steer loaders
KUWAIT: Bahrah Trading Company (BTC), one
of the Al-Sayer Group Holding Companies
held an on field capability demonstration for
one of its prestigious and globally leading
brand of skid-steer loaders BOBCAT. The Open
Day was held at Kuwait International Fair
Ground Mishref on January 20, 2015 between
10 am till 2 pm, where the highly powerful
Bobcat equipment exhibited their capabilities
on an open field which was exclusively prepared for this event. Chairman Naser Al-Sayer
visited location to review the facilities on field
as well as the Bobcat equipment utilized for
the demonstration.
Mubarak Naser Al-Sayer, CEO Al-Sayer
Group, graced the occasion in greeting BTC’s
valued customers invited for the event. Paul
Reynolds, COO Al-Sayer Group, Melakandy
Hamza, General Manager Bahrah Trading
Company, Gaby Rhayem, Regional Director for
Bobcat also attended the event. Over 150
guests from various institutions in Kuwait wit-
nessed the demonstration from a specially
erected tent on the Fair Grounds. The Open
Day was enriched by liberal participation of
BTC’s loyal customers who has been the hall
mark of success for the Bobcat brand.
On behalf of the BTC Management
Saadallah Salem El Mahmoud, Senior
Supervisor, Heavy Equipment Sales and
Bobcat Sales In-Charge welcomed the chief
guests, distinguished delegation and customers to the event. The welcoming ceremony, new product-launch and field demonstration was followed by a grand luncheon at the
Fair Grounds for the chief guests and all valued customers.
Highlighting the Mission of the Al-Sayer
Group Holding Mubarak Naser Al-Sayer said,
“Al-Sayer Group values of trust, honesty and
personal integrity, offering highest quality
products and services backed by best after
sale service are always at the heart of our business”. Melakandy Hamza, General Manager
Honda Civic, Accord,
CR-V and Odyssey
named Kelley Blue
Book Best Buys for 2015
KUWAIT: Alghanim Motors, the sole distributor of Honda
vehicles in Kuwait, proudly announced that four Honda
models, the 2015 Accord, Civic, CR-V and Odyssey have
received the prestigious Best Buy Award in their respective
categories from the experts at Kelley Blue Book’s KBB.com.
Honda’s four awards are among the most earned by any
automaker and represent a third of the twelve total
KBB.com Best Buy Award categories.
The 2015 Honda Civic was awarded Kelley Blue Book
Best Buy: Small Car, the 2015 Honda Accord for mid-size
car, the 2015 Honda CR-V for small SUV/crossover while the
2015 Honda Odyssey received the Kelley Blue Book Best
Buy: Minivan award. Each of these Honda vehicles were
selected as winners in their category following thorough
evaluation and testing by KBB.com experts, along with
analysis of a broad range of vehicle-related data, including
cost of ownership information, consumer reviews and ratings, and vehicle sales/retail sales information.
Jeff Conrad, Senior Vice President and General Manager
of the Honda Division, said: “It is an honor to receive Kelley
Blue Book Best Buy Awards for four of our core models, all
of which are on track to be best-sellers with individual retail
car buyers again in 2014. This prestigious award from
KBB.com helps current and future buyers with their purchase decision and further solidifies the notion that customers who purchase a Honda are making an all-around
smart choice.” While Executive Editorial Director of Kelley
Blue Book’s KBB.com’s Jack Nerad, said: “Our Kelley Blue
Book Best Buy Award program proved that Honda vehicles
are among the most value-filled in the market. In test after
test we were struck by how uncannily spot-on the Honda
cars, crossovers and minivans were in matching up to the
needs and desires of consumers in their individual segments. By achieving award-winning status in four out of
the 12 categories Hondas proved their reputation for high
value is well-deserved.”
BTC thanked all customers for their continuous
support, and re-assured BTC’s commitment to
offer best aftersales service for Bobcat.
Gaby Rhayem , Regional Director for
Bobcat, briefing on the global success of the
brand, said “this event commemorates a major
milestone for Bobcat to accomplish sales of 1
millionth skid steer loader and 20,000th
Telehandler special editions, reflecting the
long and successful journey of Bobcat brand”.
The latest model Bobcat Skid-Steer Loader S
450 was also launched during the event.
Introduction of model S 450 heralds a major
leap forward across the skid steer loader
range in terms of enhanced efficiency, productivity and build quality.
The field demonstration session was coordinated by Nicolas with lively input from
Patrick, Olivier, Zdenek of Bobcat Team
Europe. The four member team was flown to
skillfully operate the equipment to educate
and entertain the audience and other enthusiasts gathered at the venue. The splendid display of agility and ease with which Bobcats
were utilized endorsed it as a multipurpose
tool carrier suitable for many spheres. Besides
the skid loaders in action, the event also
showcased Bobcat Telehandlers, Doosan
Loader, Excavator, Compressor, Light Tower
etc.
Bobcat, the first skid steer to be built and
more than 5 decades on is still the best and
dominate the world market with 50 percent
market share and has become the industry
bench mark name for Skid-Steer Loaders.
Bobcats are widely used for Construction,
agriculture, landscaping, road maintenance
etc. Innovative design, simplicity, highly user
friendly, best value for money are some of the
highlights that make Bobcat a legend in its
life time and would continue so for a long
time to come. The World’s most popular SkidSteer Loaders are also renowned for its strong
per formance, panoramic ser viceability,
uptime protection, comfort cab, effective control options as well as productive and efficient
attachments.
Bahrah Trading Company, the authorized
distributor for Bobcat in Kuwait, is the market
leader in transportation, industrial and material handling equipment and construction
machinery, representing globally leading
brands. BTC’s service is built around top quality products and industry leading support.
Bahrah Trading has established a reputation
for professional and reliable service and providing full after sales support. The commitment to customers and our dedication to
their satisfaction have placed BTC at the forefront of local industry in Kuwait.
Ready Mix Operations in GCC set to grow: Global analysts
Booming economies in GCC countries boost infrastructure
KUWAIT: The economics of the Ready Mix
Concrete (RMC) market are more or less the
same as any other traded commodity. The
GCC region is no exception to the traditional
supply and demand paradigm - this is no
more evident than in the recent rebound of
ready mix operations sweeping many high
quality providers in the region. As investors’
confidence continues to return, construction
activity has increased, supported by mega
government-based infrastructure projects.
The domino effect of this positive atmosphere impacted the building materials industry too, as demand for RMC is set to exceed 10
percent over the coming 2-3 years.
Looking at the largest RMC market in the
GCC, Saudi Arabia is expected to host approximately half of the GCC construction projects
by value till 2019; amounting to $1.1 trillion.
Such contracts consist of those in the residential sector (30 percent), followed by the
healthcare (20 percent) and education sector
(10 percent). Projects of this nature have driven up RMC demand in Saudi Arabia by 10
percent since the financial crisis of 2008 and
demand is expected to grow further to 15
percent by 2016. Furthermore, Saudi Arabia’s
transport sector (aviation and rail) constitutes
a significant proportion of the high-value
construction contracts awarded in previous
years and it is anticipated to award further
contracts over the next three years. Another
dimension of increased RMC demand is
linked to tourism with the holy cities of holy
Makkah and Holy Madina expected to host
major hotel constructions and other hospitality and retail developments. The table below
demonstrates the range and scale of the infrastructure projects currently being undertaken
in Saudi Arabia:
In the UAE it would appear that the healthy
6.9 percent growth of RMC production of
recent years is set to rise to 8 percent annually
in the coming years according to global analysts - mainly due to strong forecasts in the
real estate and construction sectors, suggesting a continued period of exponential growth
in the region.
Dubai and Abu Dhabi represent the largest
share of the RMC production market with
approximately two-thirds of the entire RMC
market, around 25-30 companies having their
presence in these two areas - equal to about
50 percent of the total RMC companies in the
whole of UAE. Fujairah is starting to gain more
importance on the RMC domain as it welcomes mega oil & gas developments worth
over USD 7bn, along with their accompanying
support developments of housing, social and
retail services. Currently, Fujairah holds the
third position behind Dubai and Abu Dhabi;
see table below.
Looking at the other side of this equation,
Saudi RMC companies have one of the highest
utilization levels globally going as high as 90
percent, putting serious pressures on local
RMC prices. Lately, RMC prices in Saudi Arabia
have seen continuous increases forcing Saudi
officials to cap them. In such a uniquely sellerleveraged market, Saudi RMC companies are
amongst the most profitable of their industry
globally, with net margins as high as 50 percent and beyond. The situation in the UAE
looks as competitive but with a vital twist;
where approximately 50 players operate
across the seven emirates of the United Arab
Emirates. Furthermore there is an average of
182 batching plants in the UAE, with the vast
majority operating as small local organisations
with a single plant operating at a comparatively low production capacity. This concentration of RMC operators is focused in Dubai and
Abu Dhabi, whereas other emirates; such as
Fujairah who is third in RMC production
behind Dubai and Abu Dhabi; open more window for profitable operations. Amongst those
that have built substantial capacities lately is
Oryx Industries, which today controls over 10
percent of total RMC operational capacities in
the UAE and dominates the Eastern coast of
the country. Adding to the positive outlook
for Fujairah based RMC producers is that only
around 3 percent of global production is traded across borders, meaning those producers
strategically positioned are in a situation to
capitalize on the booming economies of nearby countries.
Fujairah has an additional market advantage. Almost 65 percent of the production
cost in the RMC industry is linked to products
of quarries, a sector where Fujairah takes a
lead regionally. For RMC companies based in
Fujairah such as Oryx Industries, there can be
substantial savings on material cost, improving its position in competing for demand.
The latest drop in aggregates pricing post
the financial crisis have helped RMC companies in both KSA and UAE stock raw materials
at lower prices, operating today at competitive operational margins.
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2015
technology
Why investors are applauding Amazon earnings
NEW YORK: Amazon.com Inc.’s fourthquarter earnings roundly beat analyst
expectations, sending the Seattle ecommerce giant’s stock soaring 11 percent in premarket trading Friday.
Here’s a closer look at what investors
applauded and hope continues.
SMART SPENDING
Operating expenses rose 15 percent
to $28.74 billion but that was less than
some analysts had expected Amazon
would spend. I nvestors have long
wanted Amazon to show some
restraint as it invests in its business,
and this metric seemed to be a sign
that Amazon is willing to do that.
Wedbush Securities analyst Michael
Pachter said the lower-than-expected
costs were related to flat fulfillment
expenses - what the company spends
on its distribution centers and deliveries - during the holiday season even
though Amazon shipped 100 million
more free items. The company also
spent less on marketing expenses
since the launch of its new hardware
like Fire TV and the Fire Smartphone
are behind it.
“They’re getting far more efficient
at deliver y,” said Pachter. “ They ’re
spending like slightly tipsy sailors
rather than drunken sailors.”
Prime membership grew 53 percent
in 2015. Two - day shipping costs
Amazon a pretty penny but membership means more revenue from customers in the long run. Pachter estimates there are about 35 million Prime
members worldwide. And he pointed
out the company is making untraditional efforts to get more members.
For example, it cut the price of its
Prime membership to $72 one
Saturday in January and let non-Prime
members stream its Golden Globe winning series “ Transparent ” starring
Jeffrey Tambor.
“Little promotions like that are
going to drive prime membership and
they’ll continue to really promote it,”
Pachter said.
WILL IT LAST?
Some caution that one quarter of
disciplined spending does not a trend
make. In a call with investors, Piper
Jaffray analyst Gene Munster pointed
out that over the past two years it has
been a “little bit of a roller coaster” for
Amazon’s gross margin, a key metric
that shows how big a percentage of
revenue is spent on investing back
into the company.
“There’ve been points of optimism
followed by points of frustration,” he
said and asked the company how they
plan to “smooth out some of this roller
coaster mentality.”
CFO Tom Szkutak acknowledged
that Amazon has been in a “heavy
investment cycle.” He said the company is being “selective” about its investment opportunities but didn’t give any
details, saying it is still finalizing
spending plans for 2015. “The question
is, is this a one-time hiccup or are they
going to repeat it,” Wedbush’s Pachter
said. “If I see this for two, three or four
quarters I will believe it.” — AP
New rules may answer
question of whose
Internet it is
WASHINGTON: Whose Internet is it anyway?
Tom Wheeler, chairman of the Federal
Communications Commission, says he’s keeping that question in mind as he pitches the
biggest regulatory shake-up to the telecommunications industry since 1996, when people still
used noisy modems and referred to the “information superhighway” as a fun way to buy
books or check the weather.
Wheeler has not publicly released his plan
yet, and might not for a few weeks. But he has
suggested that Internet service has become as
critical to people in the United States as water,
electricity or phone service and should be regulated like any other public utility.
Wheeler told reporters this past week that
he wants “yardsticks in place to determine what
is in the best interest of consumers as opposed
to what is in the best interest of the gatekeepers.”
That has the industry sounding the alarms,
warning consumers of an inevitable $72 annual
tax increase on each U.S. wireless account. But
advocates of the approach say that is not likely
to happen and that your Internet experience
probably will carry on as usual.
A look at what “net neutrality” means and
what is likely to happen:
THE ISSUE
Net neutrality is the idea that Internet
providers should not move some content faster
than others or enter into paid agreements with
companies such as Netflix to prioritize their
data.
Broadband providers have questioned the
fairness of this approach. They have invested
heavily in a sophisticated infrastructure and
question whether the government should be
telling them how to run their networks and
package services.
But what if the major cable companies that
provide much of the nation’s broadband had
free rein to load some files faster than others? It
is easy to imagine scenarios where these
providers might favor content produced by
their affiliates or start charging “tolls” to move
data. Consumers naturally would gravitate
toward faster sites and services that pay those
fees, while smaller startups or nonprofits get
shut out.
THE OPTIONS
The FCC had used the 1996 Telecommunications Act, which was intended to encourage
competition in the telephone and cable industry, to enforce “open Internet” rules, until recently, when a federal appeals court knocked down
that approach.
President Barack Obama and consumer
advocates say a better tack would be to apply
Title II of the 1934 Communications Act. That
law, written with radio, telegraph and phone
service in mind, prohibits companies from
charging unreasonable rates or threatening
access to services that are critical to society.
Industry likens that approach to cracking a nut
with a sledgehammer.
Wheeler says he will circulate his proposal
among the other FCC commissioners before
Thursday. He has suggested it probably will
apply Title II regulation to all Internet service,
including wireless, but with some caveats.
Industry experts expect that Wheeler will say
many rules should not apply to broadband,
invoking what’s called “forbearance.”
The commissioners will vote Feb. 26.
Wheeler is expected to have the support of the
other two Democratic commissioners. The two
Republican commissioners have made clear
that they do not support applying Title II.
Next stop will be the courts. Industry lobbyists and FCC officials say there’s no doubt one of
the big providers will sue and probably ask the
court to suspend enforcement of the new regulation pending appeal. It’s possible the issue
won’t be resolved for several more years, even
well into the next president’s first term.
CONGRESS
Lawmakers could try to resolve the uncertainty, but Congress rarely is that pragmatic.
Lawmakers tend to take on issues that fire
up their base or bring their states money, and
an in-the-weeds compromise on telecommunications law would be a lot of work with little
immediate payoff.
So far, Republicans have pitched an idea that
would enforce basic open Internet rules but
could strip the FCC of its ability to help local
municipalities build their own broadband. It’s a
nonstarter for Obama and congressional
Democrats who say poor and rural areas have
been left behind in the deployment of highspeed Internet.
Assuming Wheeler’s proposal satisfies consumer advocacy groups, Democrats would have
little incentive to revisit the issue. While
Republicans have the votes to ram though their
own anti-regulation legislation without
Democratic support, Obama would veto it.
CONSUMERS
Most Internet providers, except Sprint, have
warned the legal uncertainty will chill future
investments. FCC officials point to a recent wireless spectrum auction that has attracted some
$44 billion as proof that the telecommunications
industry is thriving even amid the current uncertainty.
As for taxes, the Progressive Policy Institute
estimated that treating the Internet like phone
service would trigger taxes and fees up to $15 billion a year, including $67 for each wired service
and $72 for wireless in state and local taxes.
But that report, widely quoted by industry
lobbyists, did not take into account the Internet
Tax Freedom Act, which prohibits state and local
governments from imposing new taxes on
Internet access, or the FCC’s ability to shield consumers against some state and local taxes by
claiming the Internet is an “interstate” service. - AP
Lincoln, Google integrate to
offer seamless App experience
DEARBORN: The Lincoln Motor Company,
through the free MyLincoln Mobile app, is
the first automotive brand to launch an
available seamless integration with Now
cards in the Google app, offering a new
notification opportunity for Android smartphone users to remotely start their vehicle.
The Lincoln Motor Company, through its
MyLincoln Mobile app, is the first automotive brand to launch an available seamless
integration with Google Now, offering a
new notification opportunity for Android
smartphone users to remotely start their
vehicle.
When connected via the embedded
modem available on the 2015 Lincoln MKC
and MKZ and coming to the 2016 Lincoln
MKX, the MyLincoln Mobile app gives owners the ability to start, lock, unlock and
locate their vehicle, as well as schedule
remote starts.
Remote starts can be programmed for
specific times and days of the week. If the
owner is a user of the Google Now service,
the seamless integration with MyLincoln
Mobile delivers a Now card (in the Google
app) suggesting a remote start because the
owner’s calendar indicates a need to depart.
If the remote start option is selected,
the vehicle is then warmed up or cooled off
during the remote start based on the invehicle temperature settings.
“Delivering unique experiences for the
luxury client throughout ownership is fundamental to Lincoln,” said Matt VanDyke,
Director, Global Lincoln. “By innovating
with leading tech companies, we have an
opportunity to personalize the ongoing
interaction between the customer and the
vehicle.”
Both the MyLincoln Mobile connectivity
and Google services are opt-in features.
Notifications can be turned off, if desired.
Now cards in the Google app predictively aid users who access Google and are
based on past and preferred searches as
well as the user’s calendar, offering information on topics such as weather, traffic
routes and sports scores.— AP
HONG KONG: Executive Chairman of Alibaba Group Jack Ma, center, chats with young people after his speech on “Transforming Dreams into
Successful Business” in Hong Kong yesterday. — AP
Alibaba promises more
action against fake goods
BEIJING: E-commerce giant Alibaba pledged
Friday to do more to fight online sales of counterfeit goods, quickly settling a public dispute
with a Chinese regulator after the value of its
US-traded shares plunged.
Alibaba founder Jack Ma and the director of
the Cabinet’s State Administration of Industry
and Commerce met and pledged to cooperate
more closely to combat sales of fakes, the
agency said in a statement.
A report Wednesday by the SAIC accused
Alibaba of lax oversight and allowing sales of
counterfeit goods on its popular Taobao ecommerce platform. Alibaba said it was not to
blame and, in a break with the usual deferential tone of Chinese companies toward regulators, took the unusual step of publicly accusing the agency and one of its officials of misconduct and bias.
But the company faced pressure to end the
conflict after the news caused its US-traded
shares to fall. They tumbled further Thursday
after its latest quarterly revenue disappointed
investors. The two-day decline knocked $38
billion off the Alibaba’s $264 billion market
capitalization.
Alibaba is one of China’s biggest corporate
names and a star of a fast-growing Internet
industry communist leaders are eager to
develop. But it has little leverage against the
powerful SAIC, which has stepped up antimonopoly and other enforcement against
Chinese and foreign companies.
In Friday’s statement, SAIC director Zhang
Mao affirmed the importance of e-commerce
in generating jobs and economic activity. He
said, though, that it “still has problems” and
companies need to “strengthen self-discipline.”
Alibaba’s Ma was cited as promising to
spend more to spot counterfeit goods and to
work more closely with law enforcement.
“The two sides will strengthen communication to jointly explore management of online
markets and build a new pattern of governance,” said the statement. “Regulators will
further strengthen Internet market supervision.”
The SAIC’s report was the result of a meeting in July between the agency and Alibaba
managers but said it was withheld until now
to avoid disrupting progress toward the company ’s US stock market debut last
September.
That prompted suggestions Alibaba
should have told investors. But its vice chairman, Joe Tsai, said Thursday it was one of
many regular meetings rather than a formal
investigation. In midday US trading on Friday,
shares of Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. stabilized, rising $1.17 to $90.98. — AP
Nickelodeon to offer Internet subscription
NEW YORK: SpongeBob fans rejoice:
Nickelodeon is the latest cable channel to plan
a stand-alone Internet offering. What’s not yet
known is whether this offering will be the same
channel as what cable and satellite TV subscribers now get. It’s possible the service will
have just supplemental content or archives of
past shows when it launches in March. That
would make it similar to a $4-a-month online
offering for “Sesame Street.”
Nickelodeon owner Viacom Inc. will announce
details, including the price and the name of the
service, next month. Viacom CEO Philippe
Dauman said the new service “will target the
fast-growing mobile market (and) will be very
attractive for parents and children.”
The company announced the service
Thursday during a conference call to discuss the
company’s quarterly earnings report. HBO and
Showtime are among the other channels planning stand-alone Internet offerings as more
people ditch their cable or satellite TV service.
CBS already has a $6-a-month service that
includes live television for those who live in 14
markets with CBS-owned stations. Major sports
leagues also offer live games online, though
often with blackouts of hometown teams.
Meanwhile, Dish Network Corp. and Sony
Corp. will soon launch Internet-only packages
of television channels that used to require a
cable or satellite subscription.
The Dish offering, called Sling TV, will start at
$20 a month and have channels from The Walt
Disney Co., Scripps Networks Interactive Inc.
and Time Warner Inc.’s Turner. The channels
include ESPN and CNN.
Sony’s PlayStation Vue will have unspecified
channels from Viacom, Scripps, Discovery
Communications Inc., CBS Corp., 21st Century
Fox Inc. and Comcast Corp.’s NBCUniversal. Sony
hasn’t announced the price for its service,
which will initially be limited to owners of
PlayStation game consoles.
These offerings make it easier for households to drop their traditional pay-TV service
and piece together their own package of video
services.
Households that do this won’t necessarily
save money, though: The price for Internet
access will likely go up when separated from a
bundle, and these subscriptions add up in cost.
But it’s a good option for those who watch
few channels live and don’t mind waiting for
shows to appear on Netflix and other streaming
services. It also allows households to downgrade to a cheaper cable or satellite TV package
and supplement that with specific channels
they want. — AP
NEW YORK: In this Jan. 17, 2012 file photo, attendees at the National Retail Federation listen to
a discussion about Google Wallet, in New York. Google has gotten into the habit of missing
analysts’ earnings targets, frustrating investors who believe the online search leader would be
more profitable it wasn’t pouring so much money into far-flung projects such as Internet-connected eyewear and driverless cars. — AP
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2015
H E A LT H & S C I E N C E
Insurers using drug costs to discriminate patients
FORT LAUDERDALE: Insurance companies, perhaps more than previously thought, may be charging the sickest patients extra for drugs under the
federal health law, in an effort to discourage them
from choosing certain plans, according to a study
released Wednesday.
One of the cornerstones of President Obama’s
signature health law forbids insurance companies
from turning away people with pre-existing conditions such as diabetes or cancer. Yet hundreds of
patient advocacy groups say insurance companies
have found a way to discriminate against these
people, who are more expensive to cover because
they require life-long treatments.
The companies do this by putting all of their
medications in a special category where the patient
is required to pay a percentage of the cost of the
drug, rather than a flat co-pay. Some are as high as
50 percent, leaving people on the hook for thousands of dollars. That compares to the average $10
to $40 per-medication co-pay that most pay.
A study published in the New England Journal
of Medicine only examined HIV drugs, but noted
the problem applies to mental illness, cancer,
rheumatoid arthritis, diabetes and other chronic
conditions. Patient advocates have complained that
prescriptions for these patients were virtually unaffordable in some plans offered on healthcare.gov.
The AIDS Institute even filed a formal complaint
with Health and Human Services officials last summer about four plans in Florida. Georgia plans to
file a similar complaint, but the scope of the problem has been difficult to gauge as many of the
complaints have been anecdotal.
The researchers studied 48 plans in 12 states
using the federal marketplace: Delaware, Florida,
Louisiana, Michigan, South Carolina, Utah, Illinois,
New Jersey, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas, and Virginia.
They found that one-quarter of the plans placed
all of the HIV drugs into the highest-cost category
and required consumers to pay at least 30 percent
of the drug costs instead of a flat co-pay. Annual
drug costs in these plans were more than triple
compared with other plans ($4,892 to $1,615),
according to the analysis. And 50 percent had to
pay a separate deductible for drugs, compared to
only 19 percent of consumers in other plans.
Insurers have historically placed drugs in categories with higher co-pays to encourage consumers to select generic or preferred brand-name
drugs. The problem is exacerbated as more plans
place all drugs, including generics, in the more
expensive category.
“Our findings suggest that many insurers may
be using benefit design to dissuade sicker people
from choosing their plans,” the study noted.
Over time, researchers predicted sicker people
will enroll in plans that don’t charge such high
prices. That means certain plans could have a higher number of sicker, more expensive consumers
than their competitors. The federal law has financial
protections for those plans but some will be
phased out in 2016.
The law does ban insurers from charging an individual more than $6,350 in out-of pocket costs a
year and no more than $12,700 for a family policy.
Insurance companies say the main issue is increasing drug costs and they’re shouldering the bulk of
it. But they acknowledge the increased prices are
also passed onto consumers.
For example, Atripla, the most popular HIV AIDS
treatment and one of the highest-selling drugs in
the U.S., costs insurers $27,026 a year. Patients only
pay a portion of that, said Clare Krusing, a spokeswoman for the trade association America’s Health
Insurance Plans.
But insurers noted consumers have the flexibility
to choose from plans at all levels with different
cost-sharing requirements and that the health law
has a component that rewards plans for value and
efficiency “not on their ability to attract healthier
enrollees,” Krusing said.
Advocates have asked federal health officials to
intervene and nearly 300 patient groups sent a letter last month urging Health and Human Services
Secretary Sylvia Burwell to beef up enforcement.
The federal government has warned against such
discrimination.
“We analyze plan information submitted by
insurance companies to uncover discriminatory
benefit designs, and work with outlier plans to
update formularies so they do not discourage
enrollment of consumers with specific medical conditions,” agency spokesman Aaron Albright said in
an email.
It’s unclear what the penalties are for insurance
companies who discriminate. Meanwhile, insurance
officials in some states are stepping in. Three out of
four insurance companies restructured their plans
in Florida late last year. — AP
‘Still Alice’
highlights
hidden toll of
Alzheimer’s
WASHINGTON: Her performance as a vibrant woman fading into the darkness of Alzheimer’s is doing more than
earning awards for actress Julianne Moore. The movie “Still
Alice” is raising awareness of a disease too often suffered in
isolation, even if the Hollywood face is younger than the
typical real-life patient.
Some things to know about Alzheimer’s:
ALZHEIMER’S IS INCREASING BUT
THE EARLY-ONSET FORM ISN’T COMMON
The movie is about a linguistics professor stricken at the
unusually young age of 50 with a form of Alzheimer’s that
runs in her family. That type of Alzheimer’s accounts for a
small fraction of the brain-destroying disease.
About 35 million people worldwide, and 5.2 million in
the US, have Alzheimer’s or similar dementias. The vast
majority are 65 or older. Barring medical breakthroughs,
US cases are expected to more than double by 2050,
because of the aging population.
As many as 4 percent of cases worldwide are thought to
be the early-onset form that strikes people before age 65,
usually in their 40s or 50s, said the Alzheimer’s
Association’s chief science officer, Maria Carrillo, who
served as a scientific adviser for the movie. In the US, the
association estimates that’s 200,000 people.
GENE TESTING ISN’T
RECOMMENDED FOR MOST PEOPLE
Alice’s type is even more rare; she tells her three adult
children in the movie: “It’s familial. It’s passed on genetically.”
With this autosomal dominant form of young
Alzheimer’s, inheriting one of three genes with particular
mutations leads to the disease. Children of an affected parent have a 50 percent chance of having inherited the family’s culprit mutation. As in other families, Alice’s children
have to grapple with whether they want to be tested to
find out.
But the vast majority of Alzheimer’s isn’t linked to a particular bad gene. There are various genes that can increase
the risk, but people who never develop dementia symptoms can carry them, too. That’s why medical guidelines
don’t recommend genetic testing for the average person.
MANY SYMPTOMS ARE UNIVERSAL
REGARDLESS OF AGE OF ONSET
“I can see the words hanging in front of me and I can’t
reach them, and I don’t know who I am or what I’m going
to lose next,” Alice says.
To help with the movie’s first-person perspective,
Carrillo’s group put actress Moore in touch with someone
in the earlier stages of Alzheimer’s who could describe
how disorienting symptoms felt - that frustrating inability
to retrieve a word or the fear that comes with suddenly not
recognizing a familiar place.
Forgetting a word now and then happens to lots of
people. The Alzheimer’s Association lists warning signs
that may distinguish between normal forgetfulness and
something you should discuss with a doctor. On the worry
list: memory loss that disrupts daily life, difficulty completing familiar tasks, withdrawing from social activities and
personality changes.
PEOPLE MAY COMPENSATE FOR A WHILE
If it seemed like the movie’s Alice suddenly declined
fast, consider a concept that neuroscientists call “cognitive
reserve.” People who have had more years of education are
thought to have some protection because the extra learning increased connections between their brain’s neurons.
When Alzheimer’s begins blocking those connections, the
brain at first can choose an alternate route to retrieve a
memory.
“Your brain’s kept buffered up,” explained Carrillo. But
eventually, the brain reaches a tipping point and can’t
compensate any longer, so “the change seems more dramatic.”
WHAT’S IN THE PIPELINE
There is no cure for Alzheimer’s, and today’s treatments
only temporarily ease some symptoms. Scientists aren’t
even sure what causes the disease, although a sticky brain
protein called amyloid is one suspect.
Nor is diagnosis simple. There is no one Alzheimer’s test,
but a battery of evaluations. Sometimes, doctors use PET
scans to measure amyloid buildup, but only in carefully
selected cases because plenty of people without
Alzheimer’s harbor the gunk, too.
The Obama administration has declared a goal of finding effective Alzheimer’s treatments by 2025. Research
suggests Alzheimer’s begins silently ravaging the brain up
to 20 years before symptoms begin. One approach under
study now is testing to see whether curbing sticky amyloid
during that window period might at least postpone symptoms a few more years, if not prevent them. — AP
CALIFORNIA: Pediatrician Charles Goodman vaccinates 1 year- old Cameron Fierro
with the measles-mumps-rubella vaccine, or MMR vaccine.
CALIFORNIA: Boxes of single-doses vials of the measles-mumps-rubella virus vaccine live, or MMR vaccine and ProQuad vaccine are kept frozen inside a freezer at the
practice of Dr Charles Goodman.— AP photos
Doctors won’t see patients
with anti-vaccine views
Approach raises questions about doctors’ ethical responsibilities
LOS ANGELES: With California gripped by a measles
outbreak, Dr Charles Goodman posted a clear notice in
his waiting room and on Facebook: His practice will no
longer see children whose parents won’t get them vaccinated. It’s a sentiment echoed by a small number of
doctors who in recent years have “fired” patients who
continue to believe debunked research linking vaccines
to autism. They hope the strategy will lead parents to
change their minds; if that fails, they hope it will at least
reduce the risk to other children in the office.
“Parents who choose not to give measles shots,
they’re not just putting their kids at risk, but they’re also
putting other kids at risk - especially kids in my waiting
room,” the Los Angeles pediatrician said. The tough-love
approach - which comes amid the nation’s secondbiggest measles outbreak in at least 15 years, with 95
cases or more since last month, most of them traced
directly or indirectly to Disneyland in Southern
California - raises questions about doctors’ ethical
responsibilities.
The American Academy of Pediatrics says doctors
should bring up the importance of vaccinations during
visits but should respect a parent’s wishes unless there’s
a significant risk to the child. “In general, pediatricians
should avoid discharging patients from their practices
solely because a parent refuses to immunize his or her
child,” according to guidelines issued by the group.
‘Betrayed and upset’
However, if the relationship between patient and
doctor becomes unworkable, the pediatrics academy
says, the doctor may want to encourage the vaccine
refuser to go to another physician. Some mothers who
have been dropped by their doctors feel “betrayed and
upset,” said Dotty Hagmier, founder of the support
group Moms in Charge. She said these parents made up
their minds about vaccines after “careful research and
diligence to understand the risks versus the benefits for
their own children’s circumstances.”
Dropping patients who refuse vaccines has become
a hot topic of discussion on SERMO, an online doctor
hangout. Some doctors are adamant about not accepting patients who don’t believe in vaccinations, with
some saying they don’t want to be responsible for
someone’s death from an illness that was preventable.
Philosophical reasons
Others warn that refusing treatment to such people
will just send them into the arms of quacks. The
measles-mumps-rubella vaccine, or MMR, is 97 percent
effective at preventing measles, according to the
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Measles
spreads easily through the air and in enclosed spaces.
Symptoms include fever, runny nose, cough and a rash
all over the body. In rare cases, particularly among
babies, measles can be deadly. Infection can also cause
pregnant women to miscarry or give birth prematurely.
All US states require children to get certain vaccinations
to enroll in school. California is among 20 states that let
parents opt out by obtaining personal belief waivers.
Some people worry that vaccines cause developmental problems, despite scientific evidence disproving
any link. Others object for religious or philosophical reasons. Nationally, childhood measles vaccination rates
have held steady for years at above 90 percent. But
there seem to be growing pockets of unvaccinated people in scattered communities, said Dr Gregory Wallace
of the CDC. — AP
CHICAGO: Kathy Burnett prepares a snack for her daughters Claudia, center, and Sabina right, after their
gymnastics class Jan 29, in Chicago. Burnett says she tries to feed her girls healthy, natural foods rather than
commercial packaged products. A study by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found
that many packaged foods and snacks marketed for toddlers contain too much salt and sugar and could
potentially contribute to childhood obesity and high blood pressure. — AP
Toddler food often has
too much salt, sugar
CHICAGO: Many packaged meals and snacks for toddlers contain worrisome amounts of salt and sugar, potentially creating
an early taste for foods that may contribute to obesity and other health risks, according to a new government study.
About seven in 10 toddler dinners studied contained too
much salt, and most cereal bars, breakfast pastries and snacks
for infants and toddlers contained extra sugars, according to
the study by researchers at the federal Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention. They advise parents to read food labels
carefully and select healthier choices.
The researchers analyzed package information and labels
for more than 1,000 foods marketed for infants and toddlers.
Results appeared in the journal Pediatrics yesterday.
The study notes that almost one in four US children ages 2
to 5 are overweight or obese - and that almost 80 percent of
kids ages 1 to 3 exceed the recommended maximum level of
daily salt, which is 1,500 milligrams. Excess sugar and salt can
contribute to obesity and elevated blood pressure even in
childhood, but also later on.
“We also know that about one in nine children have blood
pressure above the normal range for their age, and that sodium,
excess sodium, is related to increased blood pressure,” said the
CDC’s Mary Cogswell, the study’s lead author. “Blood pressure
tracks from when children are young up through adolescence
into when they’re adults. Eating foods which are high in sodium
can set a child up for high blood pressure and later on for cardiovascular disease.”
Healthy choices
The researchers collected data on foods available in 2012.
They didn’t list brand names, but foods studied included popular brands of baby food, toddler dinners including packaged
macaroni and cheese, mini hot dogs, rice cakes, crackers, dried
fruit snacks and yogurt treats.
The Grocery Manufacturers of America, a trade group whose
members include makers of foods for infants and toddlers,
issued a statement saying the study “does not accurately reflect
the wide range of healthy choices available in today’s marketplace ... because it is based on 2012 data that does not reflect
new products with reduced sodium levels.”
The study “could needlessly alarm and confuse busy parents
as they strive to develop suitable meal options that their children will enjoy,” the group said.
The researchers said theirs is the most recent, comprehensive data on commercial foods for young children. Cogswell
acknowledged there have been some improvements in the
marketplace and said the findings aren’t all negative.
“The good news is that the majority of infant foods were low
in sodium,” she said. It was surprising, she said, that “seven out of
10 toddler foods were high in the amount of sodium per serving and that a substantial proportion of toddler meals and the
majority of other toddler foods and infant’s and toddler’s snacks
contained an added sugar.”
Switched brands
Foods for toddlers should contain no more than about 210
milligrams of salt or sodium per serving, under Institute of
Medicine recommendations, but the average for toddler meals
studied was 361 milligrams - almost 1.5 times higher than that
limit. Sodium amounts per serving ranged from 100 milligrams
to more than 900 milligrams.
High sugar content was defined as more than 35 percent of
calories per portion coming from sugar, based on Institute of
Medicine guidelines for foods served in schools. Many foods in
the study exceeded that. On average, sugar contributed 47 percent of calories for infant mixed grains and fruit; 66 percent of
calories in dried fruit snacks, and more than 35 percent of calories in dairy-based desserts.—AP
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2015
H E A LT H & S C I E N C E
Emami announces it’s foray in natural & organic personal care products
KOLKATA: Emami Limited, one of the leading personal and
healthcare FMCG companies in India has acquired controlling stake (66.67%) in Fravin Pty Ltd., along with it’s 3 subsidiaries through Emami International FZE, a subsidiary of
Emami Ltd. Fravin Pty Ltd., based in Australia has major
strengths in R&D and manufacturing of natural and organic
personal care products. This international acquisition marks
Emami’s entry into the fast growing natural and organic
Personal Care segment and is in line with the company’s
strategy to be present in sectors with high growth potential.
“The Fravin acquisition is in sync with the Company’s
strategy to grow aggressively through both organic and
inorganic routes in India and overseas. This is a significant
step for the organisation as the acquisition marks Emami’s
entry into organic personal care products, where we were
not present earlier. The market for organic personal care
products is growing at rapid pace across the world. The
global market for organic products which was over $7.6 billion in 2013, is expected to double in six years.” said Harsh
Agarwal, Director, Emami Ltd.
Agarwal further added, “Rising concerns for health safety,
increasing green consciousness and growing awareness of
the consumers about the hazards of using products with
synthetic chemicals have fuelled the demand for organic
personal care products. The acquisition of the Fravin Group
specialising in formulations of organic products with many
international certifications emphasises our core belief in
usage of safe and natural products.
Prashant Goenka, Director, Emami Ltd said, “We plan to
expand our export portfolio in developed countries through
Fravin’s formulations of natural & organic personal care
products, where demands for such products are high and
future prospects exciting”.
Promoted by the leading Trichologist and a World Master
Hairdresser Peter Francis, the Fravin Group manufactures a
full range of hair care and skin care products that are certified organic by various certification bodies in Australia and
United States such as Australian Certified Organic (ACO), the
United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and many
more. The Group has major strength in R&D of various
advanced technology like Trans follicular Anti-Ageing
serums, etc. Fravin Group has been the proud recipient of
many international prestigious awards as recognition of the
high standard and quality of its products. The Company’s
leading brand; “Abache Organics” was awarded the 1st place
in the “Green Formulations” category at the “Sustainable
Beauty Awards 2014” held in Paris, France.
Peter Francis, Managing Director, Fravin Pty Ltd said “We
are very enthusiastic to be associated with a global company like Emami. There are strong synergies between the two
companies. With Emami’s strong marketing network and our
R&D capabilities and advanced technologies, we expect to
take Abache brands to new heights.”
The Group has its R&D and manufacturing facility in
Adelaide, Australia. The Group also manufactures a range
of organic personal care products ‘eco.kid’especially developed & formulated for children. Fravin will be a part of
Emami’s International business division, which contributes
around 14% to the total FMCG business. Emami has presence in over 60 countries across the world.
Ebola vaccine trials
begin in Liberia
Second British health worker tested for Ebola
FILE - In this March 27, 2014 file photo, with the Capitol in the background, Army veteran David
Dickerson of Oklahoma City, Okla., joins others to place 1,892 flags representing veteran and service members who have died by suicide to date in 2014, on the National Mall in Washington. The
Senate is expected to take up a bill Monday named for Clay Hunt, a 26-year-old veteran who killed
himself in 2011. The bill is aimed at reducing a suicide epidemic that claims the lives of 22 military
veterans every day.—AP
Senate takes up bill to lower
suicide rate among veterans
WASHINGTON: A bill aimed at reducing a suicide epidemic among military veterans appears headed for the
president’s desk. The Senate is expected to take up a
bill today named for Clay Hunt, a 26-year-old veteran
who killed himself in 2011. The bill is in response to suicides that on average claim the lives of 22 military veterans every day.
The measure, which passed the House last month,
would require the Pentagon and Veterans Affairs
Department to submit to independent reviews of their
suicide prevention programs and make information on
suicide prevention more easily available to veterans. It
also would offer financial incentives to psychiatrists
and other mental health professionals who agree to
work for the VA and help military members as they
transition from active duty to veteran status. Sen
Johnny Isakson, R-Ga., chairman of the Senate Veterans’
Affairs Committee, said he expects overwhelming
approval of the bill, which passed the House unanimously and has the support of major veterans groups.
“When you have 8,000 veterans a year committing
suicide, then you have a serious problem,” Isakson said,
noting that more veterans have died by suicide in
recent years than have died in battlefields in Iraq and
Afghanistan. John Madigan, vice president of public
policy at the American Foundation for Suicide
Prevention, said passage of the bill would be a major
victory not just for veterans but for the larger fight
against suicide. Veterans account for 1 out of every 5
suicides in the United States.
The group has set a goal of reducing the nation’s
suicide rate by 20 percent by 2025, “and it is legislation
like the Clay Hunt Act that will make it happen,”
Madigan said. Supporters of the bill were frustrated
late last year when the measure was blocked by thenSen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla.—AP
MONROVIA: The first large-scale trials of two Ebola vaccines were due
to begin in Liberia yesterday, the partnership conducting the research
said.
The vaccines contain harmless fragments of the virus that trigger
an immune response, according to the Partnership for Research on
Ebola Vaccines in Liberia (PREVAIL), a collaboration between the
United States and Liberia.
“The study will begin at Redemption Hospital in Monrovia.
Subsequent sites will be added at other hospitals in and near
Monrovia after the first 600 participants join the study,” it said in a
statement.
Researchers, led by the US National Institutes of Health, aim to
enlist around 27,000 healthy men and women aged 18 and over, PREVAIL said.
The candidate vaccines-GlaxoSmithKline’s Chad3-EBO-Z and rVSVZEBOV, manufactured by Merck and Newlink-have been determined
as safe for use on humans in smaller trials in several countries.
PREVAIL said the vaccines could cause pain, redness or swelling in
the injected arm, as well as fever, headaches and tiredness, but added
that the side-effects “typically have been mild to moderate and have
gone away on their own”.
The study was launched at the Redemption Hospital on Sunday at
an event attended by Liberian Vice-President Joseph Boaikai.
“We hope that this scientific undertaking we launch here today will
get answers for the mystery surrounding this disease,” he said.
‘Need for speed’
There is currently no vaccine to guard against Ebola on the world
market, and no specific drug approved to treat it, even though the
virus first emerged in the 1970s.
Researchers have said that it remains unknown what level of
immune response is needed to protect humans from Ebola, which
causes often fatal haemorrhaging, organ failure and severe diarrhoea.
Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea have registered almost 9,000
deaths since the beginning of the worst outbreak on record in
December 2013, although experts believe the real toll could be significantly higher.
The World Health Organization (WHO) said last week however that
the countries reported fewer than 100 new lab-confirmed cases in the
past week for the first time since June.
“It’s fantastic that large-scale trials of the first candidate Ebola vaccine are getting underway in Liberia, a country that has suffered enormously at the hands of this disease,” said Jeremy Farrar, director of the
Wellcome Trust.
Wellcome is funding tests on the GSK candidate in Britain and Mali
and parallel studies of other vaccines in Geneva, Gabon, Kenya and
Guinea.
“The WHO confirmed last week that infection rates there continue
to fall, which emphasises the need to complete these crucial trials as
quickly as possible,” Farrar said.
“The international response that has got us this point has been
phenomenal and we must keep on course until the infection rate is
brought down to, and remains at, zero. “Vaccines and therapeutics
may play an important role in reaching this goal and will almost certainly.
Exposure
A second British military healthcare worker has been flown back to
England from Sierra Leone following the likely exposure to the Ebola
virus, a government agency said yesterday. Public Health England said
the worker had likely been exposed to the virus from a needle injury
while treating a patient with Ebola. The worker has not been diagnosed with the virus and does not have any symptoms.
Another healthcare worker was flown back on Saturday following a
similar injury and both are being tested at the Royal Free hospital in
London.
“Although we have had two similar incidents within a short space
of time both appear to be unrelated,” minister for the Armed Forces
Mark Francois said in a statement.
“Our personnel receive the highest standard of training and briefing prior to deployment, including on the use of the specialised
Personal Protective Equipment”.
Two other Britons have already been successfully treated at the
Royal Free hospital for the virus and have been released. — Agencies
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2015
W H AT ’ S O N
ACK Corporate training sponsors ‘Kuwait International HSE Conference & Exhibition’
T
he Australian College of Kuwait’s Corporate
Training Department (ACKCT) announced its
participation as a Bronze sponsor in the
“Kuwait International HSE Conference &
Exhibition”, taking place from 16-17 February 2015,
at the Regency Hotel Kuwaitunder the patronage
of Dr Ali Saleh Al Omair - Minister of Oil and
Minister of State for National Assembly Affairs.
ACK CT is uniquely positioned to provide a
range of local, regional and international consultancy services and certifications through its strategic alliances with organizations and accrediting
bodies such as the Institution of Occupational
Health and Safety (IOSH), City & Guilds, The
Chartered Institute for Environmental Health
(CIEH), and the National Examination Board in
Occupational Safety and Health (NEBOSH).
Through its participation, ACK CT aims to highlight
the importance of the three streams “Health,
Safety and Environment”specifically in the oil and
gas industry.
ACK CT invites those interested to visit its booth
in the exhibition area to learn more about the
department’s latest offerings.
Joyalukkas hands over prizes to 4th set of promotion winners
T
he mega winning opportunity at Joyalukkas Festival
of A Million has received an overwhelming response
from customers across GCC, Singapore & Malaysia.
The fourth set of winners of the 60 day campaign were
announced today, who will receive Gold Coins& Gift
Vouchers. The Joyalukkas Festival of A Million is offering
shoppers the chance to win AED One Million in gift vouchers and 100,000 gold coins against every purchase worth
KD 50 at any Joyalukkas Jewellery showrooms. In addition
to this some attractive offers are being offered to customers at Joyalukkas like, exchange old gold Jewellery for
new and 10% cash back on every purchase of diamond
and polki Jewellery.
The lucky winners were picked by Ibrahim Al Sultan
from the Ministry of commerce, Kuwait in the presence of
Joyalukkas officials and various customers at Panasonic
Tower, Kuwait Main branch on 26thJan 2015 and the prizes
where distributed to winners on 29thJan 2015.
“It’s a pleasure to see such an overwhelming response
for Joyalukkas Festival of A Million. It’s the season of giving
and in addition to our special designs for the festive spirit
we are also offering a bouquet of winnings and exciting
offers to reward our customers. We have planned a big mix
of offers so that there is something for all types of
Jewellery buyers,” said Joy Alukkas, Chairman & MD,
Joyalukkas Group.
John Paul Joy Alukkas, Executive Director, Joyalukkas
Group congratulating the winners on this occasion said,
“During the 60 day duration of the Joyalukkas Festival of A
Million in addition to getting the big win opportunity
shoppers can also avail an attractive exchange of old gold
Jewellery for new and 10% cash back on every purchase of
diamond and polki Jewellery”.
Challenge 22 Roadshow receives
overwhelming response in Kuwait
O
n a two-day visit to Kuwait,
the Challenge 22
Roadshow provided four
information sessions in Nuqat
and American University of
Kuwait about the exciting new
initiative. Challenge 22 is an innovation award developed to
inspire and challenge the region’s
brightest minds.
Initiated by the Supreme
Committee for Delivery & Legacy
(SC), Silatech and Qatar National
Research Fund (QNRF), Challenge
22 was born out of a desire to celebrate the 2022 FIFA World Cup
QatarTM as a regional event.
Challenge 22 Ambassadors
Areej Al Kharafi, owner of Fortune
Cookie and The Other Project and
Mohammed Saeed Harib joined
the session. Al Kharafi spoke on
her inspirational story as a
Kuwaiti entrepreneur. “It’s a very
exciting opportunity and one that
can help many develop their
ideas for their initiatives.”
Harib, an animation director
and Chairman of Lammatra Art
Production, spoke about how he
overcame the challenges he faced
on his journey to success.
“Challenge 22 streamlines the
process, you can develop your
idea and be mentored to ensure
your path to success.”
Challenge 22 is seeking applicants within the Gulf Cooperation
Council (GCC), with solution-
based proposals related to three
key themes that address challenges faced by Qatar and the
world when hosting major sports
events.
Fatma Al Nuaimi, Social and
Human Legacy Manager at the SC,
spoke about the Challenge 22
roadshow, saying: “We’re delighted to visit Kuwait and to inform
people about this wonderful
opportunity. The enthusiasm and
interest we have received so far
has been overwhelming and
shows the importance of hosting
the first ever FIFA World Cup in
the Arab world. We’d like to
encourage more people to attend,
visit our website and find out how
they can be part of Challenge 22.”
The three themes for the inaugural launch of the award are
Sustainability, Event Experience,
and Sports and Health. Successful
applicants have the opportunity
to win a cash prize of USD $20,000
during Phase 1 of the competition, and a grant to further develop their idea into a proof of concept during Phase 2 of the competition.
The Challenge 22 Roadshow
commenced in Kuwait and will
conclude on the 27th of February
in the United Arab Emirates. For
a full schedule of Challenge 22
activities and for more information about the award, please visit: www.challenge22.qa
Ad filmmaker Sijoy Varghese juggles preaching and acting
By Sunil Cherian
A
Sijoy Varghese (3rd right) poses with actors Nivin Poly, Dulqar Salman and Fahad Fazil.
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re acting in movies and preaching
in public contradictory? Not for
Sijoy Varghese, 43, managing director of TVC Factory, one of India’s top ad
and event makers with 8 directors operating from Dubai, Mumbai, and Kochi. For
the multifaceted actor - people know him
as the freshly fit policeman in the Dileep
film Avatharam - the role of spirituality in
real life even censors him from signing up
for immoral characters. He recently turned
down an offer of a villain role who has a
rape scene. “How I can show this movie to
my children?” he asks. The scriptwriter of
Isha segment in 5 Sundarikal, a Malayalam
movie and director of many ad films, Sijoy
is choosy with a difference. He checks if
the character he gets is morally sound.
Sijoy was in Kuwait this past weekend as a
preacher in a program held by Syro
Malabar Cultural Association, one of the
organizations of expat Catholics in Kuwait.
He also talked to children’s group,
women’s wing and in the general meeting
using his popularity to convey moral messages.
“No, I’m not a preacher in the traditional
sense,” he said when I met him at his brother Rejoy’s flat in Farwaniya. “I had a life
changing experience which helped to realize life’s greater roles and I’m only sharing
what I had discovered, just like people
share a feel-good something through
WhatsApp.” Keeping up with technology,
he said reminiscing about his role in
Avatharam, is what makes a director like
Joshi still sought after in the film industry.
Sijoy’s first film was Dulqar Salman starrer
ABCD and now he will join the SiddiqueMammootty comedy Bhaskar the Rascal
produced by Anto Joseph.
“NRIs (Non Resident Indians) have
greater chances in the movie world now,”
Sijoy said quoting news that a micro-story
shared on the social media is making rants
and the storywriter is asked for film script.
“Expats in the Gulf have more time management, perfectly good for creative
endeavors” he said.
OICC Kuwait marks Martyr’s Day
O
verseas Indian Cultural Congress (OICC
Kuwait) paid homage to Mahatma Gandhi,
the father of the Nation, who was assassinated on January 30, 1948, at its office in Abbassiya.
Gandhiji was remembered by all for his priceless
efforts for establishing peace, amity and brotherhood among the people
President Varghese Puthukulangara, officially
inaugurated the martyr’s day gather chaired by
Senior Vice-President Abey Vaikkad. Vice-Presidents
Chacko George Kutty, Hameed Keloth and General
Secretaries Varghese Joseph Maraman, Premsan
Kayamkulam, Bacon Joseph and Secretaries
Anuroop Kannur, Roy Kaithavana, Joint Treasurer
Rishi Jacob, Welfare Chairman Harish
Thrippunithura, Trissur Dist. President Iqbal
Kuttamangalam, General Secretary Kollam Dist
Shamsuddin Oyoor spoke on the occasion.
General Secretary Josheph Thankachan welcomed the audience and Rajiv Neduvilemuri proposed vote of thanks.
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2015
W H AT ’ S O N
Some IWC members in group photo —Photos by Joseph Shagra
Narjis Al-Shatti and IWC members in a group photo
IWC holds monthly meeting
T
he International Women Committee
held its monthly meeting, as this
time it coincides with ‘Kuwait’s celebration of National and Liberation days.
Narjis Al-Shatti who is in charge of pub-
lic relations and the media prepared a program that suits the celebrations, and lectured by Engineer Sarah Akbar, who
played a major role in putting out the oil
wells fires following the liberation.
A documentary about the fire-team
that shows the heroic role that this
woman played with the team, as she was
the only woman during that time that
worked on ending this environmental
catastrophe. She also spoke about her
professional history.
Director of Marketing and Research
Haitham Al-Ghais, spoke about Kuwait’s
wealth and Kuwait’s economic depend-
ence on this wealth which placed Kuwait
on top of the world economic list. He also
explained the effect on oil on the development of Kuwait and its aid to other
countries.
Rema Al-Khaldi
Engineer Sara Akbar
Narjis, Sarah Akbar and Malta’s ambassador’s spouse
Narjis and Al-Ghais
Kawthar and one of the guests
Narjis Al-Shatti and Vera Al-Mutawa (left)
Armenian and Maltese ambassadors’ spouses
Cuba and Czech republic ambassadors’ spouses
Korean ambassador spouse
Some of the guests seen at the event.
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 4, 2015
TV PROGRAMS
00:50 After The Attack
01:45 The Wild Life Of Tim
Faulkner
02:15 The Wild Life Of Tim
Faulkner
02:40 Tanked
03:35 Safari Sisters
04:00 Safari Sisters
04:25 The Wild Life Of Tim
Faulkner
04:50 The Wild Life Of Tim
Faulkner
05:15 Treehouse Masters
06:02 Call Of The Wildman
06:49 Safari Sisters
07:12 Safari Sisters
07:36 The Wild Life Of Tim
Faulkner
08:00 The Wild Life Of Tim
Faulkner
08:25 America’s Cutest Pets
09:15 Safari Sisters
09:40 Safari Sisters
10:10 Call Of The Wildman
10:35 Call Of The Wildman
11:05 Gator Boys
12:00 America’s Cutest Pets
12:55 Safari Sisters
13:20 Safari Sisters
13:50 Treehouse Masters
14:45 The Wild Life Of Tim
Faulkner
15:10 The Wild Life Of Tim
Faulkner
15:40 Tanked
16:35 Safari Sisters
17:00 Safari Sisters
17:30 Rogue Nature With Dave
Salmoni
18:25 Treehouse Masters
19:20 Call Of The Wildman
19:50 Call Of The Wildman
20:15 Tanked
21:10 Echo And The Elephants Of
Amboseli
21:35 Echo And The Elephants Of
Amboseli
22:05 Treehouse Masters
23:00 Call Of The Wildman
23:30 Call Of The Wildman
23:55 Devoured: Man-Eating Super
Snake Returns
00:15
00:45
01:15
02:10
03:00
03:50
04:15
05:00
05:25
05:45
06:05
06:15
06:40
07:00
07:15
08:00
08:30
08:55
09:25
09:55
10:45
11:30
12:00
12:25
13:10
13:40
14:10
15:00
15:30
16:00
16:25
17:10
17:40
18:10
19:05
19:35
20:00
20:55
21:45
22:15
23:05
23:35
00:00
00:55
01:20
02:15
Eastenders
Doctors
Lark Rise To Candleford
Whitechapel
Scott & Bailey
Being Eileen
The Weakest Link
The Green Balloon Club
Mr Bloom’s Nursery
Me Too!
Jollywobbles
The Green Balloon Club
Mr Bloom’s Nursery
Gigglebiz
The Weakest Link
The Vicar Of Dibley
Moone Boy
Eastenders
Doctors
Lark Rise To Candleford
The Weakest Link
The Vicar Of Dibley
Moone Boy
32 Brinkburn Street
Eastenders
Doctors
Lark Rise To Candleford
As Time Goes By
The Vicar Of Dibley
Moone Boy
The Weakest Link
Eastenders
Doctors
Lark Rise To Candleford
As Time Goes By
Being Eileen
Call The Midwife
Mistresses
Saxondale
Frankie
Rev.
Being Eileen
Homes Under The Hammer
Michela’s Classic Italian
Come Dine With Me
Masterchef: The
Professionals
03:05 Antiques Roadshow
04:00 Come Dine With Me
04:25 Homes Under The Hammer
05:20 Michela’s Classic Italian
05:50 Come Dine With Me
06:40 Masterchef: The
Professionals
07:35 Paul Hollywood’s Bread
08:00 Antiques Roadshow
08:50 Come Dine With Me
09:15 Homes Under The Hammer
10:10 Bargain Hunt
10:50 Come Dine With Me
11:40 Masterchef: The
Professionals
12:35 Antiques Roadshow
13:25 Come Dine With Me
13:50 Homes Under The Hammer
14:40 Bargain Hunt
15:25 Come Dine With Me
16:15 Masterchef: The
Professionals
17:05 Antiques Roadshow
18:00 Come Dine With Me
18:25 Homes Under The Hammer
19:15 Homes Under The Hammer
20:10 Nordic Cookery With Tareq
Taylor
20:35 Nigellissima
21:00 Vacation Vacation Vacation
21:25 Masterchef: The
Professionals
22:15 Antiques Roadshow
23:10 Come Dine With Me
23:35 The Good Cook
00:20 Fast N’ Loud
01:10 Gold Rush
02:50 Alaska: The Last Frontier
03:40 Auction Hunters
04:05 The Liquidator
04:30 What’s In The Barn?
05:00 How It’s Made
05:30 How It’s Made
06:00 Tethered
06:50 Fat N’ Furious: Rolling
Thunder
07:40 Fast N’ Loud
08:30 Auction Hunters
08:55 The Liquidator
09:20 What’s In The Barn?
09:45 How It’s Made
10:10 How It’s Made
10:35 Gold Rush
12:15 Alaska: The Last Frontier
13:05 Auction Hunters
13:30 The Liquidator
13:55 What’s In The Barn?
14:20 Tethered
15:10 Fat N’ Furious: Rolling
Thunder
16:00 Fast N’ Loud
16:50 How It’s Made
17:15 How It’s Made
17:40 Dual Survival
18:30 Get Out Alive With Bear
Grylls
19:20 Dive Wars Australia
20:10 The Liquidator
20:35 What’s In The Barn?
21:00 Bear’s Wild Weekend With
Stephen Fry
21:50 Dive Wars Australia
22:40 Survive That!
23:30 Dual Survival
00:00
00:45
00:50
01:15
01:40
01:50
02:05
02:15
02:30
03:10
03:20
03:45
04:10
04:20
04:35
04:45
05:00
05:25
05:50
06:00
06:25
06:50
07:15
07:40
08:05
08:30
08:55
09:20
Violetta
The Hive
Art Attack
Art Attack
Jungle Junction
Jungle Junction
Jungle Junction
Jungle Junction
Violetta
The Hive
Art Attack
Art Attack
Jungle Junction
Jungle Junction
Jungle Junction
Jungle Junction
Art Attack
Art Attack
Mouk
Kim Possible
Austin & Ally
Girl Meets World
Liv And Maddie
Jessie
Dog With A Blog
Good Luck Charlie
Good Luck Charlie
Sonny With A Chance
09:45
10:10
10:35
11:00
11:25
11:50
12:15
12:40
13:05
13:30
13:55
14:20
15:00
15:20
15:45
16:10
17:00
17:25
17:50
18:15
18:40
19:05
19:30
20:20
20:45
21:10
21:35
22:00
22:25
22:50
23:10
23:35
Sonny With A Chance
Suite Life On Deck
Suite Life On Deck
That’s So Raven
That’s So Raven
A.N.T. Farm
A.N.T. Farm
Hannah Montana
Hannah Montana
Wizards Of Waverly Place
Wizards Of Waverly Place
Austin & Ally
Girl Meets World
Girl Meets World
Liv And Maddie
Violetta
Austin & Ally
Jessie
Liv And Maddie
Dog With A Blog
Girl Meets World
Girl Meets World
Violetta
Shake It Up
Shake It Up
Shake It Up
Shake It Up
Suite Life On Deck
A.N.T. Farm
Shake It Up
Wolfblood
Wolfblood
00:00 Christina Milian Turned Up
00:55 The Soup
01:25 Keeping Up With The
Kardashians
02:20 E! News
03:15 Escape Club
04:10 E!ES
05:05 E! Entertainment Special
06:00 Keeping Up With The
Kardashians
06:55 Keeping Up With The
Kardashians
07:50 Style Star
08:20 E! News
09:15 Giuliana & Bill
10:15 Giuliana & Bill
11:10 #RichKids Of Beverly Hills
11:35 #RichKids Of Beverly Hills
12:05 E! News
13:05 Extreme Close-Up
13:35 E!ES
14:30 Style Star
15:00 Keeping Up With The
Kardashians
16:00 Keeping Up With The
Kardashians
17:00 Giuliana & Bill
18:00 Christina Milian Turned Up
19:00 THS
20:00 Fashion Bloggers
20:30 Fashion Bloggers
21:00 House Of DVF
22:00 Fashion Police
23:00 Kourtney And Khloe Take
The Hamptons
00:40 The Hungry Sailors
01:30 Paul O’Grady: For The Love
Of Dogs
02:00 Emmerdale
02:25 Emmerdale
02:55 Coronation Street
03:25 Get Your Act Together
04:25 Paul O’Grady: For The Love
Of Dogs
04:50 Paul O’Grady: For The Love
Of Dogs
05:15 Murdoch Mysteries
06:10 Please Marry My Boy
07:05 Paul O’Grady: For The Love
Of Dogs
07:30 Get Your Act Together
08:30 Paul O’Grady: For The Love
Of Dogs
08:55 Paul O’Grady: For The Love
Of Dogs
09:20 The Chase
10:15 Murdoch Mysteries
11:10 Emmerdale
11:35 Emmerdale
12:00 Coronation Street
12:30 The Hungry Sailors
13:25 Please Marry My Boy
14:20 James Nesbitt’s Ireland
14:45 Murdoch Mysteries
15:35 The Chase
16:30 Endeavour
18:20 Please Marry My Boy
19:10 Coronation Street
19:35 The Chase
20:30 Endeavour
22:20 Coronation Street
22:50 Emmerdale
23:15 Emmerdale
23:45 Murdoch Mysteries
00:00 Predator CSI
01:00 My Dog Ate What?
02:00 Mega Breakdown
03:00 Car SOS
04:00 Hunter Hunted
05:00 Fight Science
06:00 Crime Lab
07:00 Secret Brazil
08:00 Predator CSI
09:00 My Dog Ate What?
10:00 Mega Breakdown
11:00 Megacities
12:00 The Indestructibles
12:30 The Indestructibles
13:00 Caught In The Act
14:00 Thunder Beasts
15:00 Ancient Secrets: Witch
Hunter’s Bible
16:00 Chasing UFOs
17:00 Air Crash Investigation
18:00 Gorilla Murders
19:00 Ancient Secrets: Witch
Hunter’s Bible
20:00 Chasing UFOs
21:00 Air Crash Investigation
22:00 Gorilla Murders
23:00 Megacities
00:00 Wilfred
00:30 The Daily Show With Jon
Stewart
01:00 Modern Family
01:30 Getting On
02:00 Jonah From Tonga
02:30 Sean Saves The World
03:00 New Girl
03:30 The Michael J. Fox Show
04:00 Raising Hope
04:30 The Tonight Show Starring
Jimmy Fallon
05:30 My Boys
06:00 Last Man Standing
06:30 Better Off Ted
07:00 Late Night With Seth Meyers
08:00 Raising Hope
08:30 My Boys
09:00 New Girl
09:30 Two And A Half Men
10:00 Two And A Half Men
10:30 Better Off Ted
11:00 The Tonight Show Starring
Jimmy Fallon
12:00 Last Man Standing
12:30 Raising Hope
13:00 My Boys
13:30 Better Off Ted
14:00 The Michael J. Fox Show
14:30 Two And A Half Men
15:00 Two And A Half Men
15:30 The Daily Show With Jon
Stewart
16:00 Modern Family
16:30 The Goldbergs
17:00 Late Night With Seth Meyers
18:00 New Girl
18:30 The Michael J. Fox Show
19:00 The Simpsons
19:30 Hot In Cleveland
20:00 The Tonight Show Starring
Jimmy Fallon
21:00 The Daily Show With Jon
Stewart
21:30 Modern Family
22:00 Web Therapy
22:30 It’s Always Sunny In
Philadelphia
23:00 Sean Saves The World
23:30 Late Night With Seth Meyers
00:00
01:00
02:00
03:00
04:00
05:00
06:00
07:00
08:00
09:00
10:00
11:00
12:00
12:30
13:00
14:00
15:00
16:00
16:30
17:00
18:00
Perception
Bates Motel
Banshee
Grimm
Revenge
Bones
Perception
The Fosters
Parenthood
Bones
Revenge
The Fosters
Emmerdale
Coronation Street
The Ellen DeGeneres Show
Parenthood
Perception
Emmerdale
Coronation Street
The Ellen DeGeneres Show
Parenthood
Box Office: ‘Game of Thrones’
eyes $2 million in Imax debut
“G
ame of Thrones” has reached all-screen domination. The show became the first TV series
to hit the bigscreen when it opened Friday to
$686,000 at the US box office. The fantasy series stands
to earn almost $2 million from 205 Imax screens this
weekend, bringing its per-screen average to a weekend
high of $9,800. This weekend’s No. 1 film, Clint
Eastwood’s “American Sniper,” is aiming for a much lower per-screen average of $7,695. “American Sniper,” however, has been in theaters since Christmas Day and went
wide three weekends ago.
Update:
Warner Bros has a more modest weekend estimate
between $1.3 million and $1.5 million, considering the
unpredictability of today’s earnings. That would lower
the per-screen average to $5,341 to $7,317, respectably.
And given it’s nature as seven-day alternative content
that has already aired on TV, the studio doesn’t expect
19:00
20:00
21:00
22:00
23:00
Criminal Minds
State Of Affairs
Killer Women
True Blood
Grimm
01:00
05:00
07:00
07:30
10:00
10:30
11:00
15:00
19:00
20:00
21:00
23:00
Good Morning America
Good Morning America
Emmerdale
Coronation Street
Emmerdale
Coronation Street
The Ellen DeGeneres Show
Live Good Morning America
Drop Dead Diva
Chicago Fire
Resurrection
Justified
00:00 Parker
02:00 Broken City
04:00 Tactical Force
05:45 The Lone Ranger
08:15 Crimson Tide
10:30 Into The Blue
12:45 Appleseed: Alpha
14:45 The Lone Ranger
17:15 The Grandmaster
19:30 Crimson Tide
22:00 Fantastic Four: Rise Of The
Silver Surfer
00:00 Broken City-18
02:00 Tactical Force-PG15
BROKEN CITY ON OSN MOVIES ACTION HD
03:45 The Lone Ranger-PG15
06:15 Crimson Tide-PG15
08:30 Into The Blue-PG15
10:45 Appleseed: Alpha-PG15
12:45 The Lone Ranger-PG15
15:15 The Grandmaster-PG15
17:30 Crimson Tide-PG15
20:00 Fantastic Four: Rise Of The
Silver Surfer-PG
22:00 Shanghai Noon-PG15
00:00
02:00
04:00
06:00
08:00
10:00
12:00
14:00
16:00
18:00
20:00
22:00
Boomerang-PG15
Straight Talk-PG15
Gambit-PG15
See Spot Run-PG
Men At Work-PG15
The Simpsons Movie-PG15
Gambit-PG15
Article 99-PG15
Men At Work-PG15
Scary Movie 5-PG15
Syrup-PG15
The Parole Officer-18
01:00
03:00
05:00
07:00
PG15
09:00
11:00
13:00
15:00
17:00
18:45
21:00
23:00
Five Thirteen-PG15
Hateship Loveship-PG15
All Is Lost-PG15
The Good Witch’s WeddingOld Stock-PG15
All Is Lost-PG15
Special Forces-PG15
Lost Christmas-PG15
Old Stock-PG15
Great Expectations-PG15
Devil’s Knot-PG15
The Bling Ring-18
01:00 3 Days To Kill-PG15
the Imax-only exhibition to behave like a traditional theatrical release, which drastically alters the math equation.
The grand scale of the HBO hit is clearly translating
well to the bigscreen, setting an example for similar
future experiments. It’s also likely that “Game of
Thrones” would have grossed more had it opened on a
different date as theater attendance is usually down on
Super Bowl weekend. HBO’s two-part season four finale
was digitally remastered to fit the Imax format. An
exclusive season five trailer also premiered at Thursday
late-night showings.
“The cinematic brilliance and grand scope of the
series is perfect for the Imax format,” Pamela Levine,
chief marketing officer at HBO, said in early January. “We
are always looking to provide fans with new and exciting ways to experience the show and viewing two key
episodes, along with the new trailer, on such an impressive platform makes for a great event.” — Reuters
03:00 Grace Unplugged-PG
05:00 The Nut Job-FAM
07:00 The Company You KeepPG15
09:00 Captain Phillips-PG15
11:15 Percy Jackson: Sea Of
Monsters-PG
13:15 Khumba-PG
15:00 Between Us-PG15
16:45 Captain Phillips-PG15
19:00 The Internship-PG15
21:00 Every Day-PG15
23:00 Filth-R
01:00 Quiz Show-PG15
03:15 Citizen Gangster-PG15
05:00 Goal II: Living The DreamPG15
07:00 Yellow Rock-PG15
08:30 Faces In The Crowd-PG15
10:30 Quiz Show-PG15
12:45 Eastwood Directs: The
Untold Story-PG15
14:00 Escape From PolygamyPG15
16:00 Faces In The Crowd-PG15
18:00 Unstrung Heroes-PG15
19:45 The Prestige-PG15
22:00 Gravity-PG15
00:00
02:00
04:00
PG15
06:00
08:00
10:15
12:00
14:00
15:45
18:00
Superman: Unbound-PG
Good Deeds-PG15
The Music Never StoppedDespicable Me 2-PG
Red Tails-PG15
The House Bunny-PG15
Good Deeds-PG15
Monsters University-PG
Red Tails-PG15
The Worricker: Turks &
Caicos-PG15
20:00 Lay The Favorite-PG15
22:00 Paranormal Activity: The
Marked Ones-18
23:45 Red Tails-PG15
01:00 Barbie As Rapunzel
02:30 Everyone’s Hero
04:15 The Adventures Of Rocky
And Bullwinkle
06:00 Dudley Do Right
08:00 Unstable Fables: 3 Pigs & A
Baby
10:00 Barbie And The Diamond
Castle
11:30 Imaginum
13:00 Everyone’s Hero
14:30 Unstable Fables: 3 Pigs & A
Baby
16:00 Patoruzito: The Great
Adventure
18:00 Barbie And The Diamond
Castle
20:00 Stuart Little 3: Call Of The
Wild
22:00 Shark Bait
23:30 Patoruzito: The Great
Adventure
01:30 PGA Tour Highlights
02:30 PGA European Tour
Highlights
04:00 Live WWE Raw
07:00 PDC World Darts
Championship
10:00 Golfing World
11:00 Top 14 Highlights
13:00 PGA Tour Highlights
14:00 PGA European Tour
Highlights
15:00 WWE Raw
18:00 WWE Experience
Classifieds
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2015
MATRIMONIAL
Kuwait
SHARQIA-1
BLACKHAT
AMERICAN SNIPER
BLACKHAT
AMERICAN SNIPER
AMERICAN SNIPER
BLACKHAT
SHARQIA-2
SONG OF THE SEA
SAT
TAKEN 3
NO FRI + SAT
SONG OF THE SEA
FRI + SAT
SONG OF THE SEA
SONG OF THE SEA
TAKEN 3
TAKEN 3
TAKEN 3
SHARQIA-3
ROBOT OVERLORDS
BLACKHAT
ROBOT OVERLORDS
ROBOT OVERLORDS
ROBOT OVERLORDS
BLACKHAT
ROBOT OVERLORDS
KNCC PROGRAMME FROM THURSDAY TO WEDNESDAY
(29/01/2015 TO 04/02/2015)
11:30 AM
2:00 PM
4:30 PM
7:00 PM
9:30 PM
12:05 AM
11:30 AM
1:00 PM
1:30 PM
3:30 PM
5:30 PM
7:30 PM
9:45 PM
12:15 AM
11:30 AM
1:30 PM
4:00 PM
6:00 PM
8:00 PM
10:00 PM
12:30 AM
MUHALAB-1
ROBOT OVERLORDS
BLACKHAT
ROBOT OVERLORDS
BLACKHAT
ROBOT OVERLORDS
BLACKHAT
12:45 PM
3:00 PM
5:30 PM
7:30 PM
10:00 PM
12:15 AM
MUHALAB-2
AMERICAN SNIPER
SELMA
AMERICAN SNIPER
SELMA
AMERICAN SNIPER
AMERICAN SNIPER
11:30 AM
2:00 PM
4:30 PM
7:00 PM
9:30 PM
12:05 AM
MUHALAB-3
TAKEN 3
SONG OF THE SEA
SONG OF THE SEA
TAKEN 3
TAKEN 3
TAKEN 3
TAKEN 3
11:30 AM
1:45 PM
3:45 PM
5:45 PM
8:00 PM
10:15 PM
12:30 AM
FANAR-1
ROBOT OVERLORDS
MORTDECAI
ROBOT OVERLORDS
MORTDECAI
ROBOT OVERLORDS
ROBOT OVERLORDS
ROBOT OVERLORDS
1:00 PM
3:00 PM
5:00 PM
7:00 PM
9:00 PM
11:00 PM
1:00 AM
FANAR-2
AMERICAN SNIPER
AMERICAN SNIPER
AMERICAN SNIPER
AMERICAN SNIPER
AMERICAN SNIPER
AMERICAN SNIPER
11:30 AM
2:00 PM
4:30 PM
7:00 PM
9:45 PM
12:15 AM
FANAR-3
ROBOT OVERLORDS
BLACKHAT
BLACKHAT
BLACKHAT
BLACKHAT
BLACKHAT
11:45 AM
1:45 PM
4:15 PM
6:45 PM
9:15 PM
11:45 PM
FANAR-4
TAKEN 3
NO SAT
SONG OF THE SEA
SAT
SONG OF THE SEA
TAKEN 3
SONG OF THE SEA
TAKEN 3
TAKEN 3
TAKEN 3
11:30 AM
12:00 PM
2:00 PM
4:00 PM
6:15 PM
8:15 PM
10:30 PM
12:45 AM
FANAR-5
SELMA
SELMA
CAIRO TIME - ARABIC
CAIRO TIME - ARABIC
SELMA
SELMA
12:30 PM
3:00 PM
5:30 PM
7:45 PM
10:00 PM
12:30 AM
MARINA-1
BLACKHAT
BLACKHAT
ROBOT OVERLORDS
BLACKHAT
ROBOT OVERLORDS
BLACKHAT
12:30 PM
3:15 PM
5:45 PM
7:45 PM
10:15 PM
12:15 AM
MARINA-2
TAKEN 3
ROBOT OVERLORDS
TAKEN 3
TAKEN 3
TAKEN 3
ROBOT OVERLORDS
12:45 PM
3:00 PM
5:00 PM
7:15 PM
9:45 PM
12:15 AM
MARINA-3
SONG OF THE SEA
SAT
SELMA
NO FRI + SAT
SONG OF THE SEA
FRI + SAT
SONG OF THE SEA
SONG OF THE SEA
AMERICAN SNIPER
AMERICAN SNIPER
AMERICAN SNIPER
11:30 AM
1:00 PM
1:30 PM
3:30 PM
5:30 PM
7:30 PM
10:00 PM
12:30 AM
AVENUES-1
CAIRO TIME - ARABIC
CAIRO TIME - ARABIC
CAIRO TIME - ARABIC
CAIRO TIME - ARABIC
CAIRO TIME - ARABIC
CAIRO TIME - ARABIC
11:45 AM
2:15 PM
4:45 PM
7:15 PM
9:45 PM
12:15 AM
AVENUES-2
THE WOMAN IN BLACK 2 ANGEL OF DEATH
DAVID OYELOWO, CARMEN EJOGO
SELMA
SELMA
SELMA
SELMA
11:30 AM
1:45 PM
4:30 PM
7:15 PM
10:00 PM
12:45 AM
AVENUES-3
AMERICAN SNIPER
AMERICAN SNIPER
AMERICAN SNIPER
AMERICAN SNIPER
AMERICAN SNIPER
1:15 PM
3:45 PM
6:15 PM
8:45 PM
11:15 PM
AVENUES-4
TAKEN 3
TAKEN 3
TAKEN 3
TAKEN 3
NO THU
Special Show “THE WOMAN IN BLACK 2 “
THU
TAKEN 3
TAKEN 3
11:30 AM
2:00 PM
4:30 PM
7:00 PM
7:00 PM
9:30 PM
12:05 AM
AVENUES-5
BLACKHAT
BLACKHAT
AMERICAN SNIPER
BLACKHAT
NO MON
Special Show “UNBROKEN “
MON
AMERICAN SNIPER
1:00 PM
3:45 PM
6:30 PM
9:00 PM
9:00 PM
FOR SALE
11:45 PM
Household equipment for
sale. Contact: 99519280 /
23713145. (C 4917)
3-2-2015
AVENUES-6
BLACKHAT
BLACKHAT
BLACKHAT
BLACKHAT
BLACKHAT
12:00 PM
2:45 PM
5:30 PM
8:15 PM
11:00 PM
AVENUES-7
THE WOMAN IN BLACK 2 ANGEL OF DEATH
THE WOMAN IN BLACK 2 ANGEL OF DEATH
THE WOMAN IN BLACK 2 ANGEL OF DEATH
STILL ALICE
THE WOMAN IN BLACK 2 ANGEL OF DEATH
AMERICAN SNIPER
1:00 PM
3:15 PM
5:15 PM
7:45 PM
10:00 PM
12:15 AM
AVENUES-8
MORTDECAI
MORTDECAI
THE BOOK OF LIFE
HAWAIZAADA - HINDI
MORTDECAI
MORTDECAI
12:00 PM
2:15 PM
4:30 PM
6:45 PM
9:45 PM
12:05 AM
AVENUES-9
SELMA
SONG OF THE SEA
SONG OF THE SEA
SONG OF THE SEA
BLACKHAT
BLACKHAT
12:30 PM
3:00 PM
5:15 PM
7:30 PM
9:45 PM
12:30 AM
AVENUES-10
ROBOT OVERLORDS
ROBOT OVERLORDS
ROBOT OVERLORDS
ROBOT OVERLORDS
ROBOT OVERLORDS
ROBOT OVERLORDS
12:15 PM
2:30 PM
4:45 PM
7:00 PM
9:15 PM
11:30 PM
AVENUES-11
TAKEN 3 - DOLBY ATMOS
TAKEN 3 - DOLBY ATMOS
TAKEN 3 - DOLBY ATMOS
TAKEN 3 - DOLBY ATMOS
TAKEN 3 - DOLBY ATMOS
TAKEN 3 - DOLBY ATMOS
12:30 PM
3:00 PM
5:30 PM
8:00 PM
10:30 PM
1:00 AM
360º- 1
BLACKHAT
BLACKHAT
BLACKHAT
BLACKHAT
BLACKHAT
1:00 PM
3:45 PM
6:30 PM
9:15 PM
12:05 AM
360º- 2
CAIRO TIME - ARABIC
CAIRO TIME - ARABIC
CAIRO TIME - ARABIC
CAIRO TIME - ARABIC
CAIRO TIME - ARABIC
ROBOT OVERLORDS
12:45 PM
3:15 PM
5:45 PM
8:15 PM
10:45 PM
1:15 AM
360º- 3
SONG OF THE SEA
SONG OF THE SEA
SONG OF THE SEA
SONG OF THE SEA
SONG OF THE SEA
BLACKHAT
MBBS Kerala Viswakarma
(C) girl 26/160, Pooyam, fair.
Subcaste no bar, only sister
medical student. Educated
employed youth contact:
[email protected]
(C 4914)
2-2-2015
11:45 AM
2:00 PM
4:15 PM
6:30 PM
8:45 PM
11:00 PM
SITUATION WANTED
12 years experienced professional looking for senior
position in finance /
accounts. Qualification: CFA
Level1/CMA (IMA-USA),
Bcom. Contact: 60320220.
(C 4919)
Sri Lankan lady, well experienced cook, looking for a
job. Tel: 65905887. (C 4915)
URGENTLY REQUIRED
For a leading company in Kuwait.
Sales Manager:
Fluent in English & Arabic (7 years experience)
Salesman:
Fluent in English & Arabic, good Salesmanship
require in industrial field
Fax C.V's: 24848640
Need job for a B.Sc degree
holder with computer
diploma with 8 years experience in Kuwait looking for
job as Admin / Sales executive (Indian license only).
Please contact: 66894543.
(C 4916)
3-2-2015
TUITION
Training for CMA (IMAUSA). Location: Khaitan.
Contact: 55435333.
(C 4918)
3-2-2015
Prayer timings
Fajr:
05:15
Shorook
06:36
Duhr:
12:02
Asr:
15:06
THE PUBLIC AUTHORITY
FOR CIVIL INFORMATION
Maghrib:
17:28
Automated enquiry about the Civil ID card is
Isha:
18:46
1889988
Directorate General of Civil Aviation Home Page (www.kuwait-airport.com.kw)
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DLH
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MEA
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UAE
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JZR
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562
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325
982
777
875
328
177
3718
063
121
786
1080
774
618
393
678
674
542
217
166
104
742
572
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061
647
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636
229
402
307
073
859
219
1074
309
059
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185
764
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Dubai
14:30
14:30
15:00
15:00
15:10
15:25
15:45
15:45
16:00
16:15
16:20
16:40
16:55
16:55
17:15
17:30
17:50
17:55
17:55
18:00
18:05
18:20
18:30
18:40
18:40
18:45
18:50
19:15
19:15
19:15
19:25
19:25
19:25
19:30
19:40
19:55
20:00
20:00
20:05
20:20
20:20
20:30
20:50
21:10
21:20
21:30
21:35
21:40
21:45
21:55
22:15
22:30
22:30
22:35
23:10
23:15
23:35
23:45
Airlines
AIC
BBC
PIA
FDB
RBG
JAI
KLM
DLH
ETH
THY
PGT
KAC
UAE
FDB
ETD
MSR
KKK
QTR
MSC
QTR
THY
ICV
FDB
THY
JAI
RJA
JZR
GFA
THY
FDB
BAW
QTR
KAC
SVA
KAC
ABY
KAC
UAE
ETD
KAC
FDB
QTR
KAC
GFA
IRA
RBG
KAC
KAC
JZR
MSC
UAE
MEA
KAC
JZR
MSR
Departure Flights on Tuesday 3/2/2015
Flt
Route
976
Goa/Chennai
044
Dhaka
206
Lahore
072
Dubai
556
Alexandria
573
Mumbai
411
Amsterdam
635
Frankfurt
621
Addis Ababa
773
Istanbul
859
Istanbul
381
Delhi
854
Dubai
068
Dubai
306
Abu Dhabi
613
Cairo
6508
Istanbul
1085
Doha
406
Sohag
1077
Doha
765
Istanbul
673
Hong Kong
070
Dubai
6677
Istanbul
525
Abu Dhabi/Chennai
649
Amman
560
Sohag
212
Bahrain
771
Istanbul
054
Dubai
156
London
1087
Doha
513
Tehran
513
Riyadh
787
Jeddah
126
Sharjah
101
London/New York
856
Dubai
302
Abu Dhabi
561
Amman
056
Dubai
1071
Doha
165
Rome/Paris
214
Bahrain
674
Lar
554
Alexandria
541
Cairo
677
Abu Dhabi/Muscat
776
Jeddah
402
Alexandria
874
Dubai
405
Beirut
785
Jeddah
176
Dubai
611
Cairo
DIAL161 FOR AIRPORT INFORMATION
Time
00:05
00:40
00:40
00:45
00:45
01:10
01:55
02:15
02:45
02:55
03:25
03:40
03:50
03:55
04:05
04:10
04:10
04:30
05:05
05:15
05:40
05:45
06:30
06:35
06:35
07:05
07:10
07:15
07:30
08:25
08:45
08:50
08:55
08:55
09:25
09:40
09:50
09:55
10:20
10:25
10:35
11:00
11:15
11:25
11:40
11:55
12:05
12:20
12:20
12:25
12:30
12:55
13:00
13:45
14:00
UAE
JZR
CVK
KAC
QTR
FDB
KAC
KNE
SVA
GFA
KAC
OMA
ABY
MIX
KAC
FDB
JZR
NIA
QTR
JZR
UAE
ETD
RJA
SVA
GFA
JZR
JZR
TAR
UAL
ABY
UAE
QTR
FDB
AXB
GFA
KAC
KAC
KAC
JAI
MSR
GFA
KAC
OMA
FDB
DLH
DHX
ALK
ETD
KAC
MEA
KAC
FDB
GFA
ETH
UAE
KAC
ETD
QTR
KAC
PIA
872
324
7014
673
1079
058
617
473
501
222
773
646
128
308
741
052
266
252
1073
538
858
304
641
511
216
184
238
328
982
122
876
1081
064
393
218
283
361
343
571
607
047
351
648
062
636
171
230
308
301
403
203
074
220
3718
860
205
310
1075
411
240
Dubai
Al Najaf
FJR
Dubai
Doha
Dubai
Doha
Jeddah
Jeddah
Bahrain
Riyadh
Muscat
Sharjah
Sharjah
Dammam
Dubai
Beirut
Alexandria
Doha
Cairo
Dubai
Abu Dhabi
Amman
Riyadh
Bahrain
Dubai
Amman
Tunis
Bahrain
Sharjah
Dubai
Doha
Dubai
Kozhikode
Bahrain
Dhaka
Colombo
Chennai
Mumbai
Luxor
Istanbul
Kochi
Muscat
Dubai
Dammam
Bahrain
Colombo
Abu Dhabi
Mumbai
Beirut
Lahore
Dubai
Bahrain
Addis Ababa
Dubai
Islamabad
Abu Dhabi
Doha
Bangkok/Manila
Sialkot
14:15
14:25
14:30
15:00
15:05
15:10
15:15
15:20
15:45
15:45
15:50
16:25
16:25
17:00
17:00
17:00
17:05
17:15
17:40
17:45
17:45
17:50
17:55
18:15
18:20
18:40
18:50
18:55
19:15
19:20
19:40
19:50
19:55
20:15
20:15
20:30
20:50
20:55
21:00
21:05
21:15
21:15
21:20
21:20
21:35
21:50
22:10
22:15
22:15
22:20
22:20
22:30
22:30
22:30
22:50
22:55
23:00
23:05
23:30
23:35
34
stars
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2015
CROSSWORD 804
STAR TRACK
Aries (March 21-April 19)
Self-discipline and a sense of self-worth become important issues now. A fear
of asserting yourself can hold you back–as can coming on too strong. The trick is learning to
make the most of your personal talents and abilities, working within your limitations instead
of feeling hemmed in by them. Colors are brighter, images sharper, music more moving.
Emotions run deep, especially with a special partner or loved one. Previously bland relationships could now border on love or hate. Intensity rules! You can control this, so enjoy the
good parts and exclude anything else. You are full of energy and will enjoy giving someone
a helping hand today. Distribute advertisement to local businesses for a children’s theater
group.
Taurus (April 20-May 20)
You should experience all the wonders of this most extraordinary planet. This
is a good time to lead the way on a project–at work or home. Your imagination is unusually
heightened. Your desire to succeed is strong, not only financially, but personally as well. Your
enthusiasm is high and your creative ideas are flowing, ready to be applied to whatever job
or goals are waiting. Your best effort will gain you considerable success. Harmony with
friends and loved ones is important today. This afternoon may be a good time to socialize
and enjoy those personal friends that bring you joy. You are able to improve any relationships that might need work–the positive energies are in your corner. Hold fast to friends and
family–they are a great source of strength.
Gemini (May 21-June 20)
ACROSS
1. A defensive missile designed to shoot down
incoming intercontinental ballistic missiles.
4. Genus of scapose herbs of North and South
America having large edible bulbs.
12. Fish eggs or egg-filled ovary.
15. An anxiety disorder characterized by chronic
free-floating anxiety and such symptoms as tension or sweating or trembling of light-headedness or irritability etc that has lasted for more
than six months.
16. Of or relating to the evolutionary development of organisms.
17. Leaf or strip from a leaf of the talipot palm
used in India for writing paper.
18. Thigh of a hog (usually smoked).
19. Characterized by absence of emotional agitation.
20. Formed by reaction between an acid and an
alcohol with elimination of water.
22. By bad luck.
24. The basic unit of electric current adopted
under the System International d'Unites.
25. Resembling or characteristic of a prophet or
prophecy.
27. (of a young animal) Abandoned by its mother
and raised by hand.
30. United States biochemist who discovered
how genes act by regulating definite chemical
events (1909-1975).
33. Line that is the commercial organization
responsible for operating a railway system.
37. Mild yellow Dutch cheese made in balls.
40. A platform raised above the surrounding level to give prominence to the person on it.
41. Characteristic of a mob.
42. Upright deciduous plant with crimson pods
and seeds.
44. A broken piece of a brittle artifact.
45. Manufactured in standard sizes to be shipped
and assembled elsewhere.
48. Type genus of the Alcidae comprising solely
the razorbill.
50. An ugly evil-looking old woman.
51. Leave voluntarily.
52. Not only so, but.
54. A public promotion of some product or service.
55. A white soft metallic element that tarnishes
readily.
57. Title for a civil or military leader (especially in
Turkey).
59. The square of a body of any size of type.
64. A high-crowned black cap (usually made of
felt or sheepskin) worn by men in Turkey and
Iran and the Caucasus.
68. A region of central Europe rich in deposits of
coal and iron ore.
71. A Chadic language spoken south of Lake
Chad.
72. A poplar that is widely cultivated in the
United States.
74. An indehiscent fruit derived from a single
ovary having one or many seeds within a fleshy
wall or pericarp.
75. Any place of complete bliss and delight and
peace.
76. Rich Middle Eastern cake made of thin layers
of flaky pastry filled with nuts and honey.
78. A rotating disk shaped to convert circular into
linear motion.
79. Roman Emperor notorious for his monstrous
vice and fantastic luxury (was said to have started a fire that destroyed much of Rome in 64) but
the Empire remained prosperous during his rule
(37-68).
80. Common gray wild goose of Europe.
81. A loose sleeveless outer garment made from
aba cloth.
DOWN
1. Title for a civil or military leader (especially in
Turkey).
2. Any of numerous local fertility and nature
deities worshipped by ancient Semitic peoples.
3. Designer drug designed to have the effects of
amphetamines (it floods the brain with serotonin) but to avoid the drug laws.
4. The unit of frequency.
5. Having the leading position or higher score in
a contest.
6. Bulldog ants.
7. A city in northwestern Syria.
8. A fractional monetary unit of Japan and
Indonesia and Cambodia.
9. Any plant of the genus Stevia or the closely
related genus Piqueria having glutinous foliage
and white or purplish flowers.
10. Being one more than one.
11. Any organic compound formed by adding
alcohol molecules to aldehyde molecules.
12. A training program to prepare college students to be commissioned officers.
13. Evergreen trees and shrubs having oily oneseeded fruits.
14. A British peer ranking below a Marquess and
above a Viscount.
21. Formerly a contemptuous term of address to
an inferior man or boy.
23. Worthless people.
26. A fee charged for exchanging currencies.
28. Before noon.
29. Of or relating to a language that arises from
contact between two other languages and has
features of both.
31. Regarded with deep or rapturous love (especially as if for a god).
32. Wasting of the body during a chronic disease.
34. A member of the Siouan people formerly living in the Missouri river valley in NE Nebraska.
35. Wear away.
36. A small low-powered electrically powered
vehicle driven on a special platform where there
are many others to be dodged.
38. The compass point that is one point north of
northwest.
39. African mahogany trees.
43. South American wood sorrel cultivated for its
edible tubers.
46. Of or relating to or characteristic of the
Philippines or its people or customs.
47. Small terrestrial lizard of warm regions of the
Old World.
49. According to the Old Testament he was a
pagan king of Israel and husband of Jezebel (9th
century BC).
53. South African plant widely cultivated for its
showy pure white spathe and yellow spadix.
56. A small pellet fired from an air rifle or BB gun.
58. Talks a great deal about uninteresting topics.
60. American author of inspirational adventure
stories for boys.
61. A large gathering of people intended to
arouse enthusiasm.
62. Conforming to an ultimate standard of perfection or excellence.
63. The capital and largest city of Bangladesh.
65. An officer who acts as military assistant to a
more senior officer.
66. Open-heart surgery in which the rib cage is
opened and a section of a blood vessel is grafted
from the aorta to the coronary artery to bypass
the blocked section of the coronary artery and
improve the blood supply to the heart.
67. Flightless New Zealand rail of thievish disposition having short wings each with a spur used
in fighting.
69. Someone who works (or provides workers)
during a strike.
70. God of love and erotic desire.
73. A room or establishment where alcoholic
drinks are served over a counter.
77. A state in the eastern United States.
You feel good and your mind is in top condition for the work that is set before
you now. Good eye-hand coordination and a sustained effort make almost any task run well.
You will be pleased to find that during the tense moments today, everyone seems to exhibit
a great deal of control. If you remember your priorities, this can be a very productive day. You
can expect a little boost as well as some recognition from your peers this afternoon. You are
in touch and in harmony with all; the lines of communication are open. You will probably find
that you are appreciated for your ability to progress with the work that has to be done at this
time. You will want to take advantage of a family gathering this evening to express your
appreciation to loved ones.
Cancer (June 21-July 22)
Your mind may feel like it is on a racetrack today. The wheels of the mind are
moving in fast motion and insights are flashing in and out of the blue. This is a
great day for looking at the whole picture and getting the idea of balance and blending as
well as a few facial responses from customers. You know when things are working together
well because of the response you hear from the crowd, if there is a crowd. It may not have
seemed possible, but you are able to get many things accomplished today. You may be caring
for animals this afternoon. While you are with friends and family this evening, you will want to
use your energy constructively–being slow to worry is a good idea. Romance is in the air
tonight, a love relationship deepens.
Leo (July 23-August 22)
Group work may be necessary as you or another co-worker may require some
research or sorting through files or making phone calls. The work will be accomplished much
faster than one person can achieve. Sometime today, if you are in a technical field such as
computers or phones, you may have to deal with a customer that needs more time than other customers. While this may not be the greatest thing for people working on commission, it
will give you honor and high esteem with this customer who will return to you as a better
consumer–with more understanding of the products you sell. If you don’t sell him or her anything, your attitude will get you a recommendation that will be valuable. A little exercise this
evening will be suitable.
Virgo (August 23-September 22)
Work on a project of a large or complicated manner comes knocking at your
door today. It may mean a bonus but the best in the end result is your ability to be flexible
and organized. If you can get one other person to work with you, at his or her own pace, you
will succeed in accomplishing a project that will help many people. You are apt to enjoy considerable success at work. Changes in the workplace may include getting a new boss, new coworkers, embarking on a totally different project or taking an interest in a new field of work.
You may be of great help to someone this afternoon without even being aware of it. This
evening friends or family will want to help you relax and if you usually cook . . . You won’t
have to tonight.
WORD SEARCH PUZZLE
Libra (September 23-October 22)
You attract optimism and optimistic people. Many projects come to fruition
at this time, especially large ones–recognition is also easy to find. Your ideas gain a great
deal of attention. This is a fine time to engage in some new business dealings or investments. However, compromise should be exercised whenever possible. Mental stimulation from others is helpful right now and it’s a good idea to make every effort to return
the act of kindness. At home this evening, it would be wise to foster a sense of togetherness and team play among family members. You should probably try hard to squelch the
desire to do everything by yourself. Insights into purchases for the family can be considered now: house, car, etc.
Scorpio (October 23-November 21)
This is definitely a day of progress, particularly if you are allowed to take the
lead. You attract people to work with you whose energy matches your own energies.
Communication with a co-worker is positive. You are able to handle most any situation. If
you are still fired up at the close of the day, become involved in an exercise program. It will
help you to release any excessive energy. You may find yourself working hard to make time
for your family this week. This is a period of optimism and a good time to evaluate existing
relationships, or start a new one. You are coming into a period of greater than usual emphasis on emotional security, which is likely to manifest as putting down roots somehow. Real
estate becomes a bigger part of your life goals.
Sagittarius (November 22-December 21)
You are happy to be with others in a working agreement today. You may be
sought after as just the person for a particular job. Your management and
organizational skills are in high focus. It is important during this time to effectively communicate your ideas to co-workers and those who work under you. Parental instincts may come to
the forefront and you make every effort to appease any discord. Also, there is a strong wish to
make your surroundings as pleasant as possible. You truly desire fun and should not hesitate
to get to know new people and form new acquaintances. Also, love is in full bloom during
this time and it is a good time to fully demonstrate the depth of affections to loved ones.
Harmony is in your life–enjoy it!
Capricorn (December 22-January 19)
You may find the push to sign contracts, conclude business deals or make
future plans. If you have had an advisor, this is a good thing. If you have not had an advisor,
one should be provided. When signing important papers, it is important to know what you
are doing, particularly if you are involved in a real-estate deal. Your sharp mind will see all
aspects from all angles. Any high-level mental pursuits should be rewarding and stimulating
just now. Welcome all new ideas! There are new concepts that you are aware of and may find
yourself talking about with co-workers. Later, this afternoon, you should take every opportunity to get outside and enjoy the out-of-doors. The view of your progress will improve after a
little exercise.
Aquarius (January 20- February 18)
If ever there was a day to work with groups, this is it! Your acute sensitivity to
other people’s moods could enable you to fine-tune those moods as you would a violin. You
could obtain anything you wish to obtain or sell anything you want to sell to people–they will
think you have done them a favor. Awareness of your monetary situation is a good thing
now–it may sometimes be difficult to gauge. Leave those large purchases for another time–
you must be judicious in personal decisions about finances. You should love being around
people today, especially those to whom you are emotionally attached and better yet, older
friends with whom you can reminisce. This is a time to cement your ties to others, to make
sure they are rock-solid.
Pisces (February 19-March 20)
This time marks a period of introspection and evaluation of goals. You may feel
lonely and self-critical at this time–do not be too hard on yourself. Focus your energy on selfdiscovery instead. There may be much responsibility at this time and much of your work is recognized by people that may not express their appreciation. Perseverance, however, is crucial
to your own sense of accomplishment–you will be glad you finished what you set out to
accomplish. You may take on an easygoing manner with friends and family this afternoon.
The need to relax and enjoy the home setting is essential. You may decide to do some sort of
creative work that will add to the atmosphere or comfort of your surroundings. It’s a good
time to ask favors from someone close.
Yesterday’s Solution
Yesterday’s Solution
Daily SuDoku
Yesterday’s Solution
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2015
i n f o r m at i o n
For labor-related inquiries
and complaints:
Call MSAL hotline 128
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CALLS
GOVERNORATE
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24812000
Amiri Hospital
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Maternity Hospital
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Chest Hospital
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PHARMACY
Jahra
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ADDRESS
PHONE
Afghanistan
0093
Luxembourg
00352
Albania
00355
Macau
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00213
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001441
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00975
Montserrat
001664
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00591
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00212
Bosnia
00387
Mozambique
00258
Ahlam
Khaldiya Coop
Fahad Al-Salem St
Khaldiya Coop
22436184
24833967
New Shifa
Ferdous Coop
Modern Safwan
Farwaniya Block 40
Ferdous Coop
Old Kheitan Block 11
24734000
24881201
24726638
Tariq
Hana
Ikhlas
Hawally & Rawdha
Ghadeer
Kindy
Ibn Al-Nafis
Mishrif Coop
Salwa Coop
Salmiya-Hamad Mubarak St
Salmiya-Amman St
Hawally-Beirut St
Hawally & Rawdha Coop
Jabriya-Block 1A
Jabriya-Block 3B
Salmiya-Hamad Mubarak St
Mishrif Coop
Salwa Coop
25726265
25647075
22625999
22564549
25340559
25326554
25721264
25380581
25628241
Adaliya
22517144
Botswana
00267
Myanmar (Burma)
0095
Khaldiya
24848075
Brazil
0055
Namibia
00264
Brunei
00673
Nepal
00977
Kaifan
24849807
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00359
Netherlands
0031
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24848913
Burkina
00226
Netherlands Antilles 00599
Shuwaikh
24814507
Burundi
00257
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Cambodia
00855
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0064
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22549134
Cameroon
00237
Nicaragua
00505
Nuzha
22526804
Canada
001
Nigar
00227
Cape Verde
00238
Nigeria
00234
Industrial Shuwaikh
24814764
Cayman Islands
001345
Niue
00683
Central African
00236
Norfolk Island
00672
Chad
00235
N. Ireland (UK)
0044
00687
Qadsiya
22515088
Dasmah
22532265
Chile
0056
North Korea
00850
Bneid Al-Gar
22531908
China
0086
Norway
0047
Colombia
0057
Oman
00968
Shaab
22518752
Comoros
00269
Pakistan
0092
22459381
Congo
00242
Palau
00680
Cook Islands
00682
Panama
00507
00506
Papua New Guinea 00675
Qibla
Ayoun Al-Qibla
22451082
Costa Rica
Mirqab
22456536
Croatia
00385
Paraguay
00595
Cuba
0053
Peru
0051
Cyprus
00357
Philippines
0063
Cyprus (Northern)
0090392
Poland
0048
Czech Republic
00420
Portugal
00351
Denmark
0045
Puerto Rico
001787
Diego Garcia
00246
Qatar
00974
Djibouti
00253
Romania
0040
Dominica
001767
Russian Federation 007
Sharq
22465401
Salmiya
25746401
Jabriya
25316254
Maidan Hawally
25623444
Bayan
25388462
Mishref
25381200
Dominican Republic 001809
Rwanda
00250
22630786
Ecuador
00593
Saint Helena
00290
Egypt
0020
Saint Kitts
001869
W Hawally
Sabah
24810221
El Salvador
00503
Saint Lucia
001758
Jahra
24770319
England (UK)
0044
Saint Pierre
00508
Equatorial Guinea
00240
Saint Vincent
001784
Eritrea
00291
Samoa US
00684
Estonia
00372
Samoa West
00685
Ethiopia
00251
San Marino
00378
Falkland Islands
00500
Sao Tone
00239
Faroe Islands
00298
Saudi Arabia
00966
Fiji
00679
Scotland (UK)
0044
Finland
00358
Senegal
00221
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36
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2015
LIFESTYLE
G o s s i p
Jonathan Rhys Myers to
star in Damascus Cover
Steve Forrest
leaves Placebo
Kasabian’s Serge finds Ed Sheeran’s success scary
S
teve Forrest has left Placebo. The drummer - who joined
the ‘Pure Morning’ group in 2008 - has “amicably” departed
the band to focus on his own music, and singer Brian
Molko and bassist Stefan Oldsal will now be joined on the road
by former Colour of Fire drummer Matt Lunn. A group statement said: “The split is very amicable and Steve was keen to
pursue his own musical ambitions, and has been writing and
recording his own material over the last few years. “Brian Molko
and Stefan Olsdal would like to thank Steve for all his work with
the band and wish him all the very best in his future career.”
Fans will get their first glimpse of Matt when the group embark
on their huge UK and Ireland tour later this month, on which
they will be supported by The Mirror Trap. The 20-date tour
begins at the Olympia in Dublin on 25 February and ends with
two nights at London’s Hammersmith Apollo on 24 and 25
March. Some fans may already be familiar with the new touring
drummer as his former group previously supported Placebo
when they toured in 2004. Matt is the band’s fourth drummer,
with original sticksman Robert Schultzberg replaced by Steve
Hewitt in 1996. Steve left in 2007 due to “personal and musical
differences”.
K
asabian rocker Serge Pizzorno can’t understand why Ed Sheeran is so popular, admitting he finds his success “scary”. The guitarist
misses the music scene of the 1990s, which was
dominated by Britpop and rock acts, and thinks the
charts nowadays are “too pop” and “middle
England”. Serge has cited acoustic songsmith Ed who is up for several Grammy Awards and BRITs as a prime example of what’s wrong with modern
pop. Speaking in the new issue of Loaded magazine, he said: “I do miss the Britpop era. The loonies
took over for a bit, which was great. It’s so pop right
now. Too pop. It was great with Blur and Oasis.
Those days were so exciting to watch and I’m not
sure if we’re ever going to get that back. Ed
Sheeran is killing it. It’s middle England. We are so
middle England, it’s scary.” Despite enjoying a phenomenally successful 2014 - which included a
headline set at the Glastonbury Festival - Kasabian
have not been nominated for any prizes at the
upcoming BRIT Awards. Although they have been
snubbed from the ceremony, singer Tom Meighan
is hopeful the event will still open people’s eyes to
different genres of music. He said: “What’s good
about the BRIT Awards is rock music - if you can call
it that. It allows the music to reach out to people
who usually watch ‘The X Factor’ or some thing. It’s
about turning them on to alternative music which
can only be a good thing.” The 250th celebratory
issue of Loaded - which has Kasabian on the cover is available to buy in both print and digital formats
now.
Gallagher’s High Flying
Birds for Calling Festival
N
J
onathan Rhys Myers is to star in ‘Damascus
Cover’. The ‘Mission Impossible III’ star will take
on the lead role in the espionage thriller,
which is based on the 1977 novel by Howard
Kaplan. He said: “I’m enormously excited about
this role. This was a hugely significant time in the
conflict in the Middle East, post-cold war and with
the collapse of the Berlin Wall when an amount of
spies were redeployed to the Middle East, where
the theatre of covert operations would now take
precedence. “With a highly thoughtful and intelligent script by Daniel Berk and Samantha Newton
I’m thrilled to be a part of this project and can’t
wait to start shooting with a very gifted international cast and crew.” The 37-year-old actor has
already joined Olivia Thirlby, Sir John Hurt and
others in Morocco, as filming begins in the African
oel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds will headline Calling
Festival. The one-day event will take place on Clapham
Common in London on Saturday July 4 with Ryan
Adams, The Hives and Echo and the Bunnymen also confirmed
to perform. Speaking about the booking, Live Nation’s Vice
President of Promotions Toby Leighton-Pope said: “We’re so
pleased with the Calling Festival 2015 bill. Noel Gallagher’s
High Flying Birds will be incredible and we’re so happy to welcome the fantastic Ryan Adams, The Hives and Echo and the
Bunnymen. This year is going to be huge and we look forward
to seeing the crowds back in Clapham this summer.” The band
will perform their first outdoor headline set at the multi-stage
festival four months after the release of their eagerly anticipated second album, ‘Chasing Yesterday’, which will be available
from March 2. In October, the 47-year-old performer sold out
his six-date spring tour - which will see him visit Belfast,
Dublin, Nottingham, Glasgow, and Manchester before end in
London on March 10 - in just 10 minutes. Previous headliners
of the annual event include The Who, Eric Clapton, Bon Jovi
and The Killers, with more than 80,000 music-lovers flocking to
the festival in south west London last year to witness performances from Stevie Wonder and Aerosmith. Tickets for Calling
Festival go on sale at 9am on Friday 6 February and are priced
at £57.50 plus booking fee.
country this week. Speaking about her role, Olivia
added: “I’m thrilled to be a part of ‘Damascus
Cover’. “It’s an honor to collaborate with and work
alongside such a diverse and talented group of
individuals on a project that looks closely at a fascinating time in history. I am extremely excited to
begin the shoot.” The movie’s plot follows the story of an undercover spy who is sent to Damascus
to help a chemical weapons scientist and his family sneak out of the country. Soon, things turn bad
for the man, as he becomes the target of murderous conspirators.
Dylan says comparisons
Heidi Klum became model eater with Sinatra are a ‘joke’
H
Madonna
forgets recording
experiences
M
adonna “can’t remember” making all her records. The 56year-old singer is preparing to release her 13th studio
album, ‘Rebel Heart’, and admits she has released so many
LPs throughout her illustrious career she cannot recall the creative
process she went through to make all her albums. She said: “I cannot remember every record-making experience. It feels like there’s
been too many of them. “But this [‘Rebel Heart’] has been really,
really intense ... complicated. Just because there are so many people involved. “It’s like a train that keeps picking up people. And
every time someone gets on the train, they add another flavor.
“Then I have to step back and see, OK, how does this all fit into the
big picture? So it does seem endless.” But the ‘Papa Don’t Preach’
hitmaker has no problem recalling her fourth studio album ‘Like A
Prayer’, which came with a cover scented with patchouli oils to
simulate church incense, because she now “cannot stand” the aroma of the plant species. She added in an interview with Mojo
magazine: “Terrible, terrible perfume. I can’t stand it. I don’t [like it]
any more. It’s a tree hugger’s smell.”
eidi Klum had to give up her favorite German foods to make it as a model. The 41year-old catwalk star was born and raised in Bergisch Gladbach, a town just outside of Cologne, and she began her career she quickly realized she would have to
ditch the delicious calorific treats she enjoyed, such as schnitzel, if she wanted to make it
in the fashion business. She explained: “Once I started modeling, I changed my life. When
I left Germany, I went to Paris, London and Milan and I saw how the girls were all so fit
and ate differently. Coming from Germany, I ate all the schnitzel and potatoes that my
mother would cook for me, but that doesn’t work if you want to be in this industry. “You
have to be fit, your skin, your nails and your hair have to look great, as well as your body,
of course, so I completely changed the way I ate.” Although she follows a strict diet and
exercise regime, Heidi will still allow herself the occasional treat, and she enjoys nothing
more than munching on a slice of pizza with her four children - 10-year-old Leni, her
daughter with ex Flavio Briatore, and Henry, nine, Johan, eight, and Lou, five, with her former husband Seal. Speaking to You magazine, she said: “I eat everything but not on a daily basis. I don’t eat a lot of bread, spaghetti, rice or carbs - it’s not really necessary. I’m not
saying that you shouldn’t eat carbs, but have them in moderation. I eat a lot of vegetables
and I don’t eat a lot of sauces ... but when I go with my kids to a pizza restaurant, yeah, I’ll
eat pizza.” Heidi accepts it is her responsibility to always be ready to strip off and look
good and that’s her motivation for sticking to her regime of distance running and weight
training. She said: “I always have to be ready to take off my clothes and look great ... If
you’re not fit and you’re not 100 per cent, someone else is going to get the job. There are
so many beautiful girls to choose from, so if you want to be top, your body has to look
top. It’s just the way it is - it’s the job.”
B
ob Dylan thinks people are “joking” when they compare him
to Frank Sinatra. The 73-year-old singer-songwriter’s 36th studio album, ‘Shadows in the Night’, features a number of songs
associated with Sinatra - including ‘Autumn Leaves’ and ‘That Lucky
Old Sun’ - but Dylan insists the legendary crooner is beyond compare. Asked whether it’s a risk to make records previously sung by
Sinatra, he said: “There’s nothing risky about making records.
“Comparing me with Frank Sinatra? You must be joking. To be mentioned in the same breath as him must be some sort of high compliment. “Nobody touches him. Not me or anyone else.” Dylan confessed his new album is “out of step with the current media culture”
but dismissed accusations of being “corny”. He told the American
Association Of Retired Persons magazine: “These songs, take ‘em or
leave ‘em, if nothing else, are songs of great virtue. That’s what they
are. “If they sound trite and corny to somebody, well so much for
that. “But people’s lives today are filled on so many levels with vice
and the trappings of it. Ambition, greed and selfishness all have to
do with vice. “We see the destruction of human life and the mockery of it, everywhere we look. These songs are anything but that.
Romance never does go out of fashion. “It’s radical. Maybe it’s out of
step with the current media culture.”
Kardashian West’s hair ‘part of her identity’
K
im Kardashian West’s hair is “part of her identity”, according to Chris McMillan. The hairstylist - who is responsible
for creating the “Rachel” haircut made popular by his pal
Jennifer Aniston in ‘Friends’ - has opened up about working
with the ‘Keeping Up with the Kardashians’ star and insists he’s
never had to use extensions because her natural hair is a great
base to work with. He said: “Kim’s long, gorgeous hair is part of
her identity.” Chris added: “Kim’s natural texture is so thick and
wavy. Instead of fighting it, I like to go with it, keeping everything soft, easy and understated.” The celebrity stylist was on
hand to style Kim’s stunning half-up, half-down hairdo at her
nuptials to Kanye West - with whom she has 19-month-old
daughter North - in Florence, Italy last year and confessed he’s
proud she is still re-creating the look herself. Writing in his column for the February issue of Allure magazine, he said: “A wedding is not the time to do anything trendy. I teased her crown,
parted her hair down the middle, and pulled two small sections
straight back. This style has sort of become her go-to look since
the wedding.” Chris also revealed he managed to smooth her
tousled waves into a single braid in just six minutes in Paris during the run up to her wedding despite being allotted ten minutes. —Bang Showbiz
37
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2015
LIFESTYLE
M u s i c
&
M o v i e s
Katy Perry dazzles at
Super Bowl halftime show
S
Musician John Legend performs “God Bless America” during Super Bowl XLIX at University of Phoenix
Stadium on February 1, 2015 in Glendale, Arizona. —AP photos
Model Chrissy Teigen and musician
John Legend attend Super Bowl XLIX.
inger Katy Perry dazzled at
Sunday’s Super Bowl halftime
show in a spectacular performance featuring dancing sharks, a prowling metallic lion and a levitating star
that shot fireworks into the night sky.
Perry stalked into the University of
Phoenix Stadium field in Glendale,
Arizona riding the huge, fiery-eyed lion
as she sang her megahit “Roar” while
wearing a flame-festooned dress. The
30-year-old star performed a brief duet
with rock legend Lenny Kravitz, and the
pair sung “I Kissed A Girl,” one of Perry’s
first big hits in 2008, during a brief but
raunchy performance.
The crowd cheered during the next
segment that saw Perry perform on a
desert island set-complete with palm
trees, dancers dressed up to look like
goofy sharks and beach balls, as the
star sang “California Gurls.” The Super
Bowl’s halftime show has become a
must-see event in the middle of the
NFL’s championship extravaganza.
Halftime performances generate massive ratings and, sometimes, unexpected controversy such as when Janet
Jackson inadvertently suffered a
“wardrobe malfunction” that saw much
of her breast exposed in 2004, or
Prince’s 2007 show that featured a
strangely shaped guitar that cast a
phallus-shaped shadow.
Perry’s 12.5-minute performance did
not generate any such controversy and
the reaction on social media appeared
overwhelmingly positive, with many
users praising her live singing, her
dancers and her three quick costume
changes. Actress Anna Kendrick hailed
the pop star’s performance, sending
her compliments via Twitter. “It’s official. Katy Perry is magic,” she wrote. “All
jokes aside, @katyperry your voice
tonight was actually unreal.”
Rapper Snoop Dogg chimed in too,
tweeting: “If you were wondering that
was me in tha Shark costume!!” Missy
Elliott was the star guest of the per-
and elevated above the football field,
cruising around the stadium as fireworks burst around her, to enthusiastic
cheers and applause from the crowd.
The New England Patriots defeated
Seattle 28-24 at this year’s Super Bowl
49, denying the Seahawks a second
consecutive title in the NFL champi-
formance, making a foggy entrance to
sing hits including “Get Ur Freak On”
and “Work It.” The newly-svelte rap
diva’s high-energy number “Lose
Control” was a crowd pleaser. Perry’s
grand finale was a spectacular rendition of her huge hit “Firework.” She
climbed onto a star-shaped platform
onship spectacular. The Super Bowl was
expected to draw a whopping 15 million viewers-or about one third of all
Americans-many of whom look forward to the highly-anticipated halftime show and much-buzzed about
commercials. —AFP
Katy Perry, right, and Lenny Kravitz perform on stage.
Singer Katy Perry performs during halftime of NFL Super Bowl XLIX football game.
Idina Menzel sings the national anthem before the NFL Super Bowl XLIX football game.
‘Uptown Funk’ holds onto
British music chart top spot
‘U
ptown Funk’ by English DJ
and producer Mark Ronson
secured a seventh week at
the top of the British singles chart on
Sunday, the Official Charts Company
said. The single, which features
Hawaii-born singer Bruno Mars, outsold Irish artist Hozier’s song about
love and religion “Take me to Church”,
which came in second place, and “LA
Love” by Fergie in third.
The top five was completed by
“Lips are Movin” by Meghan Trainor in
fourth and new entry “Four Five
Seconds” by Barbadian star Rihanna,
which also features Kanye West and
Paul McCartney. Ronson could not
hold on to number one position in the
album charts, where Trainor’s new
entry “Title” earned her a chart-topping debut studio album. Ed
Sheeran’s “X” continued its long spell
in the top five, charting in second
place ahead of Ronson’s “Uptown
Special”. —Reuters
Gavin DeGraw performs at the Super Bowl XLIX.
Brown asks for privacy as daughter remains in hospital
S
inger Bobby Brown on Sunday
asked for privacy regarding his and
his late wife Whitney Houston’s
daughter Bobbi Kristina Brown, who
according to police was found unresponsive in a bathtub at her Georgia
home before she was revived at a hospital. The incident comes nearly three
years after Houston, a superstar who
battled substance abuse, drowned in a
bathtub in Beverly Hills, California, in
February 2012. Authorities have said
cocaine use and heart disease contributed to her death.
Brown, 21, was found on Saturday in
the bathtub at her suburban Atlanta
home by her husband Nick Gordon and
a friend, the Roswell Police Department
said. Gordon started CPR and police
continued life-saving measures until an
ambulance arrived and took her to the
hospital. “Privacy is requested in this
matter. Please allow for my family to
deal with this matter and give my
daughter the love and support she
needs at this time,” said Bobby Brown in
a statement issued by his lawyer
Christopher Brown.
Brown was taken to North Fulton
Hospital in Roswell, a suburb north of
Atlanta, police said. Doctors put her in a
medically induced coma, according to
Bobbi Kristina Brown,
right, and Nick Gordon
CNN and other media, all of whom quoted a single source close the family, but
the hospital would not confirm those
reports or give any updates on her condition. In January 2014, Brown married
Gordon, who was also raised but never
adopted by Houston, one of the bestselling recording artists of all time.
Houston, whose dozens of hit songs
include “How Will I Know” and “I Will
Always Love You,” was the daughter of
gospel singer Cissy Houston and a cousin
of pop singer Dionne Warwick. Bobbi
Kristina Brown’s father, Bobby Brown, is a
Grammy Award winner who started his
career as frontman for the R&B group
New Edition.
Both of Bobbi Kristina’s parents struggled with substance abuse, and Houston
described their 15-year marriage, which
ended in 2007, as drug- and alcoholfueled. Bobby Brown was sentenced to
55 days in jail in 2013 after admitting to
driving drunk in 2012. Bobbi Kristina
Brown was hospitalized twice with anxiety after her mother’s death. —Reuters
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2015
lifestyle
F e a t u r e s
(Left) Indian visitors walk past the work of Iranian photographer Azadeh Akhlaghi on display and a painting by Indian artist Atul Dodiya, at the India Art Fair in
New Delhi. — AFP photos
An Indian woman chats on her mobile phone at an installation of sculptures by Indian artist K S Radhakrishnan.
A work of Indian artist Suhasini Kejriwal.
Indian security personnel sits alongside a locked door near the work of Indian
artist, Suchit Sahni on display.
W
ith a giant stainless steel elephant, a graffiti mural and a
dying tree branch, the Indian
Art Fair opened Friday hoping to tap into
the country’s growing demand for contemporary art. Growing wealth has
fuelled an interest in art collecting
among India’s super rich, but the New
Delhi fair’s organizers said a rapidly rising
middle class has also played a role in
recent years.
“Delhi is the most promising and
largest art centre in India and something that is growing exponentially,”
Neha Kirpal, fair founder and director,
told AFP. “ The rising middle class in
Delhi and love for art is something that
is enabling strong commercial interests,”
she said.
Spread across pavilions over 20,000
square meters (215,000 square feet), the
fair features more than 3,500 works from
1,200 artists from India and overseas. The
event has been phenomenally successful
since its first edition in 2008 and now
draws hundreds of thousands of members of the public over three days.
Coming on the heels of Christie’s second
auction in the country in December that
raised $12 million, art dealers said
demand for a range of Indian works was
high.
“A few years ago, you know, there was
concern in the market, but now steadily
things have been rising,” Parul Vadehra,
director of the Vadehra Art Gallery, said
of the market’s slump after the 2008
global economic crisis. “With prices rising
in the market, obviously that creates a lot
of confidence among the collectors and
the galleries as well as the artists,”
Vadehra said.
This year, themes at the fair range
from environmental degradation to the
responsibility of power. A stainless steel
elephant with lotus-shaped cut outs by
Indian sculptor Sonal Ambani portrays
the “responsibility of power”, while a
large dry tree branch with plastic bags as
leaves depicts global “environmental
degradation”.
A large mural by a graffiti ar tist
known as Daku shows life on a busy
Delhi street, including pedestrians, rickshaw pullers and a pot-bellied police
man. French artist Julian Segard, who
spent months with Delhi’s homeless,
portrays the city’s underbelly with pictures made from scrap paper and cardboard collected on the streets.—AFP
A visitor gestures with his glass towards photographs by India-based US photographer Sebastian Cortes.
Modern-day knights do battle
in bone-crunching combat
T
he sound of swords crashing on to steel armor
resonates around the municipal sports hall as
two teams of heavily-armored knights commence a ferocious battle. One combatant launches
himself into another, hauls his opponent to the
ground, then regains his footing to smash his sword
into another’s helmet. Welcome to Rise of the
Knights III-the third edition of a Medieval Combat
tournament held in an innocuous sports hall in
Bernau, near Berlin. Teams from across Europe
clashed in a day-long series of five-against-five battles on Saturday.
Forget about choreographed re-enactment battles where no one gets hurt. Medieval Combat is a
full-contact sport where armor-clad participants
attack each other armed with an array of weapons. A
small team of referees ensure the strict rules are followed during the violent clashes in a fenced-off area.
Rather than kill an opponent, as in medieval times,
victory means putting your opponent on the floor
and the winning team is decided by who is left
standing in the best of three rounds.
Blows to the neck, feet, back of knees, groin and
throat are strictly prohibited, but punching, kicking
and tripping your opponent is allowed. The swords
must not be sharpened, while the armor, which costs
around 1200 euros (US$1357) for a set, has to all
come from a specific historic period. It’s neither for
the unfit nor faint-hearted as each combatant carries
roughly an extra 25 kilos of armor. The weapons,
ranging from long swords to polearms (wooden
shafts with a blade on top), are blunt on all sides, but
the fights are very real. “We had one guy sent to hospital with a cut near the eye, lots of bruises, a broken
arm and a broken leg,” organizer Adam Nawrot, Vice
President of the governing body, the International
Medieval Combat Federation (IMCF), told AFP. The
event has grown from a handful of teams in 2013 to
30 teams from across Europe this year.
Poland I defeated the 2014 champions Battle
Heritage Lions, made up of the English and Welsh
national teams, 2-1 in this year’s final. The tournament served as a warm-up for the world championships held at Malbork Castle, a world UNESCO site,
near Gdansk, Poland, from April 30-May 3 when the
USA will defend their title.
“I used to be involved in re-enactment groups,
but I got frustrated because I had a weapon I couldn’t
really use properly,” said Frenchman Julien Roumaud
wearing his replica 14th century armor. The 33-yearold carpenter from Clermont-Ferrand had driven 18
hours across Europe with the French national team
to compete. “It’s the complete sport, you have to be
in top shape to cope with running around carrying
Fighters from the Swedish team “Goteborg”, dressed as knights and medieval soldiers get ready to
battle during the “Rise of the Knights III” tournament in Bernau, north of Berlin. — AFP
heavy armor-it’s why I don’t drink anymore. “I train
for about eight hours per week, skills and strategy,
plus lots of cardio work like boxing. “The fights look
like a big mess, but it’s very organized. “The adrenaline takes over, sure you are afraid, but it’s a good
fear, it focuses the mind.”
The red mist comes down
During one bout, the referees struggle to stop a
combatant who rains down blows on a floored
opponent, which earns a yellow card. “Sometimes
the red mist comes down when you’re in there,”
explains Pawel Kurzak, 36, of the Battle Heritage
Lions. “All sorts get involved from computer geeks to
bankers and lawyers-there’s even a rocket scientist in
the Germany team. “Western culture has evolved so
that no one wants to upset or offend anyone. “But
here, you get two teams who accept the dangers and
challenge. “We’re friends outside the arena, but in
there it’s a very, very different story.”
A part-time security officer and fitness instructor,
Kurzak played rugby after arriving in London from
Poland in 2007, but was hooked when he first saw
Medieval Combat. Kurzak’s desire to earn a place on
the England team for the world championships is
evident as he floors opponents in the early rounds
with his polearm.
“I’ll happily sing both the Polish and English
anthems if I’m selected for Malbork,” he says with a
grin. His strapping team-mate Luke Woods, another
former rugby player, who teaches archery and makes
bows, uses his bulk to flatten opponents.”For someone my size, wrestling is important, if I just stand
there hitting you, I’m wasting energy,” said the 28year-old from Caterham, Surrey. “It’s like rugby or
American Football, there is a place for everyone, no
matter what your size or shape.
“I’ve always like the idea of having a scrap-what little boy doesn’t want to hit someone with a sword?
“For me, it encompasses everything I like about rugby,
fighting and history, so I was hooked.” Woods explains
how concussions occur if helmets are not fitted properly, while dislocated knees and shoulders are common. “It tends to be joints giving way when two guys
clash-it’s a lot of weight to put on a pivot,” he added. A
bout is quickly stopped when one combatant’s helmet flies off with the force of a blow. “Most important
is the steel cod piece,” said Ingo Teske, from Battle
Heritage South Africa who was in Bernau on a factfinding mission with hopes of sending a team to the
world championships. “That’s the piece of equipment
you most want to protect.” — AFP
Dr Victoria Avery, Keeper of Applied Arts at the Fitzwilliam museum in Cambridge
examines two Bronze sculptures thought to be works by Michelangelo. — AP
Bronze statues may be last
remaining by Michelangelo
T
wo sculptures that languished in obscurity for more than a century may be the
only surviving bronze works by
Michelangelo, researchers announced in Britain
yesterday. The international research team led
by Britain’s University of Cambridge and the
Fitzwilliam Museum uncovered new evidence
linking the two nude works to Michelangelo,
whose famed works include the painted ceiling
of the Sistine Chapel.
Standing at a meter tall, the sculptures are of
a young man and an older man riding panthers,
and if confirmed the discovery would make
them only surviving Michelangelo bronzes in
the world. “It has been fantastically exciting to
have been able to participate in this groundbreaking project,” said Victoria Avery, Keeper of
the Applied Arts Department of the Fitzwilliam
Museum.
“The bronzes are exceptionally powerful and
compelling works of art that deserve close-up
study - we hope the public will come and examine them for themselves, and engage with this
ongoing debate.” The pieces were attributed to
Michelangelo in their first recording in the 19th
century, but this was dismissed over the last 120
years as they were undocumented and
unsigned.
However, last autumn University of
Cambridge Emeritus Professor of Art History
Paul Joannides made a discovery that overturned this thinking. Joannides found a drawing
of a muscular youth riding a panther in a student’s copy of lost sketches by Michelangelo,
indicating that the artist was planning the
unusual design for a sculpture.
Further study of the bronzes found them to
be very similar in style and anatomy to
Michelangelo’s works of 1500 to 1510, the period in which scientific analysis indicates the statues were made. Though the Italian artist is
known to have completed several statues in
bronze, it has long been thought none of them
survived. Michelangelo made a two-thirds size
version of his famous marble statue David, but
it disappeared during the French Revolution.
A twice life-size bronze statue of Pope Julius
II was melted down for artillery less than three
years after Michelangelo completed it. The
sculptures of the men riding panthers will be on
display at the Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge
from Tuesday until August. Research is continuing, and the final conclusions will be
announced in July. — AFP
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2015
lifestyle
F e a t u r e s
A fortune teller using tarot cards to predict the future of a young woman at a Buddhist temple in Bangkok sheltering a
shrine dedicated to the famous ghost ‘Nak’. — AFP photos
Fortune tellers using tarot cards to predict the future of two women at a Buddhist temple in Bangkok.
Thailand:
Land of smiles,
land of ghosts
F
rom exorcism ceremonies to spirit houses and amulets claiming to make
wearers bullet-proof, Thailand is a culture soaked in superstition-an obsession
critics say is holding the nation back. On a popular episode of “Humans defy
ghosts”-a weekly Thai TV program that delves into the supernatural-a two-year-old
girl who survived three days next to the dead body of her mother was asked a
series of questions by one of the show’s panellists. “Who prepared your milk?” Kapol
Thongplab enquired. “Who played with you? Who opened the door?”
“Mummy,” the little girl replied, as genuinely convinced as her adult interlocutors
that her mother’s ghost continued to sustain her in those harrowing days. In
Thailand, a show like this is more than just entertainment. “In all countries, people
believe in the afterlife,” Kapol, one of Thailand’s most famous ghost experts, tells
AFP. “Westerners may believe in Satan. In the nations of Southeast Asia, we believe
in ghosts. This kind of belief helps people refrain from doing bad things. Mr A may
think ‘If I kill Mr B, he may become a ghost and come back to haunt me’.”
The spirit world is everywhere in Thailand where animism and folk beliefs are
deeply infused with Buddhism. Most buildings boast a ‘spirit house’-a shrine placed
in an auspicious corner of a property where offerings can be made to appease
ghosts lest they turn malevolent. From time to time Thailand’s notoriously fractious
politics also draw on the occult. Competing camps have openly used black magic
curses against each other while protesters often deck themselves out in amulets
that they believe make them impervious to bullets or harm.
Women praying before releasing fish into a canal to earn ‘merit’ at a Buddhist
temple.
People buying lottery tickets at a Buddhist temple.
A young woman praying while holding tarot cards used by a fortune
teller (left) to predict her future.
Misplaced faith
But some Thais say they are fed up with what they describe as naive superstitions that lead their countrymen to make poor decisions or leave them vulnerable
to exploitation. AFP met one man, who wished to remain anonymous, leading an
Internet campaign against Thai beliefs in ghosts. The man, who goes by the pseudonym “F***Ghosts” and runs a popular Facebook page with the same name,
recently caused uproar when he posted a photograph of himself stepping on a row
of zebra figurines at a busy road junction in Bangkok known for fatal crashes. Zebra
statues are a common sight at accident spots due to the belief that their stripeswhich remind people of pedestrian crossings-will fend off the unhappy ghosts of
previous traffic victims that many believe cause new crashes.
“I thought about destroying them, but there is CCTV. I am afraid society would
not accept it,” he told AFP. The man’s main gripe-which has received significant support on his Facebook page-is that Thais would rather put their faith in statues and
amulets than take concrete steps to reduce personal risk, such as driving more safely. “These kind of beliefs keep Thailand an underdeveloped country,” he fumes.
Thailand has the second-highest traffic fatality rate in the world, with 44 deaths
per 100,000 population, according to a 2014 study based on World Health
Organization figures. But while drivers cover their cars with protective trinkets to
keep safe, many still speed and drink-drive. Mototaxis are laden with amulets but
those at the wheel rarely use helmets, and often overload passengers. The
“F***Ghosts” campaign appears to be having a partial effect, with authorities in
January removing hundreds of statues that had built up around the accident black
spot-known locally as “Kong Roi Sop”, the curve that claims 100 lives. But the
removal could only go ahead once a Buddhist monk had initiated a ceremony making sure any evil spirits would leave the area. “At the beginning, the workers were
quite concerned,” admitted Supit Kraimak, head of the local sanitation department.
“But after the monk chanted, they felt more comfortable about the job.”
A statue of the famous ghost ‘Nak’.
Hublot & Behbehani Group
unveil the Ferrari F1 Simulator
H
ublot&Behbehani Group unveil their latest activity, the Ferrari F1 Simulator in
Kuwait. From January 28th till February
7th 2015, Swiss luxury watchmaker Hublot
showcases the different facets of the “Art of
Fusion” combined with the Hublot Challenge in
Kuwait, at the Grand Avenues in The Avenues
Mall, featuring the ultimate F1 racing experience
with the Ferrari F1 Simulator. The Kuwait experience is the fourth round of the Hublot Challenge
in the GCC.
The inauguration took place on January 28th,
2015 in the presence of Marco Tedeschi, Hublot
Regional Director, and Behbehani Group man-
agement. Hublot luxury timepieces featuring
high complications and innovative material are
exhibited in Prestige located at the Grand
Avenue in The Avenue Mall throughout the
duration of the Hublot Challenge. The activity
saw an array of luxury timepieces, including the
aptly named Big Bang Ferrari Ceramic Carbon
with the mythic Ferrari Yellow, alongside the Big
Bang Ferrari King Gold, the Big Bang Ferrari
Titanium Carbon with its renowned red sapphire
glass, and the Big Bang Pop Art.
As the Official timekeeper of Ferrari, Hublot is
offering guests and VIPs a fully immersive experience with the Ferrari F1 racing simulator as
part of the exhibition. The simulator features the
electronic and technical system which is used by
professional race drivers. Equipped with HD
graphics displayed onto a wrap-around curved
screen with accompanying 3D effects, the ride
transports drivers onto the track and gives a
realistic driving sensation. Hublot watches are
available at Hublot Boutique - The Avenues,
Prestige and Behbehani Group showrooms.
Lucrative business
For much of Thailand’s soothsayers, astrologers and its huge monastic network,
belief in the superstitious is also undoubtedly lucrative. Exorcisms, protective spells
and trinkets are all readily available at a price, while books and films about haunting
spirits are hugely popular. Businesses often pay monks to make annual visits to
chase away evil spirits. Thais believe a violent or unexpected death is more likely to
result in the creation of an angry ghost when a soul departs. And few ghosts are
more famous than “Nak”, a woman who Thais believe lived in Bangkok in the nineteenth century and died during childbirth while her husband was away fighting a
war.
A fortune teller using tarot cards to predict the future of a woman
(not pictured) at a Buddhist temple.
There are many versions of the story, but in general they all describe how the
husband returned to find his wife seemingly still alive. Nak was so devoted to him
that she had remained as a ghost, but became a malevolent spirit when her husband discovered the truth and ran away. “On the eve of a lottery, this temple is open
all night,” reads the sign on a shrine dedicated to Nak in Bangkok where locals make
offerings to the ghost asking for cures, good luck and exemption from military service.
Fortune-tellers ply their trade outside the shrine and devotees also release fish,
turtles and frogs into a nearby canal to earn “merit”. According to the merchants
selling the animals, the release of an eel will bring professional success and a frog
can reduce sins. The head of the temple declined to be questioned by AFP. But
those visiting were convinced their offerings to Nak would be rewarded. “I believe in
her and I believe in ghosts,” said Netnaran Janvanu, a young mother at the temple,
before adding matter-of-factly: “My friends believe in ghosts too.” — AFP
A fortune teller using tarot cards to predict the future of a young
woman.
Thailand: Land of
smiles, land of ghosts
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2015
39
Chinese Artist Liu Bolin (center) stands during a performance with masks in the lobby of the Presidente Intercontinental Hotel in Mexico City on January 28, 2015. — AFP
Magna Carta
T
he four surviving original Magna Carta copies
went on display together for the first time from
yesterday as Britain kicks off 800th anniversary
celebrations for a contract with global significance.
Considered the cornerstone of liberty, modern democracy, justice and the rule of law, the 1215 English charter
forms the basis for legal systems around the world, the
Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the US constitution.
A total of 1,215 people, drawn from a ballot, have
won the chance to see the unification at the British
Library, which is bringing together its two originals with
those of Lincoln and Salisbury cathedrals from yesterday to Wednesday. The four parchments will also be on
private show in parliament on Thursday, kicking off a
year of celebrations for a document that still has resonance eight centuries on. “No free man shall be taken or
imprisoned or disseized or outlawed or exiled or in any
way ruined, nor will we go and send against him except
by the lawful judgment of his peers by the law of the
originals reunited for
800th anniversary
land,” it states in Latin. “To no one will we sell, to no one
will we deny or delay right or justice.”
Rebel barons challenged king
In June 1215, the wayward king John agreed to the
demands of rebellious barons to curb his powers and
sealed the charter at Runnymede, a meadow by the
River Thames west of London. Although nearly a third of
the text was dropped or substantially rewritten within
10 years and almost all the 63 clauses have been
repealed, Magna Carta’s principles have become “a
potent, international rallying cry against the arbitrary
use of power”, says the British Library.
Anthony Clarke, one of Britain’s Supreme Court
judges, said it remains important as governments seek
a balance between issues of security, individual rights,
the rule of law and the “principles of justice that lie at
the foundation of society”. The principles that justice
should be available to all, the law applies to all equally
and leaders can only exercise power in accordance with
the law continue to be fought for in many parts of the
world.
The Magna Carta Trust, which looks after the memorial site in Runnymede, believes the charter’s importance is growing. “800 years on, Magna Carta’s best days
lie ahead,” it said. “As an idea of freedom, democracy
and the rule of law, it is lapping against the shores of
despotism. “The principles set out in Magna Carta have
driven the Arab Spring and the continuing protests
against despotism around the world.”
Charter linked to prosperity
Magna Carta’s principles extend well beyond the
world’s common law jurisdictions such as the United
States, India and Australia which inherited England’s
legal system. Lawyer David Wootton, a former lord mayor of London-a role representing the city’s business
heartland-said English law was the “common currency”
of global business deals precisely due to the protections
derived from Magna Carta. “Investors regard their money as safe here (in London) because of the protections
in the legal system,” he said.
“There is a close relationship between economic
development, societal development and the quality of a
country’s legal system.” Events are being staged across
England throughout 2015 to mark the anniversary,
including a major international commemoration event
at Runnymede on June 15. Exhibitions, debates, conferences, church services, lectures, charity dinners, theatre
performances, tourist trails, village fetes, and even a
national peal of bells are being staged. There will also
be a mock trial of the barons who forced the creation of
the charter in parliament’s Westminster Hall to debate
whether they were guilty of treason. — AFP
The four surviving original Magna Carta copies are pictured in display cases at the British Library in central London.
A detailed view of the British Library’s original copy of the
London Magna Carta is pictured during a photocall at the
British Library in London yesterday, as they display all
four surviving Magna Carta copies together.
A detailed view of the British Library’s original copy of
the Canterbury Magna Carta is pictured.—AFP photos
In a file picture taken November 6, 2014 visitors view the
Lincoln Cathedral Magna Carta .
‘Spewing buffalos’:
Understanding
Uganda’s ‘Uglish’
A
“detoother” or a “dentist” is a gold-digger looking
for a wealthy partner, while “spewing out buffalos” means you can’t speak proper English. And a
“side-dish” isn’t served by a waiter. Those and other
terms are articles in Uganda’s strange, often funny locally-adapted English known as “Uglish,” which is now published for the first time in dictionary form. “It is so
entrenched right now that, even when you think you
cannot use it, you actually find yourself speaking
Uglish,” Bernard Sabiiti, the author of the first Uglish dictionary, told AFP.
A picture shows
Bernard Sabiiti, the
author of the first
Uglish dictionary,
posing with his
book at his office in
Kampala. —AFP
“Even as I was researching, I was surprised that these
words are not English because they were the only ones I
knew. A word like a ‘campuser’-a university student-I
used to think was an English word.” “Uglish: A Dictionary
of Ugandan English,” which went on sale in bookshops
across the east African country late last year, contains
hundreds of popular Uglish terms, some coined by
Ugandans as far back as the colonial period. Sabiiti, 32,
said the informal patois was greatly influenced by the
local Luganda language, and is a “symptom of a serious
problem with our education system” that he claims has
been deteriorating since the 1990s.
Uglish is largely dependent on sentences being literally translated, word for word, from local dialects with
little regard for context, while vocabulary used is
derived from standard English. Meantime, Sabiiti says,
influence from the Internet, local media and musicians
have seen additional words and phrases created and
slowly enter the lexicon.
The result is colorful but at times confounding
expressions. If you haven’t seen someone for a while, for
example, you’re “lost”, while if you “design well”, you are
snappy dresser. Today, Uglish is used by people from all
walks of life, but particularly popular with youths.
English is the working language in Uganda, and it
remains the only medium of instruction in schools and
in official business. But Sabiiti said everyone from the
president to simple farmers speak at least some Uglish,
which varies according to region, tribe and gender, and
is regularly seen on signposts.”MPs are almost notorious
at using Uglish, you see it in parliamentary debates,”
said Sabiiti.—AFP