e-mail: info_ibp@balipost.co.id

online: http://www.internationalbalipost.com.

http://epaper.internationalbalipost.com.

Price: Rp 3.000,-

Thursday, January 21, 2010

16 PagesNumber 14

2nd Year

For placing advertisment,please contact: Eka Wahyuni0361-225764

HOTLINE

PAGE 6

CITY TEMPERATURE OC

WEATHERFORECAST

24 - 32

25 - 32

19 - 28

22 - 33

24 - 33

DENPASAR

JAKARTA

BANDUNG

YOGYAKARTA

SURABAYA

SUNNY BRIGHT/CLOUDY RAIN

PAGE 12

PAGE 8

I Nyoman Oka Antara, a mem-ber of Karangasem House of Rep-resentative, said that poor peoplewho suffer the most because of therabies. At least 10 people had died

Denpasar (Bali Post)—

The discourse in connectionwith Serangan-Tanjung Benoa(STB) toll road again got a reac-tion from the Denpasar House.Because, the road constructioncrossing the bridge over the sea ofBenoa was considered to removethe source of income belonging toDenpasar City government,namely Benoa Harbor area thatwas beginning to be ogled by someinvestors.

In the view of member of Com-mission B of Denpasar House, IKetut Resmiyasa, when met in his

Rabies spread in Karangasem

Tenth of Patients didn’t get VARAmlapura (Bali Post) –

The government officers seemed doesn’t care with thespread of rabies in Karangasem regency. They very busy intheir political activities near the election which will be held inMay 4th 2010.

and the other effected by it.Oka Antara said that during the

budget meting, the house alreadyprepared 300 million rupiah tohandle the spread of rabies. How-

ever, the rabies didn’t decrease butspread all over the place.

“I wonder where the entire fundgone. It is very big fund and someof them also given by Bali Govern-ment,” he added. He is very worrybecause tenth of patients whowanted to get VAR injection inKarangasem hospital didn’t get it.

I Gede Parwata Yasa, the headof Karangasem Hospital said thatthe hospital has run out of VAR

since Tuesday, January 19th 2010.Everyday approximately 70 people

come to the hospital because of dogbites. “I already warned the governmentthat there is a chance the number ofpatients requesting VAR increasing,”Parwata said. He also said that there isno use the VAR stock being increasedby the government if the people keepbitten by dogs. So the governmentshould also considering to handle thespread of wild dogs also.(013)

Denpasar House Rejects the STB Tolloffice, last Tuesday (Jan 19), a lot oflosses would afflict Denpasar Citygovernment if the project realized.He said that Benoa Harbor activitieswould be hampered by the existenceof the bridge across the driveway infront of the harbor. He said, if thebridge was built, his party believedcruise ships coming to Bali could notenter into Benoa Harbor. Not onlycruises, ships with a high sailing polewould be unable to enter. “Defi-nitely, this will prevent tourists fromgoing to Bali,” he said.

This member of the House fromSesetan revealed, in addition to in-hibiting the entry of large ships, a

number of investors who havestarted glancing Benoa develop-ment were ensured to delay theirintention. “At the moment, there areinvestors looking at the area, be-cause they considered it very stra-tegic to develop a number of busi-nesses,” he said.

However, Ketut Arya Saputra ex-pressed different opinion. The mem-ber of the House from Serangan saidthat the concepts offered in the con-struction of Serangan-TanjungBenoa could be passed through bylarge size ships. The issue then arosewhen more lands of BTID onSerangan Island would be used for

the roads. “BTID requested to usemore land of the coastal area, not inthe middle,” said Arya Saputra.

Resmiyasa judged, the roadbody to Tanjung Benoa would bebetter if going along with thecoastal area of Benoa—TanjungBenoa. Admittedly, the length ofthe road would be more than mak-ing a bridge over the sea. Moreover,the purpose of road making was toreduce traffic congestion in the areaof Dewa Ruci roundabout. “Thereare many advantages if the road toTanjung Benoa is built through theedge of coastal area,” saidResmiyasa. (kmb12)

IBP/edi

Even tough the wind is very strong but the surfers still conduct activities on Kuta beach.

Local fruits shouldbe used for ritualceremony

Celine Dion NamedThe UltimatePerformer Of TheLast Decade

Malaysia policearrest 8 overchurch arsonattack

InternationalThursday, January 21, 20102

Founder : K.Nadha, Chief Editor: ABG Satria Naradha Managing Editor: Wirata,Palgunadi Editors: Alit Purnata, Alit Susrini, Alit Sumertha, Darmasunu, Daniel Fajry, Diah Dewi, Martinaya, Mawa, Sri Hartini,

Suana, Sueca, Sugiartha, Sutiawan, Wirya, Yudi Winanto Denpasar: Dira Arsana, Giriana Saputra, Subagiadnya, Subrata, Suentra, Sumatika, Asmara Putra. Bangli: Pujawan, Buleleng: Adnyana, Gianyar: Agung

Dharmada, Karangasem: Budana, Klungkung: Bali Putra Ariawan, Tabanan: Surpi. Jakarta: Nikson, Suharto Olii, Indu P. Adi, Ahmadi Supriyanto, Achmad Nasrudin, Hardianto, Darmawan S. Sumardjo, Heru B Arifin,

Asep Djamaluddin, Ade Irawan, Ipik Tanoyo. NTB: Agus Talino, Syamsudin Karim, Izzul Khairi, Raka Akriyani, Nur Haedin, Suyadnya. Surabaya: Bambang Wilianto. Development: Alit Purnata, Mas Ruscitadewi. Office:

Jalan Kepundung 67 A Denpasar 80232. Telephone (0361)225764, Facsimile: 227418, P.O.Box: 3010 Denpasar 80001. Bali Post Jakarta, Advertizing: Jl.Palmerah Barat 21F. Telp 021-5357602, Facsimile: 021-5357605 Jakarta Pusat. NTB:

Jalam Bangau No. 15 Cakranegara Telp. (0370) 639543, Facsimile: (0370) 628257. Publiser: PT Bali Post

Bali News

Gianyar (Bali Post)—Gianyar Resort Police, last Tues-

day (Jan 19), finally decided a sus-pect in the case of maltreatment thatnearly led to clashes of a group ofresidents from Sengguan KanginHamlet with Lekok Hamlet,Gianyar, last Sunday (Jan 10). De-termination of the suspect statuswas made after investigators ofGianyar Resort Police examinedeight witnesses, including DS(Dewa Sui) from Lekok Hamlet be-coming the injured victim due tothe cutting down in the incident.

Chief of Gianyar Resort Police,Ketut Suardana, accompanied byChief Unit of Detective Team ofGianyar Resort Police, Dewa MadeAdnyana, confirmed that police hadset one of the suspects in theclashes. Status of suspect was in-tended to AR (Alit Rama), a resi-dent of Sengguan Kangin Hamlet.At around 4:00 pm Local Time, ARbecoming a suspect was immedi-ately arrested, he said.

Determination of the suspectstatus by the police was based onexamination done by investigatorsfrom a number of witnesses fromboth groups of residents. Of thesewitnesses clearly stated that theAR persecuted the victims. Thesuspect AR was ensnared by Ar-ticle 351of the Penal Code regard-

Meanwhile, in the last budgetyear 2009, Bali got allocation for3,307 teachers and in 2008amounted to 4,062 teachers. Thismeans that the quota of teachercertification allocated by centralgovernment for Bali diminishesfrom year to year. The Head ofBali Education Quality AssuranceAgency (LPMP Bali), Dr. I WayanSunata, accompanied by the Di-vision Head of General Affairs, IWayan Arnawa, said that matter,last Tuesday (Jan 19).

According to Sunata, the cen-tral government through budgetimplement document (DIPA) ofLPMP Bali allocated at IDR 1.98billion more to support the teachercertification program. Most of thefunds would be distributed to theWorkforce Training Agency(LPTK) which was believed to re-

Denpasar (Bali Post)—The ranks of Indonesia Association

of Teachers (PGRI) of DenpasarBranch remain unsatisfied with thedecision of government that validatesthe National Examination (UN) as acondition of graduation. Moreover, forstudents of vocational high school thatrequired to have skills will be harmedby the current UN format. To that end,the Head of PGRI Denpasar, NengahMadiadnyana, would forward this in-justice to the National Working Meet-ing (Congress) of PGRI in Kalimantan,January 22-25.

He considered the government wasstill covering up about the graduationof high school /vocational school andjunior high school students today. Theproof, there were minimal require-ments with an average score of 5.5. Inother words, it indicated another formof central government intervention onthe rights of teacher board meeting todetermine the graduation. Teacherboard meeting would mean nothing ifthe score of the UN had been received

Tabanan (Bali Post)—Compound wall of Ulun Danu

Beratan Temple collapsed, last Fri-day (Jan 15). Allegedly, the col-lapse of wall with the length of 20meters was caused by the rainsfalling in succession, non-exist-ence of adequate drainage and lessstrong foundations. The incidentcaused a loss of more than tens ofmillions of rupiah.

The authority of local tourismobject, I Wayan Mustika, said toperform the improvements andceremony would need a budget ofapproximately IDR 150 million.He added the collapse of such wallcompound did not disturb anytourism activities in the area, butcaused a large enough loss.

Additionally, he said that the

Diminishes, the Allocation ofDiminishes, the Allocation ofDiminishes, the Allocation ofDiminishes, the Allocation ofDiminishes, the Allocation ofTeacher Certification for BaliTeacher Certification for BaliTeacher Certification for BaliTeacher Certification for BaliTeacher Certification for BaliDenpasar (Bali Post)—

In this budget year 2010, the number of teachers in Bali having the opportunity to follow thecertification process will certainly fewer than in the previous years. For the 2010 quota, Bali isonly allocated for 3,305 teachers out of 2,671 teachers of primary education (kindergarten, el-ementary and junior high school) and 634 teachers of secondary education (senior and voca-tional high school).

view and assess the portfolio of theparticipant of teacher certification.“The budget does not include theimplementation of EducationalTraining for Teaching Profession(PLPG) for teacher certificationparticipants that did not pass in theportfolio test. Total budget for theinterest will be adjusted to the bud-get plan when the activity is held,”he said.

Sunata added that the allotmentfor 3,305 teachers would be dis-tributed proportionally to the Edu-cational, Youth and Sports Services(Disdikpora) of Regency/Cityacross Bali. Of course, the re-gency/city with high teacher popu-lation would be given a greatershare than other areas of lowerteacher population. “For the pur-pose of the ration distribution, wewill hold a special meeting with the

Disdikpora of Bali Province andRegency/City across Bali,” hesaid.

When contacted separately, theOrganizing Coordinator ofTeacher Certification Program ofRegion 21, Prof. Dr. NyomanSudiana, was ready to examineand assess the portfolio of thou-sands of part icipants of theteacher certification. For the in-terest, his party would involve atleast 187 assessors consisting oflecturers with postgraduate aca-demic qualification. In that way,the process of examination andportfolio assessment could becompleted more quickly. “We hopethat teachers getting the opportunityto follow the certification processin the 2010 budget year could takeadvantage of that opportunity asgood as possible,” he said. (kmb13)

Injustice of UN Will beBrought to National Meeting

by the school. Yet for vocational stu-dents, their pure score should be com-bined again with the score of the se-mester, and then divided.

Nengah Madiadnyana who is alsothe Head of SMK PGRI MKKS ofDenpasar said his party would forwardtheir voice in the Congress later to cor-rect the UN and graduation formats.Thus, the upcoming PGRI Congresswould really give justice to the students.Actually, he could agree with the UNformat but without minimal require-ments of the passing grade because theschool-based quality improvement layon the hands of schools and teacherboard. The pure UN score could be usedto measure the quality purely, not theresult of engineering.

Among the subjects tested in theUN, a number of vocational studentsadmitted most afraid of math. “Studentsfeel strange, other than obliged to beready to work with skills, on the otherside we must pass the math nationalexamination that we dislike,” said MadeNuratni, one of the vocational school

students.The Headmaster of SMK PGRI

Denpasar, I Ketut Suarya, claimed toremain worried if their students wouldfail in mathematics. In his perspective,the subjects like Bahasa Indonesia andEnglish have been enough because hisschool belonged to vocational tourismschool, but for the math was still doubt-ful. Moreover, he admitted that the stu-dents who attended vocational schoolconsisted of those who were weak inmathematics. Probably, it could hap-pen that students who tested their skillsin Bali did not pass because of math.

Madiadyana, who is also theHeadmaster of SMK PGRI 3Denpasar, said that mathematics be-came a scourge for vocational highschool students. “Most vocationalstudents dislike mathematics, but oth-ers should be considered for studentgraduation. The key to their success,he said, should pass the test of pureproductive subjects both in theoryand practice. This is what I describeas injustice of the UN.” (025)

Police Set the Suspectin the Riot Caseamong Residents

ing to persecution. Meanwhile, inthe cases of clash between the twogroups, the police were still inves-tigating and hearing the testimonyfrom several witnesses, he ex-plained.

As reported earlier, at around7:45 pm Local Time, last Sunday(10), the frontier between theSengguan Kangin Hamlet andLekok Hamlet was in high tensioncaused by fighting of both groupsoriginating from a misunderstand-ing. Because of the fight, DS wasthen hospitalized as afflicted an in-jury due to a cutting of a sharpweapon. Victim DS suffered fromcutting injuries at shoulder to hischest, hands and rear hip.

Tensions of the two groupsthen continued on last Saturday(Jan 16) night. However, the prob-lem was just triggered by theproblem originating from a fric-tion with a parking attendantnamed Bandem from SengguanKangin Hamlet with one of thepeople denoting a relative of thevictim from of Lekok Hamlet. Thisproblem again raised tensions bymobilizing residents of the twogroups armed with swords, spearsand air rifles. A truck of Mass Con-trol Unit from Gianyar Resort Po-lice was prepared at location to se-cure both territories. (kmb16)

Compound Wall of BeratanTemple Collapses

continuous rain, less sturdy foun-dation and unavailability of drain-age were alleged to become thecause such collapse. Mustikastated that his party has reportedthe incident to the Tabanan PublicWorks Services.

Within the past few days, therain accompanied by strongwind made the Tabanan commu-nity aware. Although there havebeen no significant incidentsdue to the rain and wind, thecondition caused a falling treefew days ago. Meanwhile, poordrainage in Tabanan city causeda flooding frequently. Heavyrains ensuing for a few hourscould cause flood and made thecity viler because rubbishesscattered around. (kmb14)

3Thursday, January 21, 2010International Bali News

To welcome the Caka New Year 1932, theGovernment of Denpasar City will organizean Ogoh-Ogoh competition among the SekaaTaruna or customary village youth club acrossDenpasar City. Other than for ritual aspect,this competition will also become an arenaof creativity for young people, especiallySekaa Taruna throughout Denpasar City.

This was conveyed by the Denpasar MayorI B Rai D. Mantra in his speech before SekaaTaruna of Denpasar City last Tuesday (Jan 19)at Praja Utama Room of Denpasar Mayor Of-fice. Also present on that occasion was RaiIswara, Regional Secretary of Denpasar City,Assistant II Edy Mulya, Division Head ofPublic Welfare, the Denpasar Customary Vil-lage Assembly and the Head of Denpasar As-sembly of Cultural Advisory (Listibiya).

Rai Mantra further stated, the ogoh-ogohof papier-mâché demon competition which inthis year would be organized again denoted aform of government’s attention in respond-ing to the development of creativity of theyoung, especially teenagers. For that purpose,his party should give more spaces to the youngin order they could express theirs by pouringall the ideas and creativity. “This superiorculture-based creativity has been showed offby those teenagers like in the event of kitescompetition, ogoh-ogoh, and traditionalsports such as metajog (stilts), mecingklak,gale-gale and others. To me, they are veryproud because in entering the competitive

Based on information collected, last Tuesday(Jan 19), two foreigners became the victims ofATM skimming were Robert Allan Nicksic, 53,an American with the address at Seminyak AsriHousing No. 41 Kuta, Seminyak and RichardLewis Garrison, 62, a retired and American na-tional living at Uma Alas Kauh No. 60,Kerobokan Kelod, North Kuta.

The victim Robert admitted of losing moneyin his ATM worth IDR 25 million, last Saturday(Jan 16). His loss of money was known only af-ter the victim made transaction at the ATM BCAat Petrol Station located on Jalan Dewi Sri, Kuta,at 3:00 pm Local Time. Knowing this, the vic-tim immediately reported the case to the Kutapolice station.

Meanwhile, the victim Richard Lewis alsoadmitted to experience the same case. His sav-ings at the ATM was also known to disap-pear. A total amount of IDR18.5 million wasknown to vanish at an ATM BCA located onJalan Laksmana, Kuta. After checking, in fact

IBP/edi

During rainy season, the government conducted fogging regularly in order to pre-vent the spread of dengue fever

ATM Skimming AfflictsATM Skimming AfflictsATM Skimming AfflictsATM Skimming AfflictsATM Skimming AfflictsTwo AmericansTwo AmericansTwo AmericansTwo AmericansTwo AmericansTens of Millions VanishedDenpasar (Bali Post)—

Theft action through ATM skimming was experienced by two Americans.Their money worth tens of millions was totally taken out. This case of ATMfraud occurred in the Kuta police jurisdiction. Not only foreigners, some localresidents equally become the victims.

his savings have been withdrawn by the thieffor five times.

Chief of Kuta Sector Police, Dodi Prawira,when asked for his confirmation justified theaction of ATM skimming. Until now, there havebeen dozens of victims reporting such cases.Thus, his party would make coordination withBali Police to ask for help, in this regard was thecyber-crime team.

On the other hand, the Spokesperson of BaliPolice, Gde Sugianyar, stated, the cyber crimeteam of Bali Police would make coordination aswell with related parties on responding to therampant ATM fraud case. Of course, it would beprioritized and tracked whether it had caused anydamage or misuse of PIN system because basedon the reports, most victims claimed their moneylost without a transaction. In fact, there was onevictim claimed to lose money until reaching IDR140 million. “Well, we will check this later. Ofcourse, we will involve a team of cyber crime,”he explained. (kmb21)

Encouraging the Creativity of the YoungDenpasar Puts Ogoh-Ogohinto Competition

world today, identity has a very importantmeaning,” he asserted.

For that purpose, Rai Mantra as a populistfigure placed huge expectations to the cus-tomary youth clubs in order they could spreadthe creativity to the wider general public whileinviting them to be always creative with a va-riety of innovative design and the mayor wasready to facilitate. In the ogoh-ogoh compe-tition, the Mayor delivered a financial devel-opment fund worth IDR 3.5 million to eachyouth club making the ogoh-ogoh.

In the meantime, the Head of Denpasar As-sembly of Customary Village, Made Karim,in his presentation explained more about therole of youth club. He stated that youth clubplayed strategic roles and functions in soci-etal life. According to him, youth club wasthe children of hamlet that would resume thedevotional services of their parents and be-came inheritors of local culture.

Afterward, Komang Astita, the Head ofDenpasar Assembly of Cultural Advisory, ex-plained more about technical matters of thecompetition. According to him, the assessmentwould be divided into two stages namely forthe level of subdistrict for three winners andlater on those winners would be assessed atCatur Muka statue (the heart of Denpasar).He also added that the competition once be-coming stagnant denoted an arena of art andcultural creativity in combination with the re-ligious activities.

International4 Thursday, January 21, 2010 News

The comments, made as the two sides held asecond day of talks on further developing theirjoint industrial complex in the North, were likelyto draw an angry reaction from Pyongyang,which recently issued its own threat to breakoff dialogue with Seoul and attack.

South Korea should “immediately launch astrike” on the North if there is a clear intentionof a pending nuclear attack, Defense MinisterKim Tae-young said at a seminar in Seoul.

Kim made similar remarks in 2008 when hewas chairman of South Korea’s Joint Chiefs ofStaff, prompting North Korea to threaten to de-stroy the South. The North, which conductedunderground nuclear tests in 2006 and 2009,claims its nuclear weapons are not for useagainst South Korea but are a security guaran-tee against what it calls U.S. hostility.

Despite the rhetoric, officials held follow-updiscussions Wednesday on the industrial com-plex in the North Korean border city of Kaesong,according to Seoul’s Unification Ministry. It didnot provide further details.

The South Korean delegation was scheduledto return home later Wednesday, UnificationMinistry spokesman Chun Hae-sung said. OnTuesday, the two sides met for nearly four hoursto assess a joint tour of industrial parks in Chinaand Vietnam undertaken in December.

Kaesong, which combines South Korean capi-tal and technology with cheap North Korean la-bor, is the most prominent symbol of coopera-tion between the two countries still technicallyat war. About 110 South Korean factories em-ploy some 42,000 North Korean workers.

The complex came under a cloud in late 2008,however, when North Korea tightened restric-tions on border crossings amid growing tensionsbetween the two countries.

AFP

MANILA (AFP) – A Philippine politician accused of mas-sacring 57 people displayed no emotion Wednesday as grislyfootage was shown in court of the victims’ mangled and blood-ied bodies being pulled from mass graves.

The video clips were part of evidence introduced by pros-ecutors against Andal Ampatuan Jnr, who is charged withmurder over the election-related killings in the southern prov-ince of Maguindanao in November.

“What they did was too brutal. It was worse than demonic,”said Emmy Intia, a coordinator with Volunteers Against Crimeand Corruption, who was one of several people who left thecourt after finding the footage unbearable.

Filmed by a local government employee who accompa-nied police as they retrieved the victims from the mass gravesin the two days after the murders, the video showed bloodiedbodies, some of which were already decomposing.

While the case has attracted global publicity and domi-nated local media, it was the first opportunity for many peoplelinked to the case to see the 180 minutes of footage of thebodies being hauled out of the mass graves.

As the footage was shown, a sister of one of the femalevictims broke down and had to be helped out of the court-room.

AP

BEIJING – A former Chinese democracy movement leader who washanded over to mainland China from Hong Kong — some say illegally— has been sentenced to nine years in prison on the charge of attemptedfraud, his lawyer said Wednesday.

Zhou Yongjun was sentenced last Friday in the southwestern city ofShehong after an initial hearing on Nov. 19, Chen Zerui told The Asso-ciated Press. He was also fined 80,000 yuan ($11,700), but planned toappeal his conviction, Chen said.

A duty officer reached by phone at the court confirmed Zhou’s con-viction, but said he had no knowledge of the sentence or other details.

Zhou captured global attention in 1989 by kneeling on the steps ofthe Great Hall of the People beside Tiananmen Square in a plea for China’scommunist leaders to acknowledge student calls for political reformsand an end to corruption.

Hundreds, possibly thousands, of people are believed to have beenkilled in the army’s crackdown on the demonstrations. Many veterans ofthe movement who were not exiled continue to suffer government ha-rassment. Zhou had been living in the United States since smugglinghimself out of China in 1993, but was arrested in August 2008 whileattempting to enter Hong Kong on a phony Malaysian passport bearingthe name Wang Xingxiang.

Supporters say he was planning on returning to mainland China tovisit his elderly parents and accuse Hong Kong’s government of violat-ing its own laws in sending him to the mainland.

Hong Kong was handed back to China in 1997 but maintains its Brit-ish colonial era legal system and lacks a deportation and removal treatywith mainland China. Details of the charges against Zhou remain murky,as is common in China’s opaque legal system.

AFP/File

A North Korean border guard takes pictures at the trucevillage of Panmunjom

SKorean minister: HitSKorean minister: HitSKorean minister: HitSKorean minister: HitSKorean minister: HitNorth first if threatenedNorth first if threatenedNorth first if threatenedNorth first if threatenedNorth first if threatenedAP

SEOUL, South Korea – South Korea’s de-fense chief called Wednesday for a pre-emptivestrike on North Korea if there is a clear indica-tion the country is preparing a nuclear attack.

AP

FILE - In this Oct. 12, 2009 file photo, Zhang Yuewei, girlfriend ofChinese dissident Zhou Yongjun

9 year sentence for ex-China democracy leader

AFP

Philippine politician Andal Ampatuan Jnr, the prime sus-pect in the massacre of 57 people in Maguindanao

Grisly massacre footage shown at Philippine trialA male lawyer representing the victims also rushed out of

the silent courtroom, covering his mouth as he headed for thebathroom to vomit.

However, Ampatuan Jnr, who has pleaded not guilty, hadno visible reaction.

Sitting in a lavender shirt and flanked by security escortsand lawyers, Ampatuan Jnr watched the footage impassivelyas body after body was dug up from the earth.

At one point he casually applied liniment to his neck whilestifling a yawn.

“He looked bored. It was like the most ordinary thing towatch,” Lilian de Lima, head of the government’s Commis-sion on Human Rights, who was in the courtroom, told report-ers.

Prosecutors allege Ampatuan Jnr and about 100 of his gun-men abducted and shot dead the victims to stop a rival, EsmaelMangudadatu, from running against him for the post ofMaguindanao governor in May elections.

Mangudadatu’s wife and pregnant sister, as well as at least30 journalists travelling with them, were among the 57 killed.Mangudadatu had sent his relatives to an election office to reg-ister his candidacy.

Police have said Ampatuan Jnr’s father and namesake, thepatriarch of the clan, who was then governor of Maguindanao,should also be charged over the killings.

General Info Thursday, January 21, 2010 5International

Denpasar

There are 4 major hospitals usually used by foreigners -Denpasar General Hospital(RSUP Sanglah), Kasih Ibu Hospital, Rumah Sakit Wongayaand Rumah Sakit Dharma Husada.

RSUP Sanglah is the main provincial public hospital. Itsfacilities have improved since the emergency ward had beenbuilt in 1991. Difficult/critical cases would not become aproblem anymore since it has complete equipments. It islocated on Jl. KesehatanSelatan 1 Sanglah Denpasar with :Phone : 227 911 – 15Fax : 226 363

Kasih Ibu Hospital is a private hospital which caters forless serious cases such as diarrhea, intestinal disorders, ane-mia, asthma and minor accidents. Kasih Ibu is also equippedto care for pregnant women. This hospital is located on Jl.Teuku Umar 120 Denpasar.Phone : 223 036Fax : 268 690.

Rumah Sakit Wongaya (Public Hospital; Psychiatric Unit)Jl. Kartini, Denpasar.Phone : 222 142.

Rumah Sakit Dharma Husada , (Private)Jl. Sudirman No 50, DenpasarPhone : 227 560, 234 824

In relating with health, Bali also has insurance and medicalevacuation company, thatis:AEA International - SOS Assistance Bali.PT Abhaya Eka Astiti, Jl. By Pass Ngurah RaiNo. 24X, Kuta 80361.Phone : 755 768 Fax : 755 768One thing that should be noted by tourists here is that theBlood Bank in Bali normally carries no stock of Rhesus (Rh)Negative blood.

Badung

Bali Medical ClinicsThere are some medical clinics that are well known by for-eigners in Bali. Some of them are western owned and oper-ated :

Bali International Medical Center (BIMC)Bali International Medical Centre (BIMC) provides excel-lent Primary Health Care & Emeregency Medical Servicesfor tourists, traveler, and expatriate living in Bali.Emeregency Room, Ambulance, Clinic Services, Insurance& Medical Evacuations also available. Open 24 hours Phone: 761 2631. Located Jl. By Pass Ngurah Rai No.100X, Kuta,Bali 80361 - Indonesia. http://www.bimcbali.com

International SOS Clinic BaliOpened in 1999, offers International SOS members and visi-tors to Bali comprehensive primary health care and 24-houremergency medical service.Jl. By Pass Ngurah Rai 505X, Kuta 80361, Bali - IndonesiaPhone : 720 100 Fax : 721 919E-mail : info@sos-bali.comttp ://www.sos-bali.com

Bali Nusa Dua Emergency ClinicJl Pratama No. 81 Phone : 771 324

Kuta ClinicJl. Raya Kuta Phone : 753 268

Dental ClinicDr Indra Guizot, Jl. Patimura 19, DenpasarPhone : 222 445, 234 375

DDS. Ritjie Rihartinah, Jl Pratama No. 81Nusa Dua Phone : 771 324

Retno W. Agung, Jln. Bypass Ngurah Rai No.4ABr. Tamansari – Sanur Phone : 288 501

Australian Consulate GeneralJalan Tantular 32 Renon DenpasarPhone: +62 361 241118Fax: +62 361 221195 (General) +62 361 241120 (Immigration)

Royal Danish & NorwegianMimpi Resort Jimbaran, BaliPhone +62.361.701 070

The Czech RepublicJalan Pengembak No. 17 Sanur, BaliPhone +62.361.286 465

France Consulate AgencyJalan Merta Sari Gang II No. 8 Sanur, BaliPhone +62.361.285 485

The Federal Republic of GermanyJalan Pantai Karang No 17 Sanur, BaliPhone +62.361.288 535

The Republic of HungaryJalan By Pass No 219 Sanur, BaliPhone +62.361.287 701

Italian ConsulateJalan By Pass Ngurah Rai Jimbaran, BaliPhone +62.361.701 005

Honorary Consulate of MexicoJalan Mohamad Yamin 1 A, Renon, Denpasar, BaliPhone +62.361.223 266

Honorary Consulate of The NetherlandsJalan Raya Kuta 127, BaliPhone +62.361.761 506

Honorary Consulate of SpainKomplek Istana Kuta Galleria Blok Vallet 2 No 11. JalanPatih Jelantik Kuta, BaliPhone +62.361.769 286

USA Consulate AgencyJalan Hayam Wuruk No. 188 Denpasar, BaliPhone +62.361.222 426

Consulate General of JapanJalan Raya Puputan No. 170 Renon, Denpasar, BaliPhone +62.361.227 628

Honorary Consulate of BritishJalan Tirta Nadi No. 20 Sanur, BaliPhone +62.361.270 601

Swiss and Austria ConsulateJalan Patih Jelantik, Komplek Pertokoan IstanaGalleriaPhone +62.361.751 735

Honorary Consulate of BrazilJalan Legian No. 186, BaliPhone +62.361.757 775

Honorary Consulate of ThailandJalan Raya Puputan Renon 81, Denpasar, BaliPhone +62.361.263 310

Embassy of IndiaJalan Raya Puputan Renon 42-44, Denpasar, BaliPhone +62.361.241 978

Honorary Consulate of Sweden anf FinlandSegara Village Hotel, Jalan Segara Ayu, Sanur, BaliPhone +62.361.282 223

Honorary Consulate of MalaysiaAlam Kulkul Boutique Resort, Jalan Pantai Kuta, BaliPhone +62.361.752 520

Bangli

Bangli General HospitalJl. Kesumayuda 27, BangliPhone : +62 366 91521

Gianyar

Clinic MasJl. Raya Mas, UbudPhone : +62 361 974573

Toyo ClinicJl. Pengosekan, UbudPhone : +62 361 978078

Permata Bunda ClinicJl. Patih Jelantik 50 X, GianyarPhone : +62 361 942082

Ubud ClinicJl Raya Ubud No.36 Campuhan, UbudPhone : +62 361 974911

Gianyar General HospitalJl. Ciung Wanara 2, GianyarPhone : +62 361 943049

Karangasem

Karangasem General HospitalJl. Ngurah Rai, KarangasemPhone : +62 363 21001

Klungkung

Klungkung General HospitalJl. Flamboyan 40-4, KlungkungPhone : +62 366 21371

Negara

Negara General HospitalJl. Gelar, NegaraPhone : +62 365 41006

Tabanan

Laboratorium ClinicJl. Gunung semeru No. 8, TabananPhone : +62 361 819260

Mengwi ClinicJl. I Gusti Ngurah Rai 46, TabananPhone : +62 361 880550

Darma Kerti HospitalJl. Teratai 16, TabananPhone : +62 361 812359

Tabanan General HospitalJl. Pahlawan 14, TabananPhone : +62 361 811027

Praja Taxi : (0361) 289090Bali Taxi : (0361) 701111Ngurah Rai Taxi : (0361) 724724Pan Wirthi Taxi : (0361) 723366Komotra Taxi : (0361) 758855

Singaraja

Prodia ClinicJl. RA Kartini 12, Singaraja Bali0362 - 24-516

Singaraja HospitalJl. Ngurah Rai 30, Singaraja Bali0362 - 22-573

Pet ClinicsKayumas: (0361) 226934Sayang Binatang: (0361) 483121Satwa Kertha Husada: (0361) 263018Pantai Sindhu: (0361) 287518Sidakarya: (0361) 724492Pedungan: (0361) 720026

HOSPITALIMIGRATION HOSPITAL

TAXIS

Thursday, January 21, 20106 News

The unprecedented attacks on 11churches and a Sikh temple were appar-ently sparked by a Dec. 31 court verdictthat upset many ethnic Malay Muslimswho insist that letting Christians use “Al-lah” in their Malay-language publicationscould confuse some Muslims and enticethem to convert.

The dispute has strained ties betweenMalays, who make up nearly two-thirdsof Malaysia’s 28 million people, and reli-gious minorities, mainly ethnic Chineseand Indians who practice Buddhism,Christianity or Hinduism. Minority com-munities often complain about what theybelieve is institutionalized religious dis-crimination.

Authorities detained eight suspectssince Tuesday in connection to a Jan. 8attack on Kuala Lumpur’s Metro Taber-nacle Church, which had its office guttedby fire, said Bakri Zinin, the federal po-lice chief of criminal investigations. It wasthe first and most serious of all the attackson churches.

“We believe that we solved this case,”Bakri told a news conference.

The suspects were all Malays from 21to 26 years old, according to a police state-ment. Police tracked them down after oneof them sought treatment at a hospital forburn injuries, Bakri said.

They could be charged with “mischiefby fire or explosive substance with intentto destroy” a place of worship, which ispunishable by a maximum 20-year prisonsentence and a fine. Police have obtaineda court order to detain the men for at leasta week pending further investigation.

A Metro Tabernacle Church official,Peter Yeow, praised police for the break-through.

AP

APPOMATTOX, Va. – Police early Wednes-day swarmed the woods and cornered a man whothey said shot and killed eight people and fired ona state police helicopter that was searching for him,rupturing its fuel tank.

Officers manned a road block along a pitch-dark,narrow, undivided country lane in central Virginiawhere police believed Christopher Speight, 39, washiding. On Tuesday, police found three bodies in-side a home on the road, with four other victimslying just outside.

The drama began to unfold around noon Tues-day when an eighth victim was spotted barely alivealong the side of the road. A deputy who answeredthe emergency call heard more gunshots and soonthe area just about 3 miles from the state policedistrict headquarters was filled with law enforce-ment from all over, with more than 100 respond-ing. The injured man died on the way to the hospi-tal, said state police Sgt. Thomas Molnar.

Police with dogs and heat-sensing equipmentfrom a National Guard helicopter planned to huntthrough the night.

“They ... will continue until the suspect is ap-prehended,” Molnar said.

Earlier, as teams swarmed trying to catch thegunman, he fired at the helicopter trying to flushhim out, police said. One or more rounds struckthe helicopter, forcing it down, but no police wereinjured.

Police refused to speculate on a motive andwould not say what type of weapon was used.Molnar also gave no background on the suspect,saying not much was known about him. Speight’slast known address was along the block lined withmodest ranch and Cape Cod-style homes wherethe shootings occurred, but Molnar did not know ifthe suspect was still living there.

Police did not release the victims’ names or thesuspect’s possible relationship to them. All the vic-tims were adults and both men and women were

Reuters

JOS, Nigeria (Reuters) – Clashes betweenMuslim and Christian gangs subsided onWednesday in the Nigerian city of Jos, whererights activists said the death toll has topped 200,but sporadic gunfire could be heard in neighbor-ing communities.

Hundreds of soldiers and police were sta-tioned throughout Plateau state’s capital city incentral Nigeria to enforce a 24-hour curfew,which has left many streets deserted and busi-nesses closed.

U.S.-based Human Rights Watch said 151 bod-ies had been taken to the city’s mosque for burialsince the violence started on Sunday, while thenumber of Christian dead was put at 65.

“The fighting has stopped in Jos, but we canhear gunshots in other communities in the out-skirts of the city. We are expecting more corpsesto be brought in from surrounding communitieslater today,” said Muhammad Tanko Shittu, a se-nior mosque official organizing mass burials, whoestimated the death toll among Muslims at 155.

The official police figures were significantlylower with 20 people dead, 40 injured and 168arrested since Sunday.

Vice President Goodluck Jonathan, in his firstuse of executive power, ordered troops to Jos onTuesday to restore calm and prevent a repetitionof clashes in November 2008, when hundredsof residents were killed in the country’s worstsectarian fighting in years.

It was not clear whether President UmaruYar’Adua, who has been in hospital in SaudiArabia for nearly two months, had been briefedon the situation.

AFP/File –

Malaysian Muslim volunteers stand guard outside St. James Church in KualaLumpur on Jaunary 12.

Malaysia police arrest 8Malaysia police arrest 8Malaysia police arrest 8Malaysia police arrest 8Malaysia police arrest 8over church arson attackover church arson attackover church arson attackover church arson attackover church arson attackAP

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia – Malaysian police Wednesday announcedthe arrest of eight Muslim men who allegedly attacked a Christian churchwith a firebomb — the first suspects in a spate of assaults on churches after acourt ruled that non-Muslims could use the word “Allah” to refer to God.

“Right from the word ‘go,’ the authori-ties have been doing their job quite well,”Yeow said. “We have put the event be-hind us. We are concentrating on goingon with our lives.”

The disquiet centers on a court rulingin which the Herald, the newspaper of theRoman Catholic Church in Malaysia, ar-gued it has the right to use the word “Al-lah” in its Malay-language edition be-cause the word predates Islam and is com-monly used by Christians in other pre-dominantly Muslim countries, such asEgypt, Indonesia and Syria.

The verdict overturned a years-old gov-ernment ban on the use of the word in non-Muslim publications.

The government has appealed the de-cision while also condemning the churchattacks and pledging to uphold freedomof religion guaranteed to minorities by theconstitution.

Among the attacks in various Malay-sian states, eight churches werefirebombed, two were splashed with paint,one had its window broken, while a Sikhtemple was pelted with stones, apparentlybecause Sikhs use “Allah” in their scrip-tures.

Suspected vandals threw a rum bottleat a mosque last weekend in the first at-tack on a Muslim house of worship.

The controversy has reinforced con-cerns that the country is coming under theinfluence of hard-line Islam.

Minorities have complained of difficul-ties in obtaining approval to build newchurches and temples. Last year, dozensof Muslims paraded with the bloodiedhead of a cow, a sacred animal in Hindu-ism, to protest the proposed relocation ofa Hindu temple in their neighborhood.

8 dead in Va. shootings; police corner suspectkilled, Molnar said.

He would not say if all the victims were shot atthe home where most of the bodies were found. Healso would not say whether the shootings happenedat Speight’s address or another house.

A Google map search shows the area of theshootings was thick with trees, sometimes givingway to large clearings, which look to be farm fields.Buildings were spread out along the mostly flat area.Molnar said police believe Speight was still withinthe perimeter they had set up to surround him, butwould not say how large an area they were search-ing. Police said they are also looking for a car and apickup truck that belonged to Speight.

Speight was not listed as an offender on the Vir-ginia Department of Corrections Web site and asearch for his name on the Appomattox Countycourts site came up with no matches.

Speight’s address was included in online real es-tate listings posted last year. They say the woodenhouse had three bedrooms and three bathrooms andsat on 34 acres. One online listing said homes in thearea sell for about $189,000.

Appomattox is in a county of about 15,000 ap-proximately 100 miles southwest of Richmond. Itis best known as the place where Confederate Gen.Robert E. Lee surrendered to Union Gen. UlyssesS. Grant to end the Civil War.

After the shootings, authorities told nearby resi-dents to stay inside and a small Christian school waslocked down until state police could escort about 60children from the building.

Resident Bethel Hawkins said police warnedfamilies to lock their doors in an area with manysenior citizens.

“We’re just being cautious, keeping our doorslocked, not going outside,” said Hawkins, who livesabout 2 miles up the road from where the shootingsoccurred. “Our church service is supposed to be to-night, but we talked with our pastor and told himwe’re not coming out. We’re not going out in thedark not knowing what’s out there. But we trust inthe Lord to take care of us.”

Religious clashes kill 200 in Nigerian cityThis week’s violence erupted after an argument

between Muslim and Christian neighbors over therebuilding of homes destroyed in the 2008 clashes.

The fighting is unlikely to have a big impacton sub-Saharan Africa’s second biggest economy.Its oil industry is in the south and its banking sec-tor mainly in the commercial capital Lagos.

Burned BODIESA Reuters correspondent saw three burned bod-

ies lying on the streets in Jos and several build-ings and cars destroyed by fire. Armoured vehiclesand soldiers patrolled the city, while residents ven-tured outside with their arms held up to signalthey were unarmed.

The city’s main hospital, Jos University Teach-ing Hospital, treated about 50 patients on Tuesdayand was forced to turn away others. Two died fromtheir injuries. “Ninety percent of the casualties werefrom gunshot injuries with a few from knives andbows and arrows,” said Dr. Dabit Joseph, whoworks at Jos University Teaching Hospital.

The Red Cross has 40 staff workers and sev-eral volunteers at seven centres in Jos to help thou-sands of displaced residents, an agency spokes-man said.

Residents said most people were staying in-doors because of rumors that some gangs weredressed up in fake military and police uniforms.

“Government has received with concern re-ports of men in fake security uniforms attackingunsuspecting citizens. Measures are being put inplace to tackle this issue,” Plateau State Gover-nor Jonah Jang said late Tuesday.

Nigeria has roughly equal numbers of Chris-tians and Muslims, although traditional animistbeliefs underpin many people’s faiths.

Thursday, January 21, 2010 7Indonesia TodayInternational

They flew to Jakarta escorted byIndonesian foreign ministry and Aus-tralian embassy officials in Jakarta.

“They are the last batch of a total of78 Sri Lankan immigrants who wereaccommodated at the Tanjungpinangimmigration detention center after theyhad to get off the Australian vesselOceanic Viking,” Samsu Rizal, an In-donesian foreign ministry official, saidhere on Wednesday.

All of the Sri Lankan immigrantshad met the conditions to be resettledin the third countries, he said.

“Three of them will be flown toMelbourne, Australia, and 13 others to

AP Photo/Syaifullah

Sri Lankan asylum seekers sit inside a bus prior to their departure in Tanjung Pinang, Bintan island, Indone-sia, Wednesday, Jan. 20, 2010. Sixteen Sri Lankan asylum seekers, the last batch of 78 ethnic Tamils rescuedby Australian Customs officials in October, have left for Australia and New Zealand for resettlement.

Agence France-Presse

JAKARTA - Indonesian eco-nomic ministers appeared splitWednesday over the impact of aregional free trade deal withChina, as lawmakers sought an-swers over possible layoffs andfactory shut-downs.

Industry Minister M.S. Hidayattold parliament he feared the freetrade agreement between Chinaand the Association of SoutheastAsian Nations (ASEAN), whichtook full effect on January 1, couldlead to job losses.

He said the “most serious im-pact” would fall on the steel, tex-tile, unorganic chemical, furnitureand energy-saving lamp indus-tries, and called for the pact to berenegotiated to shield such sectorsfrom Chinese competition.

“If there aren’t any protectivesteps taken for these industrieswe’re afraid that there will be ...layoffs and even the closure ofthose industries,” he said.

But in a sign of the tensionswithin the government of Presi-dent Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono,Hidayat told reporters outside par-liament he was “not allowed” togive estimates of potential joblosses.

Meanwhile Trade MinisterMari Pangestu defended the deal,saying it was good news for Indo-nesian exporters to China andwould bring badly needed foreign

Antara

JOGJAKARTA - The JogjakartaTourism Agency will this year againhold the Jogja Walk Heritage Interna-tional. Head of the agency said hereTuesday that the event may be heldaround Prambanan Temple in Slemanregency and around Borobudur templein Magelang regency, Central Java.

The two locations are still highlysuitable for the international event, hesaid. He said the two temple areas are

Antara

JAKARTA - The World HealthOrganization (WHO) has ex-pressed support for the Indonesiangovernment’s initiative to set upa WHO collaborating center forresearch on influenza.

WHO Director General Marga-ret Chan unveiled the worldbody’s support at a recent meet-ing with Indonesian Health Min-ister Endang RahayuSedyaningsih on the sidelines ofthe 126th WHO executive boardmeeting, the Indonesian Repre-sentative Office in Geneva said ina statement on Tuesday.

“I support the Indonesian ini-tiative to set up a WHO collabo-rating center for influenza in In-donesia and will lend help to re-alize the initiative,” the officequoted Margaret Chan as saying.

The support is of great sig-nificance to enable Indonesiaand other developing nations tohave adequate capacity to diag-

Indonesian ministerwarns of job lossesover trade pact

direct investment from Chinesefirms.

Pangestu and Foreign MinisterMarty Natalegawa have said Indo-nesia is committed to abiding byits international agreements underthe ASEAN-China FTA.

But the trade minister has alsoindicated Jakarta is quietly tryingto renegotiate key elements of thedeal, and has talked about holding“informal discussions” withASEAN over Indonesia’s con-cerns.

The industry ministry backssubmitting a formal request toASEAN and China for a delay tofull liberalisation on 228 tariff linesfor another two years.

ASEAN chief Surin Pitsuwantold reporters in Vietnam last weekthat Indonesia had expressed “dif-ficulties” but there had been “noappeal for any change or any re-negotiation” of the pact.

The ASEAN-China FTA estab-lishes the world’s largest free tradearea by population and has beenunder negotiation since 2002.

Under the pact, China and thesix founding ASEAN states —Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, Phil-ippines, Singapore and Thailand— agreed to eliminate barriers toinvestment and tariffs on 90 per-cent of products by January 1,2010.

Members that joined ASEANlater, including Vietnam and Cam-bodia, have until 2015 to follow.

WHO backs RI’sinitiative to forminfluenza research center

nose and conduct risk assessmentof diseases which have the poten-tials to become a pandemic suchas H5N1 and H1N1, the state-ment said.

The WHO director general alsoexpressed support for the establish-ment of a WHO collaborating cen-ter for disaster management in In-donesia, it said.

To date, disaster managementcenters had been set up in nine ar-eas in Indonesia.

Margaret Chan lauded Indone-sia for its efforts to set up the di-saster management centers, hopingthey could serve as training cen-ters for other countries.

While in Geneva, Health Min-ister Endang Rahayu Sedyaningsihalso held meetings with her Indianand Brunei Darussalam counter-parts to discuss efforts to enhancebilateral cooperation in the healthsector.

The WHO executive board ismade up of 34 WHO memberstates including Indonesia.

Sixteen Sri LankanSixteen Sri LankanSixteen Sri LankanSixteen Sri LankanSixteen Sri Lankanimmigrants leaveimmigrants leaveimmigrants leaveimmigrants leaveimmigrants leaveTanjungpinangTanjungpinangTanjungpinangTanjungpinangTanjungpinangAntara

TANJUNGPINANG - Sixteen Sri Lankan immigrants left theTanjungpinang immigration detention center, Riau Islands Province,here on Wednesday morning, for Jakarta before proceeding to Austra-lia and the Philippines.

the Philippines from Jakarta,” SamsuRizal said. The 13 immigrants headedto the Philippines still had to completetheir travel documents, he said.

“One thing is clear: they are leav-ing Indonesia for third countries,” hesaid.

Previously, most Sri Lankanrefugees stranded in Indonesia hadbeen sent to Australia, the UnitedStates and Canada.

The refugees had earlier beennabbed by Australia’s customs patrolboat MV Oceanic Viking near Christ-mas Island, Australia. MV OceanicViking had later moored off

Cempedak Isle, Bintan District,Riau Island Province, with the 78refugees on board.

At the request of the Australiangovernment, they had been moved tothe Tanjungpinang immigration de-tention center, reportedly built withthe financial assistance from Austra-lia. In addition to the 16 Sri Lankans,the Indonesian government also de-ported a Thai fisherman, who hadbeen detained at the Tanjungpinangimmigration detention center forpoaching in Riau Island waters.

The Tanjungpinang immigrationdetention center is currently accom-modating 105 immigrants.

“Of the total immigrants, 61 fromAfghanistan, 15 from Thailand, onefrom Singapore, and 28 from SriLankan,” Sugiyo, head of theTanjungpinang immigration deten-tion center, said.

Jojga walk heritage international to be held againvery suitable for pedestrians, and thetwo temples had been declared byUNESCO as world heritage.

He also predicted that the num-ber of participants in this year’s JogjaWalk Heritage International may behigher than last year’s. Since theevent was first held in 2008, the num-ber of participants reached 500,which increased to 1,000 in 2009.

“It is hoped the number of partici-pants in this year’s Jogja Walk Heri-tage International would be many,

because they included those fromChina and Japan, as well as fromAsean, Europe and America who areholidaying in Yogyakarta,” he said.

He said walking has become ahobby of many Japanese and Chi-nese. The secret is that by oftenwalking, one would not only be-come physically healthy and fit, butalso always think actively.

“Many Japanese and Chinesewalk everyday as a routine and dailyneed,” he said.

8 InternationaThursday, January 21, 2009

Bali Today

The view was expressed bya member of the Commission IIof Bali House, Nyoman SugawaKorry, last Tuesday (Jan 19) atRenon. This idea was backed bythe overflow condition of localfruits at harvest , so pricesdropped drastically. He men-tioned that during a shortage ofstock, the price of grape couldreach IDR 5,000/kg. But in thecurrent mass harvest its pricedropped to IDR 800 per kg. Simi-lar condition occurred to theprice of snakefruit during its sea-son reaching under IDR 1,000/kg. However, beyond the seasonits price could reach over IDR5,000/kg.

Another member of Com-mission II, Ketut Suania, alsoagreed to study on the ossibilityin order PHDI could issue abhisama obliging the Hindu devo-tees in Bali to use local fruits. Thereason for using local fruits as in-gredients of ritual was believed tohave higher spiritual values ascultivated and produced on the

IBP

DENPASAR - Bali will becomethe host of Asian belly dance festivalthat being held for four days startingfrom February 25 to 28, 2010. Thevenue of this festival is Ayodya ResortBali that located at Nusa Dua, Bali.

According to Felix Rusli, Di-rector Magnificent 9 Productionthat taking care this event, when itcomes to art, culture, and dance,Bali seems to be a constant hub ofactivity and creative energy. ‘’Asfar as festivals and workshops go,where better that this rocking littleisland to set up camp,’’ stated Rusliin the release that receive by Inter-

Strengthen the economic stability of the Balinese

Local fruits should be used for ritual ceremonyLocal fruits should be used for ritual ceremonyLocal fruits should be used for ritual ceremonyLocal fruits should be used for ritual ceremonyLocal fruits should be used for ritual ceremonyBali Post

DENPASAR - The glamorous ceremonies (yajña) in Bali, in fact, are most profitable forpeople of outside Bali because the fruits in use for the ceremonies are mostly imported fromoutside the region and overseas. This condition must be changed to strengthen the economicstability by making the local fruits of Bali as the main ingredients of the ceremony. For thatpurpose, the intellectuals and Hindu Dharma Council of Indonesia (PHDI) needed to exam-ine the possibility of bhisama (religious counsel) issuance so that the Hindu devotees in Balihad stronger faith to grow local fruits.

land of Bali by Balinese residents.“Yajña or sacrifice denotes a mani-festation of our sincere gratitude toGod for the endowments of abun-dant fruits production. Such grati-tude will increase when we use lo-cal fruits for the oblations,” he said.Therefore, if Hindu devotees ofBali glances imported fruits orthose from the outside the regionfor the ceremony it meant that theywere grateful to have been usingthe fruit products of the outsiders.

The trend of Hindu devoteesin Bali of using fruits from outsidefor their ceremony, he said, wasmerely driven by the intention toshow off prestige. On that account,they were willing to pay more forimported fruits or fruits from out-side Bali. Meanwhile, local fruitswere abandoned because they wereconsidered less prestigious and lessattractive. Additionally, the conti-nuity of these imported fruit pro-ductions was guaranteed. Againstthis problem, Sugawa Korry hadconfidence if the Balinese moreglanced at the local fruits, it auto-

matically would drive more de-mands and the price would go up.This condition would not only en-courage farmers, but also stimu-late researchers to conduct re-search in order to produce fruitsall the year round. “If you get agood price I think the new tech-nology and innovation will beadopted quickly,” he said.

In separate place, the Headof PHDI, Dr. I Gusti NgurahSudiana, said that it was unnec-essary to issue a bhisama relatedto the proposal of using localfruits for the ceremony ingredi-ents. He appreciated the sugges-tion of the House on how to em-power the local economy throughthe use of the local fruits. Butagainst this issue, he said it wouldbe better if it would be entrustedto the Bali Agricultural Servicesto consider the technical cultiva-tion in order its products coulddraw the attention of Hindu devo-tees, while its marketing could beentrusted to Bali Industry andTrade Services. (029)

http://www.rontravel.com

Balinese women holding high gebogan (fruits offering). Theglamorous ceremonies (yajña) in Bali, in fact, are most profit-able for people of outside Bali because the fruits in use for theceremonies are mostly imported from outside the region andoverseas. This condition must be changed to strengthen theeconomic stability by making the local fruits of Bali as the mainingredients of the ceremony.

Bali to become host of Asian belly dance festivalnational Bali Post on Wednesday.

Rusli added, with that in mind, theBelly Dance Festival Asia will be heldon this Island of Gods, bringing theworld of Middle Eastern Dance.

Besides the performance by thenights during the festival, Master in-structors “Jilina” will teach by day. ‘’Asa cultural exchange, some of our bestlocal dancers will also be featured isSuzanna Hutabarat – Tibble fromHareem Queen Belly Dance Jakarta,showing her innovative approach to anancient art form’’.

The release declared that 15 coun-tries already support and registered onthis event, the country is: Indonesia,Singapore, Philippine, Malaysia, Tai-wan, Vietnam, South Africa, USA,Australia, New Zealand, Japan.

Asian Belly Dance Festival eventhighlight its Workshops, Woman’s Talkshows; Woman’s Food & Bazaar, Spe-cial Gala Dinner, and Asian BellyDance Competition will all be part ofthe four day event held at Ayodya Ho-tels & Resort, along with other partici-pating hotels and venues. (iah)

Bali will become the host ofAsian belly dance festivalthat being held for four daysstarting from February 25 to28, 2010. The venue of thisfestival is Ayodya ResortBali that located at NusaDua, Bali.

Magnificent 9 Production

Balinese Culture

Thursday, January 21, 2009 9al

Ingredients

* 1 Fish, about 650-900g dressed Weight.Preferably sea bass or Mackerel

* 1 t Salt * Oil, for deep frying * 2 T Margarine or oil * 2 sm Onions, sliced * 1 t Sambal Oelek * 1/2 t Laos * 1/2 t Lemon grass * 3 T Tamarind juice * Pinch of ground ginger * 1 t Brown sugar * 1 T Sweet soy sauce

Directions

Cut fish into serving portions and rub salt all over.Feep-fry and drain on absorbent paper.

Heat oil and saute sliced onions until lightly brown.Add sambal oelek, laos, lemon grass, tamarind juice,ginger, brown sugar and soy sauce. Heat thoroughly.

Place fried fish in deep serving dish and pour sauceover it. Serve with rice. (http://asiarecipe.com)

Antara

DENPASAR – The tourismbusinessmen in Bali should takeparting increasing the facilities inBali in order to accommodate morethan 2.2 million tourists. Herdy DSayoga, the manager of Bali Vil-lage, said “the opportunity must betaken into consideration especiallyMalaysia received travel warning

Antara

KUTA – Debris and sand barappear all over Kuta beach after bigwaves hit the beach. The garbagewas pilling after the waves went farto the land. The similar conditionwas also seen in other beaches suchas Sanur and Kedonganan.

While the sand was carry fromthe middle of the ocean by thewaves. The garbage is not only plas-tic or house hold garbage but alsowoods, boards, and others. The lo-cals think that the woods and boards

Ingredients

* 1 1/2 lb Boneless sirloin steak, -trimmed * 3 tb Corn oil * 1 lg Spanish onion, sliced * 1 Garlic clove, crushed * 1 ts Ground ginger * 1 ts Ground cumin * 1 ts Ground coriander * 1 ts Chili seasoning * 2/3 c Shredded coconut * 2 ts Light-brown sugar * 1 tb Lemon juice * 1 1/4 c Beef stock * Thin slivers red bell pepper * Chopped green chilies * Small onion slices

DirectionsCut steak in 1/2" thick strips.Heat oil in a saucepan. Add Spanish onion slices and

garlic and fry gently until soft. Add beef and fry, stirring,until brown.

Add spices to beef and cook 2 minutes. Add coconut,brown sugar, lemon juice and beef stock; stir well.Simmer gently, uncovered, 30-35 minutes, stirringoccasionally, or until mixture is thickened and dry. Stirmixture more frequently towards end of cooking time toprevent sticking. Garnish with slivers of bell pepper,green chilies and small slices onion.

NOTE: If you prefer a more moist mixture, cook 20-25minutes instead of 30-35 minutes. (http://asiarecipe.com)

Debris and sand bar coveredbeaches amid rainy season

were the part of boats which belongto the fishermen.

The part of boats could havewashed away during the poor weathercondition. Fishermen often built theirhut on the beach so it also could havebeen destroyed by the waves and thedebris carried all the way to Kutabeach.

The garbage made the conditionis very dirty and flies also wonder-ing around the pile of dead fish. Thepoor condition made some touristsdidn’t want to go to the beach. Theywere choosing to go to other tourist

site in Bali. Some local fishermen said that

actually is not as big as the one threeyears ago. The current waves didn’tdestroy as much boats as the one threeyears ago.

The big waves which happenedin Mei 2007 destroyed at least 20 boatsin Kedonganan area, Badung. Cafes,house, and part of Kedonganan harborwas destroyed during the big waves.

The harbor was destroyed al-most 50 meters. The harbor was usedby the US-Navy ship during their visitin Bali in 2003.

Development of Tourismfacilities is needed

from US government.” There is a chance that the tour-

ists who wanted to visit Malaysia canredirect their trip to Indonesia. “Thisis a golden opportunity for us to in-crease the number of tourists visitedBali,” he added.

Indonesia also had been receiv-ing travel warning from US and othercountries. The warning was given sev-eral times during security disturbances

such as bomb explosion. Herdy said “the warning is given

to the people who wanted to enter In-donesia but most of them keep com-ing to the country especially Bali.” Hesaid that tourism industry must takeadvantage of the opportunity.

“We hope that the industry willdevelop higher than last year of courseif the security condition can be main-tained,” he added.

Indonesian Coconut Beef

Ikan Bali(Bali Fish)

Thursday, January 21, 201010 InternationalDestinations

International Bali Post Classifieds

Contact usDenpasar

Jakarta

: +62 361 22-5764 Jl. Kepundung 67 A, e-mail: info_ibp@balipost.co.id

: +62 21 535-6271 Jl. Palmerah Barat 21 F

... gets maximum benefits with minimum charge

G.1043-ibp

THE CCTV SYSTEM TOTAL SOLUTION

Specialis in :CAMERA DIGITAL SYSTEM, SECURITY SYSTEM,

ACCESS CONTROL SYSTEMCCTV ALARM

Ruko Graha Mahkota No. B-9, Jl Teuku Umar Denpasar

Telp. 254-908 ; 254-909 Fax. 254-961G.1042-ibp

Hub:

SICA SECURITYRimo Trade CenterJl. DiponogoroLt. II No. C5Telp. 8047438

233259 ext. 209

Super

Save

G.1039-ibpG.1036-ibp G.2055-ibp

G.2090-ibp

CELUK Village is the famousvillage in Bali as a tourist destina-tion cause of the local residents isvery proactive and full of innovationto the gold and silver crafting. Thiscountryside is located in sub districtof Sukawati, Gianyar Regency andowns the individuality and excel-lence in production of gold and sil-ver crafting. Most of them are Ba-linese professional, artistic and skill-ful of design development related tothe silver and gold crafting.

The productions of gold and sil-ver at this village have penetratedto the local, national and interna-tional market. It can be measuredfrom the type of artwork result andvariation of ornament, good aspresent and also export commodity.The type of gold and silver craft hasbeen produced in this countrysideare covering various of rings,bangles, chokers, earrings, motherof pearls, Tusuk Konde, broach andother types. Beside of that, Celuk’s

Celuk Villageworkers are able to response themarket demands and produce themodern product like medal, maketand culture symbol. In spanning ofartistic growth history, the silver andgold crafting had been started by agroup of family pertained by ClanPande. From this family circle, theactivity of gold and silver craftinghas disseminated to entire societyas a top profession which are previ-ously as the farmer. In year 1970’sdecades, it has been happened thechange of countryside society cul-ture significantly from agrarian so-ciety structure to industrial societystructure of crafting. Even nowa-days, some of them have jumpedagain to the economic structure ofservice by focusing in tourism in-dustry. The change and jumpingmovement of these structures havebrought the new positive impact forprosperity. Celuk Village, Kuta andUbud are the prosperous country-side in Bali by the higher resident’s

income cause of tourism.

LocationCeluk Village is strategically lo-

cated in main road from Denpasarto Gianyar regency which is about 5km from Denpasar town. The nextdoor villages are Batubulan Villagewhich is famous of Barong danceand stone carving, Singapadu Vil-lage with the art village equipped byplaces of recreation such as BirdPark and Bali Zoo Park, Batuan Vil-lage with the traditional painting,Guang village with the wood carv-ing and Sukawati as a center of artmarket. Along way of Celuk Villageabout 2 km, we will find in the leftand right side the various type ofgold and silver shop which areopened to the domestic and interna-tional tourist. It is also inside of thisvillage, we will find the activitiesand workshop of crafting which areready to be ordered in small or hugenumber. (www.balistarisland.com)

Thursday, January 21, 2010 11

BUSINESS

Agence France-Presse

LONDON - The governor of theBank of England called Tuesday for aradical overhaul of the system of glo-bal financial governance in a bid to pre-vent a repeat of the firestorm that torethe world economy apart.

Mervyn King proposed the Groupof 20 industrialised nations should joinforces with the International MonetaryFund to stop imbalances developing inthe world economy.

Such a system of oversight wasneeded to cope with the entry into thesystem of fast emerging economies suchas China and India, he said.

“The legitimacy and leadership ofthe G20 would be enhanced if it wereseen as representing views of other coun-tries too,” King said in a speech at theUniversity of Exeter, southwest England.

“That could be achieved if the G20were to metamorphose into a GoverningCouncil for the IMF, and at the same timeacquire a procedure for voting on deci-sions.”

A new system must seek to ensurecountries coordinate economic policy sounsustainable imbalances do not emerge,King said.

These imbalances saw emerging gi-ants such as China storing up huge sav-ings in the form of currency reserves,while developed countries such as the USbecame consumers, often of Asian ex-ports, and dug themselves into huge debt.

Dominique Strauss-Kahn said the globaleconomy looked on course to beat the 3.1 per-cent growth forecast currently expected by theInternational Monetary Fund for 2010, as apost-crisis recovery accelerates.

Speaking in Hong Kong, the IMF man-aging director also reiterated his call forChina to boost the value of its currency, theyuan, which critics say is kept artificially lowto boost Chinese exports.

There is broad concern about the influxof foreign money pouring into Asia — whichhas sent property prices rocketing in HongKong, Singapore and mainland China — asthe region leads the recovery.

Strauss-Kahn said the cash flowing intoAsia was in stark contrast to the global fi-nancial crisis when the fear was of moneydrying up.

“Understandably, however,policymakers in recipient countries are con-cerned now with how to manage these flows— their impact on exchange rates, domesticdemand, financial stability — and the dangerof asset bubbles,” he said.

Strauss-Kahn said options to discouragethe inflow included cutting interest rates, ac-cumulating reserves or tightening fiscalpolicy.

He added: “Capital controls can also playa role, particularly where the surge in capitalflows is expected to be temporary, or whereexchange rate overshooting is a real danger.

“As long as it’s temporary, it may be theonly way” to ward off a bubble, Strauss-Kahntold the Asian Financial Forum, a gatheringof political and business leaders.

And in a veiled comment on China, hesaid: “In many countries, exchange-rate ap-preciation should be the key response — es-pecially in those where the exchange rate isundervalued.”

Malaysia was ridiculed by financial in-stitutions and foreign governments in 1998when it became the first crisis-hit Asian coun-try to roll out capital controls to protect itsfinancial markets and collapsing currency.

But the measures, including pegging theringgit to the dollar and barring investorsfrom taking money out of Malaysia, werelater hailed by the IMF and other free-mar-ket proponents as an effective tool againstspeculation.

Economies worldwide went into a tail-spin in late 2008 when credit dried up due

Agence France-Presse

HONG KONG - China will reinin credit after explosive growth lastyear but has no plans to stop bankslending, a top regulator said Wednes-day as the nation vies to cool its red-hot economy.

Liu Mingkang, chairman of theChina Banking Regulatory Commis-sion, said new bank loans this yearwould fall to about 7.5 trillion yuan(1.1 trillion US dollars) from about9.5 trillion yuan in 2009.

“This year, we will continue tocontrol the pace of the credit supply,”Liu told the Asian Financial Forum inHong Kong.

But the watchdog’s chief denieda report that it had asked several banksto stop extending new loans for therest of this month.

Chinese state media had reportedthat major banks received verbal or-ders from authorities to stop lendingfor the rest of January.

“I’ve made it very clear aboutbank lending. We have never asked thebanks to stop lending,” he told DowJones Newswires on the sidelines ofthe forum.

IMF chief saysIMF chief saysIMF chief saysIMF chief saysIMF chief saysAsia may needAsia may needAsia may needAsia may needAsia may needcapital controlscapital controlscapital controlscapital controlscapital controlsAgence France-Presse

HONG KONG - The IMF chief saidWednesday Asia may need to erect tem-porary capital controls, warning of thepotential for new economic bubbles asspeculative money floods into the region.

largely to the collapse of a US propertybubble.

But Strauss-Kahn said some emergingeconomies could begin exiting stimulusprogrammes sooner than rich countries, withworld growth likely to outstrip the IMF’s fore-cast figure of 3.1 percent this year.

Excluding Japan, Asia may expand bymore than seven percent, the IMF boss said.

He again dismissed fears of a “double-dip” recession for the world economy, but saidthe pace of recovery had been uneven withAsia bouncing back faster than the rest of theworld.

The region must also look at boosting do-mestic demand to cut its reliance on foreignconsumers, especially in the hard-hit UnitedStates, he said.

Strauss-Kahn said world leaders shouldpress on with financial reforms to prevent arepeat of last year’s credit crisis, includingbetter regulation and oversight of the bank-ing sector.

“We need reform and we need politicalwill,” he said.

“There is still a lot to do... My concernis that in six to 12 months, everybody will beback to business as usual and will have for-gotten the lessons of the financial crisis.”

AP Photo/Kiyoshi Ota, Pool

International Monetary Fund (IMF) Man-aging Director Dominique Strauss-Kahn

China to rein in bank loans Liu also told the conference that

China’s banking sector has undergone“substantial and qualitative changesover the last few years.”

His comments come after China’scentral bank moved earlier this monthto hike the minimum amount of moneythat banks must keep in reserve.

Analysts have said the policy waslikely a response to concerns about as-set bubbles, bad loans and an over-heating economy.

Beijing is also expected to raiseinterest rates and let the yuan, whichhas been effectively pegged to the USdollar since mid-2008, appreciate invalue as critics accuse China of keep-ing the currency artificially low.

In the past year China adoptedwhat it called a “moderately loose”monetary policy and embarked on anunprecedented four- t r i l l ion-yuan(586-billion-dollar) spending spree tokeep the economy growing amid theglobal downturn.

It also urged banks to pump uplending, but after the amount of newloans subsequently surged, the gov-ernment in recent months reversedcourse and called for “reasonable”lending as inflation fears rose.

Bank of England governor callsfor G20, IMF to join forces

“The pattern of poor countries sav-ing a lot and rich countries borrowingwas not sustainable,” King said.

He highlighted that China was cur-rently holding reserves of more than twotrillion dollars (1.2 trillion pounds, 1.4trillion euros) and Japan one trillion dol-lars.

The creation of a new system todeal with the issue was “urgent”, Kingsaid, warning that: “Having narrowedsomewhat at the height of the crisis, theimbalances are now widening again.”

The governor further said theG20’s credibility could be damaged ifit came to be viewed as a mere talkingshop.

“So far the only specific agree-ment is to talk to each other,” he said.

“Concrete steps to reduce the scaleof global imbalances have, to date, beennotable by their absence.

“Smiling family photographsmarking the attendance at internationalgatherings are no substitute for specificactions.”

King also warned of a “long pe-riod of healing ahead” for the globaleconomy. In Britain, living standardswould be hit as inflation rose, he said.

“There is little scope for growthin real take-home pay, which may re-main weak as output recovers,” he said.

His comments came on the sameday it emerged inflation in Britain hadrisen at a record rate to hit 2.9 percentin December.

Entertainment InternationalThursday, January 21, 201012

The position is largely due to herfive-year engagement at CaesarsPalace in Las Vegas, where she per-formed her A New Day concert infront of sold-out audiences. Accord-ing to compilers Pollstar, Dionpulled in $522.2 million in concertticket sales during the decade andadded $225.7 million in albumsales, taking her 10-year tally to$747.9 million - $5 million morethan second-placed Chesney.

Dave Matthews Band finishedthird on the list, while The Beatlescame in fourth and U2 rounded outthe top five. Also making the top 10were Toby Keith, BruceSpringsteen, The Rolling Stones,Tim McGraw and Britney Spears.

WANNABE Sienna Miller hasbecome the latest star to covet therole of comic book villainCatwoman - the British actresswould “love” to play the felinefemme fatale in a new Batman

THE music world’s top stars aresigning on for Friday’s “Hope forHaiti” telethon. Bruce Springsteen,Jay-Z, Taylor Swift, JustinTimberlake, Keith Urban and Ali-cia Keys are just a few of the per-formers who will be featured, ac-cording to MTV Networks, an in-tegral partner in the two-hour event.

Haiti was devastated and thou-sands of its citizens killed when anearthquake hit the Caribbean nationlast week. “Hope For Haiti Now: AGlobal Benefit for Earthquake Re-lief” will be an international event.Haitian native Wyclef Jean will an-chor the show from New York,while George Clooney will do sofrom Los Angeles. CNN’s Ander-son Cooper will report from Haiti.

London has also been addedto the lineup, and that’s where Jay-Z will perform, along with Bono,The Edge and Rihanna in a spe-cial joint performance. Coldplay isalso to perform from London. InNew York, Springsteen will per-

AFTER more than 6 million votes were cast, filmstarlet Megan Fox fell short of securing a top 10 posi-tion in AskMen.com’s Top 99 Most Desirable Women2010 ranking, while “Entourage” actress EmmanuelleChriqui claimed the No. 1 position.

The Top 99 Most DesirableWomen is decided by an annualpoll in which AskMen.com read-ers are asked to consider morethan instant sex appeal and casttheir ballot for women who em-body the traits that they desiremost in a potential companionsuch as intelligence, humor, tal-ent, and character. In 2009’s list,Eva Mendes took the No. 1 spot.

Rounding out the top three for2010 are Victoria’s Secret modelMarisa Miller and British actressKate Beckinsale, respectively.Readers can also view the full“Top 99 Most Desirable Women”list, including profiles of eachhonoree, at www.AskMen.com.The top 99 most desirable womenfor 2010, in order, are:

A raven-haired Canadian ac-tress with a curiously mysterioushistory and a friendly smile,

Celine Dion NamedCeline Dion NamedCeline Dion NamedCeline Dion NamedCeline Dion NamedThe Ultimate PerformerThe Ultimate PerformerThe Ultimate PerformerThe Ultimate PerformerThe Ultimate PerformerOf The Last DecadeOf The Last DecadeOf The Last DecadeOf The Last DecadeOf The Last Decade

CELINE Dion has emerged asthe new century’s top performerafter beating Kenny Chesney andthe Dave Matthews Band to thetop of America’s Ultimate Top 10list. Created by combining artists’album sales revenue with theirconcert ticket sales, the top 10 isan annual list of money-spinningsingers and rockers - and Dion’sconsistent success from 2000 tothe end of 2009 have put her atthe top of the new decade count-down.

Emmanuelle Chriqui Named AskMen.com’sMost Desirable Woman of 2010

Emmanuelle Chriqui has been working frequently intelevision since 1995. With roles in Steven Spielberg’sA.I. and alongside ‘N Sync singer Lance Bass in Onthe Line (both 2001), the fresh-faced actress gained in-creased exposure and notable momentum in her cin-

ematic career.Born in Montréal, Québec,

Canada, in 1977, Chriqui beganacting in commercials at the ageof ten, later graduating to featurefilms with roles in Detroit RockCity (1999) and Snow Day(2000). Also turning up frequentlyin bit roles on television, Chriquihas shown increasing promise ina variety of diverse roles andprojects. She appeared in the 2003thriller Wrong Turn, and in 2005,she began a recurring role on thesmash hit HBO series Entourageas Sloan. She’d stay with the se-ries until 2007, while also appear-ing in films like In the Mix andAfter Sex. In 2008, she joinedJosh Hartnett for the Wall Streetdrama August, and joined the castof the Adam Sandler comedy YouDon’t Mess with the Zohan. Ja-son Buchanan, All Movie Guide

Sienna Miller Is LatestCatwoman Wannabe

movie.Movie bosses are currently mak-

ing plans for the next installmentin the superhero franchise, a follow-up to 2008 blockbuster The DarkKnight. And producers are rumoredto be in talks to bring backCatwoman for the new film, thecharacter played by MichellePfeiffer in 1992’s Batman Returnsand again by Halle Berry in a 2004spin-off from the Caped Crusadermovies.

Stars including Charlize Theronand Kate Beckinsale have alreadyvoiced their interest in taking on therole, and now Miller has becomethe latest actress to add her nameto the list of Catwoman wannabes.She tells Britain’s OK! magazine,“Catwoman. I actually loveCatwoman. I just think the idea ofbeing half-cat and half-woman is agreat kind of villain-esque persona.It’s the age-old thing of a femmefatale.”

Springsteen, Jay-Z,Urban join Haiti telethon

form, along with Jennifer Hudson,Mary J. Blige, Shakira, Jean andSting. In Los Angeles, Swift is toperform, and Urban, Kid Rock andSheryl Crow plan a collaboration.Also performing in Los Angeles isTimberlake, Dave Matthews, JohnLegend, and Stevie Wonder.

People can purchase the night’sperformances for 99 cents eachthrough iTunes starting Saturday. Astatement released Tuesday says allproceeds will go to Haiti relief. The“Hope for Haiti” benefit will bebroadcast from New York, Los An-geles, London and Haiti. It will betelevised on all the major networksat 8 p.m. EST, as well as MTV, VH1,CMT, BET, PBS, CNN, Bravo, anda host of other networks. In addition,the telethon will be streamed live onWeb sites including YouTube,MySpace and AOL. The fundsraised from the telethon will be do-nated to several relief organizations,including UNICEF, Oxfam Americaand Partners in Health.

International Thursday, January 21, 2010 13Life Style

“The demand (for tiger parts) hasbeen strong. It will remain strong inthe Year of the Tiger,” said DinoysiusSharma, executive director of WWF-Malaysia. “Prices may increase amiddwindling numbers in the wild, whichmakes it more lucrative to hunt for ti-gers,” he said. “Security should bebeefed up for the tigers.” Sharma saidthat in the past year, 10 tigers havebeen taken by poachers from one ofMalaysia’s main habitats, the Belum-Temengor forest in northern Perakstate.

“We have evidence of (poachers)living in the jungle for long period oftimes,” he said. Sharma said that in thelast 12 months, 114 tiger traps havebeen destroyed and 10 poachers ar-rested in the Belum-Temengor forest.Malaysia’s wild tigers are mostlyfound near the Malaysia-Thai border,but there are also some living in cen-tral Pahang state and as far south asJohor, which borders Singapore.

In 2008 Malaysia unveiled an am-

Agence France - Presse

TOKYO – Sony said it would launch its new“motion controller” for the PlayStation 3 videogame console in late 2010, in a fresh challenge torival Nintendo’s hit Wii console. The controller,along with a camera installed in the console, tracksplayers’ movements, which will be mimicked byonscreen characters wielding anything fromswords to tennis racquets, guns and baseball bats,

Associated Press Writer

MESA, Ariz. – Conjoined twinsfrom Arizona have already defiedmedical expectations by living pasttheir third birthdays. Now their parentshope the girls will become one of thefirst sets of twins sharing a heart to besuccessfully separated. Emma and Tay-lor Bailey, from the San Tan Valley areanear Phoenix, were born connected atthe chest, sharing a liver and a seven-chambered heart. Most hearts havefour chambers.

Their parents, Mandy and TorBailey, weren’t expecting them to everleave the hospital. Emma and Taylorexceeded expectations but now haveheart failure. And their parents knowthe girls must be surgically separatedto survive in the long term. The Baileyshave been working with a team at Se-attle Children’s Hospital for about twoyears to prepare.

The family said a medical team atthe Seattle hospital has successfullyseparated twins before and is confidentit can save both girls, even though ithas never separated twins with a sharedheart. The girls had two preliminarysurgeries and have a few more to gobefore they’ll be ready for separationand heart transplants. The family hopes

AFP/WWF/File

This handout photo from the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) in Malaysia shows rescuers preparing to movean injured tiger in Malaysia’s north Perak state in October 2009. The tiger was badly injured in a snare setup by poachers. Conservationists have called for a war on the poachers who are undermining Malaysia’sambitious goal to double its population of wild tigers to 1,000.

Poachers threaten Malaysia’sPoachers threaten Malaysia’sPoachers threaten Malaysia’sPoachers threaten Malaysia’sPoachers threaten Malaysia’sdefence of tigers: WWFdefence of tigers: WWFdefence of tigers: WWFdefence of tigers: WWFdefence of tigers: WWFAgence France - Presse

KUALA LUMPUR – Conservationists called on Wednesday for a waron the poachers who are undermining Malaysia’s ambitious goal to doubleits population of wild tigers to 1,000. With 2010 declared the Year of theTiger according to the Chinese zodiac, experts fear there will be an up-surge in poaching of one of the world’s most endangered species.

bitious “National Tiger Action Plan”aimed at doubling the number ofwild tigers in peninsular Malaysia to1,000 by 2020. In the 1950s, therewere as many as 3,000 tigers in Ma-laysia but their numbers fell as thecountry opened up more land for ag-riculture. Elizabeth John, fromTRAFFIC Southeast Asia, saidpoaching “is the most immediate andworst threat” to Malaysia’s wild ti-gers and that poachers are “wellarmed and well equipped”.

“Other threats include loss ofhabitat and prey,” she said, addingthat areas close to the Thai borderare “poaching hotspots.” MelvinGumal, director for Malaysia’s Wild-life Conservation Society, said thattigers are killed by poachers for theirskin, meat, claws and other bodyparts which are prizes for their sup-posed medicinal value. “Enforce-ment must be our priority to reachthe ambitious target (of 1,000 tigers).The target is achievable,” he said.

Conjoined Arizona twinsreadying for separation

all the preliminary procedures will bedone by the end of this year.

“It feels like we were intended to gothis direction,” Mandy Bailey told theEast Valley Tribune newspaper. “Wedon’t feel unnerved about it. We cer-tainly understand the risks. We also un-derstand the outcome if we don’t do any-thing.” The Baileys’ story has drawn anoutpouring of support. The family isgearing up for its second annual fun runfundraiser on Feb. 13. Last year’s eventattracted 1,000 runners and 5,000 peoplewho attended an accompanying festivalwith food booths and other activities.

The family will eventually move tothe Seattle area to be near the hospital.But for now, Mandy Bailey travels withthe girls when they have a surgery orneed to visit the medical team. The mostrecent visit was a surgery shortly beforeThanksgiving. The procedure went well,but there was an added complicationwhen the twins got swine flu. What wasexpected to be a 10-day hospital stayturned into three weeks, Mandy Baileysaid. The girls were sedated during theworst of the flu and got home a few daysafter Thanksgiving, in time for a turkeydinner. Mandy Bailey said the hospitalvisits have become “just kind of a nor-mal routine” for her family. “It’s just partof our life right now,” she said.

Sony to launch PS3 motioncontroller in autumn

Sony said.Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. chief Kazuo

Hirai promised “an exciting and varied line-up” ofgames to go with the controller, which will go onsale this autumn in Japan, North America, Europeand other markets. Sony unveiled a lollipop-shapedprototype of the controller last year bearing simi-larities to the hand-held controller developed byNintendo.

Sony and Microsoft, maker of the Xbox, wereleft badly trailing behindthe Wii when it was firstlaunched in 2006 with amotion-sensing controllerthat can simulate a gun,sword, golf club or orches-tra baton. Now they areseeking to emulate theWii’s success. Microsoft isexpected to launch by theend of the year a technol-ogy that enables people toplay videogames usingnatural body movementsinstead of hand-held con-trollers.

The “Natal” system usesa camera and voice and facerecognition software torecognise people and theiractions, allowing people toplay driving games by sim-ply moving their hands as ifturning a car steering wheel.

AFP/File/Philippe Lopez

File photo shows a man trying a game on Sony’s Playstation 3 con-sole. Sony said it would launch its new “motion controller” for thePlayStation 3 video game console in late 2010, in a fresh challenge torival Nintendo’s hit Wii console.

Thursday, January 21, 201014 InternationalSport

Nadal has beaten plenty of moreaccomplished players than Lackoand knows he will have to play evenbetter if he hopes to defend his titlebut was unable to conceal his excite-ment. “I think I did well, no?,” hetold reporters. “I think I played rightway. Very good match, yeah.” KimClijsters and Svetlana Kuznetsovaalso flexed their muscles to chargeinto the third round of the first grandslam of the year.

Clijsters was given a solid work-out from Thailand’s TamarineTanasugarn but was able to raise hergame whenever necessary in a 6-36-3 victory. Kuznetsova overcame aminor hiccup with her serve to beatfellow Russian AnastasiaPavlyuchenkova 6-2 6-2 and remainon course for a tantalising fourth-round meeting with Clijsters. “I feellike I’m good enough on the day tobeat my opponents,” Clijsters said.

Reuters -

MELBOURNE - Kim Clijstersand Svetlana Kuznetsova chargedinto the third round of the Austra-lian Open on Wednesday as the firstgrand slam of the year started to heatup. Clijsters was given a solid work-out from Thailand’s TamarineTanasugarn but was able to raise hergame whenever she needed to in afairly routine 6-3 6-3 victory.

Kuznetsova also overcame acouple of minor hiccups with herserve to beat fellow RussianAnastasia Pavlyuchenkova 6-2 6-2and remain on course for atantalising fourth-round meetingwith Clijsters. “I feel like I’m goodenough on the day to beat my oppo-nents,” Clijsters told reporters. “It’snot my best tennis yet, but hopefullyI can save that when it’s really nec-essary.”

Clijsters’ next opponent is Rus-sian Nadia Petrova whileKuznetsova faces Germany’sAngelique Kerber. “I just get extramotivation when I play slams,” saidKuznetsova, who won last year’sFrench Open. “This is for real. Thisis for what you play for.” The returnof Clijsters and fellow BelgianJustine Henin has helped make thischampionship one of the most open

Reuters -

CLEVELAND - LeBron Jamessparked the Cleveland Cavaliers toa 108-100 victory over the TorontoRaptors on Tuesday. James nar-rowly missed a triple double with28 points, 11 assists and nine re-bounds, while Mo Williams added22 points and 10 assists as theEastern Conference’s top teamwon for the fourth time in fivegames.

Cleveland (32-11) held a 95-94 edge late in the fourth quarterbefore breaking away thanks to

Rafael Nadalof Spainreturns toLukas Lackoof Slovakiaduring themen’ssinglesmatch at theAustralianOpen tennischampion-ship inMelbourne,Australia,WednesdayJan. 20,2010.

Nadal finding form inNadal finding form inNadal finding form inNadal finding form inNadal finding form inMelbourne, Roddick fumesMelbourne, Roddick fumesMelbourne, Roddick fumesMelbourne, Roddick fumesMelbourne, Roddick fumesReuters -

MELBOURNE - Rafa Nadal dispelled any concerns over his fitness and form at the Austra-lian Open with an impressive second-round win over Slovakia’s Lukas Lacko on Wednesday.The Spaniard has been plagued by injuries and poor form since winning in Melbourne last yearbut showed he was starting to get back to his best with an effortless 6-2 6-2 6-2 win.

“It’s not my best tennis yet, but hope-fully I can save that when it’s really nec-essary.”

Clijsters’ next opponent is RussianNadia Petrova while Kuznetsova facesGermany’s Angelique Kerber. “I just getextra motivation when I play slams,”said Kuznetsova, who won last year’sFrench Open. “This is for real. This isfor what you play for.” Andy Roddickeased to a 6-3 6-4 6-4 win over Brazil’sThomaz Bellucci but the match endedon a sour note when the American ar-gued with the chair umpire over a linecall in the final game, risking the possi-bility of a fine for foul language.

“I don’t do it for entertainment. Ido it because I strongly believe what Ifeel,” Roddick later explained. “I thinkif I believe in something stronglyenough, I’m pretty outspoken about it.”Chile’s Fernando Gonzalez, the 2007Australian Open finalist, cruisedthrough after beating Turkey’s Marsel

Ilhan 6-3 6-4 7-5 and could faceRoddick in the fourth round. Therewere no major surprises in the women’smatches with last year’s AustralianOpen runner-up Dinara Safina and U.S.Open finalist Caroline Wozniacki bothadvancing in straight sets.

Safina overcame a minor stumblewhen serving for the match in her 6-36-4 victory over Barbora ZahlavovaStrycova while Wozniacki made a be-lated start to her campaign at MelbournePark, defeating Aleksandra Wozniak ina first-round match that was shuffledback because of rain on the opening day.The return of Clijsters and fellow Bel-gian Justine Henin has helped make thischampionship one of the most open indecades. Despite winning last year’sU.S. Open shortly after making hercomeback, Clijsters is only ranked 15thin the world while Henin, who madeher comeback this month, needed awildcard to get into the event.

(AP Photo/Tony Dejak)

Cleveland Cavaliers’ LeBron James (23) tries to get pastToronto Raptors guard DeMar DeRozan in the first quarter ofan NBA basketball game Tuesday, Jan. 19, 2010, in Cleveland.

‘King’ James helps Cavaliers put Raptors to swordWilliams’ three-pointer andcapped by a James dunk. James,the league’s reigning MVP, madefour successive free throws in thefinal minute to clinch the win.“They gave us a little trouble inthe first half but we were able toslow that down (in the secondhalf). We were a bit more physi-cal on the defensive end,” Jamestold reporters after finishing withthree steals and three blocks.

Chris Bosh paced the Raptorswith 21 points and 10 boardswhile Andrea Bargnani added 19as the visitors fell to 21-21 on the

season.Toronto opened the season with

a win over Cleveland that droppedthe Cavs to 0-2. Since then, Cleve-land have hit their stride and takenover the East, while the Raptorsare battling for a playoff position.Cleveland’s Shaquille O’Neal had16 points and surpassed the28,000-points mark for his career,the fifth player to do so.

“The only fallback for me isthat I missed like 5,000 freethrows,” O’Neal said. “If I wouldhave at least hit half of those, thenI would be at 30,000 right now.”

(AP Photo/Mark Baker)

(AP Photo/Mark Baker)

Kim Clijsters of Belgium returns the ball to Thailand’s TamarineTanasugarn during their Women’s singles match at the Austra-lian Open tennis championship in Melbourne, Australia, Wednes-day Jan. 20, 2010.

Clijsters cruises as leadingladies star in Melbourne

in decades. Despite winning last year’s U.S.

Open shortly after making her come-back, Clijsters is only ranked 15thin the world while Henin, who madeher comeback this month, needed awildcard to get into the event.

As the seedings are decided oncurrent rankings, the draw appearslopsided with some of the leadingcontenders likely to face each othermuch earlier than usual. Clijsters,Kuznetsova, Henin, ElenaDementieva and Yanina Wickmayerare all in the same quarter of thedraw with Henin and Dementievameeting in the second round onTuesday evening.

Caroline Wozniacki made a be-lated start to her campaign atMelbourne Park, defeating Canada’sAleksandra Wozniak in a first-roundmatch that was shuffled back becauseof rain on the opening day. The Dane,who was runner-up to Clijsters inNew York last year, plays Germany’sJulia Goerges next. In the men’s draw,American Andy Roddick sailedthrough to the third round after a com-fortable 6-3 6-4 6-4 victory over Bra-zilian Thomaz Bellucci. Chile’sFernando Gonzalez, the 2007 Austra-lian Open finalist, also cruisedthrough after beating Turkey’s MarselIlhan 6-3 6-4 7-5.

Thursday, January 21, 2010 15International Sport

The Argentina forward headed their second goalagainst the holders after 65 minutes when he wasleft unmarked in United’s six-yard box with onlygoalkeeper Edwin Van der Sar to beat. United wentahead after 17 minutes when City failed to deal withan Antonio Valencia cross leaving Ryan Giggs witha simple tap-in after City keeper Shay Given blockeda Wayne Rooney shot.

The first semi-final between the two Manches-ter clubs since 1969 will be decided in the secondleg at Old Trafford next Wednesday with the win-ners meeting Aston Villa or Blackburn Rovers in thefinal at Wembley Stadium on Feb.28. Villa hold a 1-0 lead after the first leg at Blackburn.

United settled first at a sold-out Eastlands andtook the lead after Patrice Evra picked out Valenciaon the right. His low cross into the box found WayneRooney and although Given saved his shot the ballran to Giggs, a former City youth player, who scoredhis first derby goal since 1996. United dominatedmuch of the half after that but City, whose Italianmanager Roberto Mancini was experiencing his firstManchester derby, equalised after a controversial callby referee Mike Dean.

Reuters -

WELLINGTON - An exhi-bition game involving DavidBeckham was a commercial riskthat cost New Zealand taxpay-ers almost NZ$2 million ($1.46million) according to thecountry’s chief watchdog overpublic expenditure. The Englandmidfielder, one of the most mar-ketable athletes in sports, turnedout for his LA Galaxy side in amatch in Auckland in December2008 but less than 15,000 fansturned out to watch.

Beckham and the Galaxy had played a similar match inWellington in 2007 and almost sold out Westpac Stadium. The2008 match was underwritten by the Auckland Regional Council,who asked the central government’s Auditor General to conduct areview of the event. The report by deputy controller and AuditorGeneral Phillippa Smith was released on Wednesday.

“The decision to promote the LA Galaxy event was made with-out a formal business strategy or a clear policy about the level ofcommercial risk that the council was willing to assume,” Smithsaid.

“We conclude that, despite the efforts of the council officersinvolved, the loss occurred because the LA Galaxy/Oceania ‘AllStars’ match was in essence the wrong event, at the wrong time, forthe wrong price.”

Council staff had budgeted for a break-even point at 25,000tickets but the shortfall resulted in a loss of NZ$1.88m for the counciland residents in New Zealand’s largest city. “The people (the councilofficials) talked to were optimistic about the likely attendance atan exhibition football match involving LA Galaxy and estimatedan attendance of 30,000 to 40,000,” the report said.

Their optimism was based on Auckland’s larger population,local support for mega-sporting events and the celebrity pullingpower of Beckham, the report said.

Tevez double gives Man City win over UnitedTevez double gives Man City win over UnitedTevez double gives Man City win over UnitedTevez double gives Man City win over UnitedTevez double gives Man City win over United

(AP Photo/Jon Super)

Manchester City’s Carlos Tevez, right, fights for the abll against ManchesterUnited’s Wayne Rooney during their English League Cup soccer match atThe City of Manchester Stadium, Manchester, England, Tuesday Jan. 19, 2010.

Reuters -

LONDON - Manchester City striker Carlos Tevez scored twice against his formerclub Manchester United to give the home side a 2-1 victory in the first leg of an excit-ing League Cup semi-final at Eastlands on Tuesday. Tevez, who controversially joinedCity last year in a move that has heightened the rivalry between the two clubs, wipedout United’s early lead when he smashed home a 42nd minute penalty.

United defender Rafael tugged at Craig Bellamy’sshirt outside the penalty area and, while the City for-ward tried to stay on his feet, he fell inside the box.Dean ruled there was another foul inside the area butTV replays clearly showed there was not. Tevez ig-nored the pleas of his former team mates and the time-delaying tactics of Van der Sar, which earned thekeeper a booking, to blast the penalty into the net.

With United personnel claiming in recent days thatthe club were right to let Tevez leave at the end of lastseason, the Argentine made a “whose talking now”gesture with his hand — and teased United again af-ter his second goal.

That came when he made it 2-1 with his 13thgoal in his last 11 games, taking advantage of someslack United defending to head in from close range.He ran towards United’s bench, cupping his ears as ifto ask what they were saying about him now. Unitedattacked relentlessly for the equaliser for the remain-der of the match with Rooney twice being thwartedby Given and substitute Michael Owen having a shotsaved on the line. Although the visitors failed to findanother goal, the tie is still evenly balanced with nextweek’s second leg likely to be just as lively.

Agence France - Presse

LONDON – Arsene Wenger admitsArsenal have a golden opportunity to un-derline their title credentials as they bid togo top of the Premier League with a two-goal victory over Bolton on Wednesday.Wenger’s side defeated Bolton 2-0 at theReebok Stadium on Sunday and a repeat ofthat result in north London would be enoughto send the Gunners above Chelsea andManchester United into first place.

After being widely written off as also-rans in November when Chelsea’s 3-0 winat the Emirates Stadium left Arsenal 11points behind the leaders, there has been asignificant change in fortunes for Wenger’smen. While Chelsea and United have squan-dered points in matches they were expectedto win, Arsenal have been able to put to-gether an impressive run and Wenger knowsit is essential not to waste the chance to grabthat coveted first place.

“It is important psychologically, notmathematically so much,” Wenger said.“We have a good opportunity to do it so wehave to focus. “When the season started,we were not all convinced in our squadmaybe that we could be where we are now.Now that we are there, we want to have ago.” Even if Arsenal do go top of the table,Chelsea will have a game in hand on theirLondon rivals, so there is no chance ofWenger getting carried away.

But the French coach is convinced hisyoung team are capable of lasting the dis-tance in the title race as long as captain CescFabregas remains fit and in form. Fabregashas been arguably the Premier League’s bestmidfielder this season and produced a ma-jestic display against Bolton capped by his10th league goal of the season and a majorrole in Arsenal’s second goal. Games againsttitle rivals Chelsea and United are loomingon the horizon for Arsenal, so Wenger is

Beckham match wascommercial risk, NZwatchdog says Arsene Wenger

admits Arsenalhave a goldenopportunity tounderline their titlecredentials as theybid to go top of thePremier Leaguewith a two-goalvictory over Boltonon Wednesday

Wenger wants Arsenal to seize golden opportunity

well aware of the importance of keepingFabregas on his game.

“He looks like a real general in midfieldnow and, of course, that helps as we gointo a period of important games,” Wengersaid. “It was a test of character (at theReebok Stadium) and they have shownplenty, which is very good news for us.“Over the years our strength has increasedand we showed we have matured, we knowwhen to go for the fights and we know whento put the ball down. Without a doubt thereis still more to come because we are a youngteam. We have a very tough run of gamescoming up but let’s be focused on the nextone and keep it simple.”

With French winger Samir Nasri andyoung midfielders Aaron Ramsey and FranMerida - who scored Arsenal’s secondagainst Bolton - ruled out through injury,Wenger is relieved to welcome back TheoWalcott and Denilson. England forwardWalcott has struggled to shake off a host ofdifferent injuries this season, but his returnwill add a much-needed injection of en-

ergy to an attack already missing Robin vanPersie and Nicklas Bendtner.

“They are available for Wednesday.It is a big boost to have them back ofcourse because they were out for a whileand it gives us some fresh players aswell,” Wenger said. Bolton’s new bossOwen Coyle would love to have play-ers of Walcott’s calibre to bolster hissquad as he tries to drag them away fromthe relegation zone. Coyle has had just10 days to work with his players sincearriving from Burnley as the replace-ment for Gary Megson, but he has al-ready impressed the likes of captainKevin Davies. “I have seen a big changein some of the players, from the lads whohave been starting to those on the fringesand those training with the reserves,”Davies said. “I have been really im-pressed with the way the players haveresponded to him and I think that is acredit to him. Speaking to players indi-vidually they have been impressed withhis man-management skills.”

(AP Photo/Daniele Badlato)

David Beckham

Thursday, January 21, 201016 Sport

Piquet is adamant that his moveto NASCAR is not because he hadno chance of getting back into F1 butwas because he did not want to getinvolved in the politics that surroundgrand prix racing. “I could’ve beenthere (Formula 1) if I wanted to,”Piquet said. “A team offered me tobe there. I just thought I was sick andtired of all of the stuff over there. Ijust took a decision of starting a newstep in my career and a new chal-lenge in coming to NASCAR.”

“For a lot of people who are out-side of America, it’s a downgrade.But for people that really under-stand - maybe it’s a downgrade intechnology of the car — but in termsof career, of how big the sport is ina lot of ways it’s even a tougher stepthan F1. For me, I compare it sideby side. It’s just two different typesof cars. The level of competition and

Nelson Piquet claims he could have made a return to Formula1 this year if he wanted, after revealing that he had a firm offerfor a drive in 2010

TONI Elias has completed a dealto lead Gresini’s assault on the newMoto2 championship. The Spaniardwas dropped from the squad’sMotoGP arm this year along witherstwhile team-mate Alex deAngelis, as Gresini recruited MarcoMelandri and Marco Simoncelli for2010. But he will remain with theteam for Moto2, riding a Moriwakichassis alongside RussianSupersport graduate VladimirIvanov. Elias tested the Moriwakifor the company last November.

“I am very pleased to continueracing with Team Gresini becauseit is like a family to me,” said Elias,who first joined Gresini in MotoGP

Piquet: I had F1 offer for 2010NELSON Piquet claims he could have made a return to Formula 1 this year if he wanted, after

revealing that he had a firm offer for a drive in 2010. The Brazilian, who was at the centre of theRenault race-fix controversy that marred the end of last season, is now chasing opportunities torace in NASCAR - having recently tested a Toyota Tundra truck.

the seriousness and the business ofboth series are very, very high. I wasjust sick and tired of things overthere. I got a very, very good oppor-tunity over here to start my careerhere and I’m here.”

It is not clear which team madethe offer to Piquet, but the Brazilianwas strongly linked at one point withthe new Campos Meta team - whichhas already signed his compatriotBruno Senna for 2010. Piquet saidmany things factored in his decisionto switch to NASCAR besides theprofessional opportunities he hadavailable. He says he feels supportedby good people in his new venturein the US, which is set to start nextmonth at Daytona.

“I had to balance a lot of things,”Piquet said. “I had to balance my hap-piness. I had to balance my opportu-nities. I had to balance a lot of things

and I think the best thing that I cameup with - that I thought would be bet-ter for me - was the NASCAR route. Ithink the biggest factor point is thatI’m having a lot of people behind mehelping me, wanting me to be here. Alot of people that I trust and I’m lik-ing. So, all of that has been very goodfor me. I think that’s what has playeda big factor into the decision.”

This week Piquet has had a seat fit-ting for his stock car debut and hasspent time in the Red Horse Racingfactory. He plans to make his NASCARdebut with the team in the Truck Se-ries season-opener on February 12, buta deal has been in the works for him toenter the ARCA event at the same tracka week earlier. Piquet will be the firstBrazilian to compete in NASCAR af-ter Chtistian Fittipaldi drove for PettyEnterprises at Charlotte in the SprintCup series in 2003.

Gresini signs Elias for Moto2in 2006, winning that year’s Portu-guese Grand Prix. He moved toPramac Ducati for 2008 but returnedfor a third season at Gresini lastyear.”

“Alongside Moriwaki we are be-ginning a new adventure in Moto2.

We are extremely confident aboutthe project and we will all work withgreat determination to get the maxi-mum results possible.” Team bossFausto Gresini has no doubt thatElias will be a contender for theMoto2 title.

Toni Elias has completed a dealto lead Gresini’s assault on thenew Moto2 championship