Ahad, 18 Ogos 2013

The Star Online: Metro: Sunday Metro

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The Star Online: Metro: Sunday Metro

Singaporean ship cruises to N. Korea
More cases of women being molested, many on public transport
Philippine rescuers search amid fading miracle hopes

Singaporean ship cruises to N. Korea

Posted:

GIANT speakers thump out club hits as the deejay bellows: "Everybody get on the dance floor!"

The nightspot is a boarded-up swimming pool on a ship sailing in North Korean waters. The groovers are mainly middle-aged men and women wearing pins featuring pictures of the late North Korean leaders Kim Il-sung and Kim Jong-il.

Conspicuously missing was the beat of South Korean popstar Psy's Gangnam Style.

"We're not allowed to play that one," explains Danny Tay, the 46-year-old Singaporean who owns the ship.

His Royale Star was the only ship permitted to ply North Korea's first commercial cruise route running between northeastern Rajin port and the scenic southeastern Mount Kumgang resort.

Since getting its licence in February, it has made three trips.

Formerly a gaming ship in Singapore waters, the 138m-long vessel is no luxury liner, but a big improvement on the previous ship approved to ply the same route, the Mangyongbyong, with its bare minimum of amenities.

The Royale Star's bathrooms are functioning, for starters, and all passenger cabins on its nine decks come with bunks, allowing for up to 250 passengers, with room for 250 crew. There's also a karaoke lounge, a duty-free shop, a small casino, a massage parlour and a hair and nail salon.

The Pyongyang government representative overseeing the operations on board told The Sunday Times: "Customers seem happier with the 'Royale Star' than with the ship before, so our government is pleased with its crew and Singaporean management... This cruise is important to developing our tourism, and we want to give more people a taste of North Korea."

So how did a Singaporean and his modest vessel end up promoting tourism in reclusive North Korea? Tay says that he made the first move last year after learning that North Korea had a cruise route.

A primary school dropout who worked his way up the marine industry and who acquired the Royale Star in 2011 under his British Virgin Islands-registered company, Everis Capital Holdings, he approached North Korean officials to pitch his idea and the deal was sealed at the end of last year.

"It's been a dream to venture into North Korea since I was sent to repair a ship's elevators in North Korean waters back in 1996," said Tay.

"I don't speak the language but saw an opportunity and the untapped potential in cruises there."

The cruise was being marketed as a way for foreigners to visit one of the world's most secretive countries.

Several passengers on board during its latest trip at the end of last month had told The Sunday Times that curiosity had indeed prompted their travels.

The five-day, four-night 4,000 yuan (RM2,132) cruise was targeted mainly at foreigners.

Those who want to join the cruise must approach the vessel's management directly, or sign up at the Royale Star booth in Rajin port. — The Straits Times / Asia News Network

More cases of women being molested, many on public transport

Posted:

THE number of suspects arrested for outraging the modesty of women in Singapore has risen sharply this year, with many cases happening on public transport.

Figures collated from police news releases show that 46 men have been arrested since January in connection with at least 54 cases.

Twenty of the alleged offences took place on public buses or trains, or when the victims were near train stations or busstops.

There were 17 arrests for outrage of modesty during last year.

These figures, however, are just the tip of the iceberg.

For starters, the police do not publicise all arrest cases. Also, many reported cases remain unsolved. In fact, many more incidents go unreported, often because the victims do not want to come forward.

Monthly crime statistics shared by the police on its smartphone app, Police@SG, show an average of between 90 and 100 reports of molestation each month – the highest among the five preventable crimes in Singapore.

Molestation was flagged as an area of concern by the police when they released the 2012 crime statistics earlier this year, after reports of the offence on public transport shot up by more than a third – from 114 in 2011 to 153 last year.

Alvin Yeo, an MP on the Government Parliamentary Committee for Home Affairs and Law, said that the spike in molestation cases could be because there are more commuters and also because more victims are willing to make a report.

"We still need to monitor the situation and certainly, if there is an increase, police should be concerned and take steps proactively to stamp such behaviour out," he said. — The Straits Times / Asia News Network

Philippine rescuers search amid fading miracle hopes

Posted:

CEBU, Philippines (AFP) - Philippine rescuers battled rough seas Sunday in a bleak search for 85 people missing in the country's latest ferry disaster, but hopes were fading of finding any survivors.

Thirty-four people have been confirmed killed after the ferry, carrying more than 800 passengers and crew, sank almost instantly on Friday night following a collision with a cargo ship outside a major port in the central city of Cebu.

Stormy weather forced an early suspension of search and rescue operations with a few hours of daylight remaining on Saturday, and similar conditions hampered rescuers on Sunday.

Navy spokesman Lieutenant Commander Gregory Fabic said the weather had prevented divers from reaching the interior of the sunken vessel, where many of those missing were believed trapped. But rescuers would make every effort to get inside.

"It is possible that there are air pockets in its compartments and there might be survivors," Fabic told AFP, adding people could survive for 72 hours in such conditions.

"There is still hope that there might just be survivors there."

The number of people officially listed as missing was sharply reduced on Sunday to 85 from 170 due to tallying issues rather than any fresh rescues.

The number of missing was cut after those involved in the search reconciled their figures, said Neil Sanchez, head of the regional disaster management office in Cebu.

Authorities were unable to say how many people may be in the sunken ship, which is at a depth of about 30 metres (98 feet), raising hope the number of missing could be reduced further.

Divers found the bodies of a man and a woman as they searched the outer reaches of the vessel on Sunday morning, Jaypee Abuan, a navy spokesman aboard one of the patrol craft, told AFP, lifting the known death toll to 34.

But stormy weather and strong currents throughout the day prevented a full-scale dive mission. Abuan said rescuers had been unable to get into the ship's interior by late Sunday afternoon, nearly two days after the accident.

"The time element is crucial. We need to fast-track diving operations to reach the inner compartments," he said.

Meanwhile, navy vessels, coastguard personnel in rubber boats and volunteer fishermen scoured about three square kilometres (1.8 square miles) of water outside the port for anyone who may still be floating.

While saying that all hope had not yet been lost, authorities cautioned that the odds of finding any more survivors were low.

"We are still hopeful, although you have to accept the reality that their chances of survival are very slim," Sanchez told reporters.

Survivors and people with relatives still missing waited at the Cebu ferry passenger terminal and a local hospital on Sunday for news of loved ones.

"I cannot explain what I am feeling. It is painful, but I continue to hope," said Nanette Condicion, 44, who survived by jumping on to the cargo ship but lost her elder sister and 71-year-old father in the chaos.

"I am staying here to wait for them, dead or alive. I am not going to leave unless I see both of them."

The ships collided as they were travelling in opposite directions at a well-known choke point near the mouth of Cebu's port.

Authorities said the St Thomas Aquinas ferry sank within 10 minutes of the crash.

The cargo ship Sulpicio Express 7, which had 36 crew members on board, did not sink. Its steel bow had caved in on impact but it sailed safely to dock.

Government regulator the Maritime Industry Authority said both vessels had passed safety checks and were seaworthy, indicating human error was to blame for one of the ships going into a wrong lane.

Ferries are one of the main forms of transport across the archipelago of more than 7,100 islands, particularly for the millions too poor to fly.

But sea accidents are common, with poor safety standards and lax enforcement typically to blame.

The world's deadliest peacetime maritime disaster occurred near the capital Manila in 1987 when a ferry laden with Christmas holidaymakers collided with a small oil tanker, killing more than 4,300 people.

Kredit: www.thestar.com.my

The Star Online: World Updates

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The Star Online: World Updates

Poll shows Australia's Labor government on course for heavy defeat
Firefighters step up battle against Idaho blaze; resort towns menaced
Crackdown on Brotherhood members

Poll shows Australia's Labor government on course for heavy defeat

Posted:

CANBERRA (Reuters) - A bold gamble by Kevin Rudd to reclaim the leadership of Australia and launch national elections appears to be failing, with a poll on Monday showing his centre-left Labor government is headed for a heavy defeat in a September ballot.

A Newspoll in the Australian newspaper showed opposition leader Tony Abbott's conservative coalition was ahead of Rudd's Labor Party by 54 percent to 46 at the midpoint of the five-week campaign, a two-point increase in a fortnight.

Rudd, a former diplomat, ousted Julia Gillard as leader in June in a bold party-room coup to revive the government's public support following a prolonged poll slump under Gillard.

The Newspoll showed Rudd had suffered a big reversal in his own popularity as well as his party's.

Voter dissatisfaction with Rudd was at a record 54 percent after he launched new advertising that accused the conservatives of risking a recession with planned spending cuts.

"You may say it's negative. But we say it's putting the spotlight on what Australia would be like if Mr Abbott became prime minister," Rudd told Australian television.

The polling suggests a four-point swing away from Labor's minority government in the September 7 vote, which would allow the conservatives to govern in their own right with around 89 seats in the 150-seat lower house. Labor would lose around 14 seats.

Abbott's centre-right coalition and Rudd's Labor both have put management of the $1.5 trillion economy - the world's 12th largest - at the centre of their campaigns, along with promises to curb an influx of asylum seekers arriving by boat.

Internal Labor polling shows that, with voters worried about immigration and competition for jobs in a slowing economy forecast to grow at 2.5 percent this fiscal year, at least 10 seats hang in the balance.

Several of those seats are held by Labor ministers.

Abbott has promised to cut the 30 percent company tax rate if he wins to help boost business confidence while the economy retreats from a China-fuelled mining boom, and to scrap a controversial mining profits tax and price on carbon emissions.

"The contemporary Labor Party are hopeless at government, but they are brilliant at low politics. This election is going to be a struggle," Abbott said on Monday.

Australia's company tax rate sits about six percentage points above the average of most developed economies. Business groups have been urging a reduction to help boost international competitiveness and investment.

(Reporting by Rob Taylor; Editing by Paul Tait)

Firefighters step up battle against Idaho blaze; resort towns menaced

Posted:

SALMON, Idaho (Reuters) - Firefighters mounted on Sunday an all-out ground and air attack on an Idaho wildfire that has forced the evacuation of some 2,250 homes and threatened the world-class ski resort of Sun Valley, where snow-making water cannons were used to keep the flames at bay.

The fire raging across parched sagebrush, grasslands and pine forests near high-end developments in the Sun Valley area has consumed 101,000 acres (41,000 hectares) and destroyed one home and seven other buildings since lightning sparked the blaze on August 7.

More than 1,000 firefighters were engaged in what fire officials called "a heavy air show" and ground assault in a drive to gain the upper hand over a blaze stoked by dry, hot weather and strong, gusting winds.

"Every fire has a personality, and this fire has an angry personality," said Beth Lund, incident commander with the U.S. Forest Service team managing the blaze in central Idaho.

Airplane tankers dumping payloads of fire retardant and helicopters dropping water bolstered the fight on Sunday to protect the 5,128 residences, 1,399 commercial properties and 3,729 outbuildings threatened by the fire.

For the first time since the so-called Beaver Creek blaze erupted, weather conditions on Sunday turned in favour of the firefighters.

A rise in humidity levels overnight paired with calmer winds gave crews an edge in efforts to subdue flames that have advanced on affluent neighbourhoods around the tourist town of Hailey and resort communities of Ketchum and Sun Valley to the north.

Authorities have put the value of land and property threatened in the resort region, known as the Wood River Valley, at $8 billion. The area contains the homes of such celebrities as film director Steven Spielberg, actor Tom Hanks and singer and actress Barbra Streisand.

The 11-day battle against the flames has strained the economies of the resort towns at the height of a summer recreation season tied to hiking, biking and fishing.

At the Sun Valley Resort, an all-season vacation getaway famed for its world-class skiing, workers turned on water cannons usually used to make snow to wet down a mountain whose southeastern face was the scene of a concentrated assault by firefighters.

"We've fired up the snow-making guns," resort spokesman Jack Sibbach said of the computerized system.

On Sunday, fire managers expressed cautious optimism about their prospects for curtailing the blaze in the next week or so.

"I think we'll see this thing pretty well beaten into submission," Lund said. "It's kicked our butts for the last three days, but I think we're about to turn the corner on this one."

Word that firefighters were gaining ground on the fire was welcome news in Hailey, a city of 8,000.

"Saturday was really, really scary, but things seem to be looking up a bit today," said Carrie Morgridge, owner of Hailey Coffee Company.

Flames raced down a mountain on the west side of Hailey on Saturday, prompting a 3 a.m. evacuation of 200 homes. Morgridge opened the coffee shop during the pre-dawn hours to aid the displaced.

"In the good, in the bad, we will do what it takes to stay a community, to be an extended family, because that's really what we are," she said.

The Beaver Creek fire is one of dozens of blazes raging in western states amid a U.S. fire season that brought substantial property losses and the deaths of dozens of firefighters.

Elsewhere in Idaho, roughly 30 miles (48 km) to the west, the 1,000 summer residents of the resort communities of Pine and Featherville were allowed back into their homes early Sunday evening after a days-long evacuation prompted by a 130,000-acre (53,000-hectare) wildfire that broke out on August 8.

The blaze east of the state capital Boise destroyed 38 homes and 43 other buildings and killed dozens of animals, including elk, deer and black bears.

Crackdown on Brotherhood members

Posted:

CAIRO: Egyptian authorities raided the homes of Muslim Brotherhood members in an apparent attempt to disrupt the group ahead of planned mass rallies by supporters of the country's ousted president.

Under the banner of an anti-coup alliance, the Brotherhood said it will hold a demonstration in front of the Supreme Constitutional Court in southern Cairo.

Authorities already stationed armoured vehicles and troops at the building, which could turn into another focal point of street violence.

More than 800 people have been killed nationwide since Wednesday's dismantling of two encampments of President Mohamed Morsi supporters in Cairo – an act that sparked fierce clashes.

In an attempt to cripple the Brotherhood's protest plans, authorities carried out sweeping raids early yesterday morning, detaining mid-level officials and field operatives in several cities, according to security officials and group statements.

In Assiut, 320km south of Cairo, 163 of the group's officials and operatives were rounded up in different towns in the province, security officials said.

They said those arrested face charges of instigating violence and orchestrating attacks on police stations and churches.

In the city of Suez, nine people were arrested after being caught on film attacking army vehicles, burning churches and assaulting Christian-owned stores, officials said.

In ancient southern city of Luxor, more than 20 Brotherhood senior officials were detained, officials said.

The officials spoke on condition of anonymity as they were not authorised to speak publicly to journalists.

Meanwhile, the Egyptian government has begun deliberations on whether to ban the Brotherhood, a long-outlawed organisation that swept to power in the country's first democratic elections a year ago.

Such a ban – which authorities say would be implemented over the group's use of violence – would be a repeat of the decades-long power struggle between the state and the Brotherhood.

The Brotherhood faces increasing public criticism over the ongoing violence in Egypt.

Sheik Ahmed el-Tayeb, the powerful head of Al-Azhar mosque, Sunni Islam's main seat of learning, issued an audio statement asking Brotherhood members to stop the violence.

"The scenes of violence will not grant you any rights," el-Tayeb said.

El-Tayeb supported the military ousting of Morsi after millions took to the streets demanding the president to step down. — AP

Kredit: www.thestar.com.my

The Star eCentral: Movie Reviews

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The Star eCentral: Movie Reviews

Earth-friendly films
Neill Blomkamp refines and reflects
Getting to know the world of Elysium

Earth-friendly films

Posted:

Here's a chance to catch some films about the environment which are both entertaining and educational.

IT'S only a movie, people sometimes say. But movies can be more. Here's a chance to catch some films about the environment which are both entertaining and educational.

The 6th Kuala Lumpur Eco Film Festival (KLEFF) kicked off recently and free public screenings of award-winning films are currently being held every Monday at MAP Publika, KL.

These Monday Movies screenings will be held until the KLEFF is held from Oct 11-13. Showtime is 8pm at The Square in Publika.

Among the films are: The Light Bulb Conspiracy directed by Cossima Dannortizer, the winner of Best International Film at last year's festival; Big Dreams, Little Bears directed by Audrey Low and Howard Jackson; and Bikpela Bagarap (Big Damage), winner of the Audience Choice Award at last year's festival.

Big Dreams, Little Bears is about the world's smallest bears that live on the island of Borneo. Dr Audrey Low follows sun bear expert Siew Te Wong as he tries to save the bears. Low rediscovers her homeland while Siew goes through the most dangerous phase of his work. The film is full of humour while the audience gets to meet Suria, the youngest and smallest bear, ostracised after being injured by other bigger bears.

The Light Bulb Conspiracy is a documentary about the ill effects of consumerism and planned obsolescence, which claims certain products have deliberately shortened life spans to ensure that there is no end to the demand, guaranteeing the manufacturers' long-term profits.

Next month, Monday Movies will showcase the official selection of this year's festival.

The KLEFF, which will also be held at Publika, will offer a wide variety of environment-themed local and international films. There will also be exhibitions by NGOs and grassroots organisations as well as businesses, and community workshops and performances by local artistes.

For more information, visit ecofilmfest.my.

Neill Blomkamp refines and reflects

Posted:

Neill Blomkamp on creative juices flowing before and after shooting a movie.

South African director Neill Blomkamp, whose sleeper hit District 9 surprised the world and earned an Oscar nomination for best picture in 2009 is all set to release his sophomore effort, Elysium, starring Matt Damon, Jodie Foster, William Fitchner, Diego Luna and Wagner Moura. The movie opens in local cinemas on Aug 22.

While Elysium is being heavily critiqued as another one of this summer's big budget duds, it also went straight to the top of the box office on its opening weekend (Aug 10) thanks to its spectacular action scenes and some really neat conceptual ideas brought to life by Blomkamp.

When The Star bumped into him in Los Angeles at the hoity toity Four Seasons Hotel, the director shared where he thinks his forte lies – whether in conceptualising the movie, during the actual film shoot or in post production.

"I think it probably would be in conceptualising and in post production more than production itself," he offered. "Weirdly, on Elysium I liked production. It was sort of fun but that's from a day to day perspective. But from a filmmaking perspective, filming is sort of torture. Because in conceptualising or even in post, you have time to refine things. Whereas when you are shooting – that's most of your expenditure, 60% of your budget or more in that period of time. Which means out of an 80-day schedule, if you don't make one day, your budget is off and you now have to go into contingency. Every day that you fall short of schedule feels like a torture chamber and you end up just compromising all the time.

"Plus I get more feedback from the creation of images and I can do that more effectively before and after."

Things are going well for director Neill Blomkamp at the moment. - AFP

Citing filmmakers James Cameron (Aliens is his favourite film) and Stanley Kubrick, music video director Chris Cunningham, futurist/artist Syd Mead and renowned architect Richard Meier as some of his wide and varied influences, Blomkamp said that it wasn't hard settling on a follow up project to his 2009 surprise hit District 9.

"Luckily at the moment in my career, I don't seem to be looking back. You know what I mean? In fact, I have a very small low budget comedy that I want to make which could potentially ruin me," he noted, tongue very much in cheek. "What came before doesn't really matter in that sense. The connection between District 9 and Elysium, I will say, is that my mind was so much in the realm of these two films, and right when I finished District 9 I started writing Elysium. So much so that even though they are different, they have the same DNA. You know it's not xenophobia and race in this film, but there are dark themes in Elysium that are similar and that would be the genetic link between the two."

As for the question of the decade... what about District 10? Blomkamp offered, without skipping beat: "I want to make District 10. I just don't know when. I have a treatment but I don't have a script ... yet."

Read all about Elysium and Blomkamp's visual expertise in The Star tomorrow (Aug 18) or at thestar.com.my/entertainment

Getting to know the world of Elysium

Posted:

DONUTOPIA

HAVE you ever heard of the Stanford Torus? The (American) National Space Society (nss.org) describes it as the principal design considered by the 1975 NASA Summer Study, which was conducted in conjunction with Stanford University with the purpose of speculating on designs for future space colonies. It consists of a torus (a donut-shaped ring) that is one mile in diameter, rotates once per minute to provide Earth-normal gravity on the inside of the outer ring, and which can house 10,000 people.

Blomkamp worked with VFX supervisor Peter Muyzers and production designer Phil Ivey to determine the size and width of the ring, how many people could live on Elysium, and how many houses would there be, what the houses would look like, what kind of infrastructure would be in place, as well as how one would get to the orbiting space station. Real scientists and engineers at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory were consulted to see if the effects people were on the right track.

Interestingly, Blomkamp was familiar with the Stanford Torus because of his interest in the artwork of 80-year-old futurist illustrator Syd Mead (famous for his concept designs for Blade Runner, Tron and Aliens). Blomkamp said: "Syd Mead, who designed some of the sets on Elysium, is one of my favourite artists. Even when I was a young kid in South Africa I used to collect everything of his that I could find. And in 1982 he did an illustration for National Geographic of the Standford Torus. That image always stuck with me.

"Later, when I was trying to figure out how to show the contrast between the rich and poor in a sci-fi setting for this movie, I remembered that image from Syd and I thought that if you could recreate it very realistically – the original idea was not opulent – but if you took that concept and you made it satirical, if you put the rich on the torus and put swimming pools all over it, that would be a cool concept."

FIELDS OF GOLD

The encyclopaedia of Greek Mythology says that the Elysian Fields (i-LEE-zhun or ee-LEE-zhun) is a paradise of the heroes. Here, the likes of Achilles lived on (after death) in pleasant surroundings, in heroic pursuit of the hunt and banquet (mythweb.com). In his Odyssey, Greek epic poet Homer described it as a place where life is easiest for men. His fellow countryman Hesiod also spoke of it, as did Thebean poet Pindar, who described Elysium as having shady parks.

According to filmmaker Neill Blomkamp, his reason for naming the film Elysium was quite different. "My reason was because Elysium is a giant gated community (in the movie). And in Johannesburg (from where the director hails) they have the cheesiest names for the gated communities. Like Eden or Aasgard," he explained almost rolling his eyes. Thus, "Elysium" sounded perfect.

BIONIC MAN

In the movie, a dying Max (Matt Damon's character) is fitted with a biomechanical exoskeletal suit that enables him to have superhuman strength. How else could he posisbly stand up to Elysium's robot guard? Blomkamp gave directions on the look of the suit, as well as the droids and the weaponry used in the movie to the artists at Weta Workshop, who also designed the aliens and weaponry on District 9, according the movie production notes.

"It was my favourite prop in the movie," says Special Makeup FX /Costume /Props Supervisor Joe Dunckley, who said the suit required eight months of research and development and 75 revisions before the design was finalised.

In the end, the actor wearing the suit was impressed. "The big thing was mobility," according to Damon. "Elysium is a real action movie, with running and jumping and climbing and fighting, so they wanted to make sure that I could actually move in the suit, and the guys at Weta knocked that out completely. Everything looked metal, but it was super-lightweight. I could stay in it all day and I'd feel totally fine."

CARRYING CAPACITY

In an interview with Wired magazine's Mark Yarm, Blomkamp talked about the human race going down the road of the Malthusian catastrophe, and much of his movie is based on this idea. Just what is the Malthusian theory? English economist Thomas Malthus claimed that there would be a population explosion that was already becoming evident in the 18th century, and argued that the number of people would increase faster than the food supply. Population would eventually reach a resource limit and the world would see a population crash, caused by famine, disease, or war. Filmmaker Blomkamp feels that there are only two ways we could end up if this theory were to eventuate – survive through technological innovation, or end up extinct.

Kredit: www.thestar.com.my

The Star Online: Business

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The Star Online: Business

Hibiscus Petroleum subsidiary awards Oman drilling contract
Malaysia Airlines up in active trade on privatisation hopes
China banks take a hit, world watching whether it can pull through financial reforms

Hibiscus Petroleum subsidiary awards Oman drilling contract

Posted:

KUALA LUMPUR: Hibiscus Petroleum Bhd's subsidiary has awarded a drilling rig contract in its Oman concession to Aban 7 Pte Ltd.

It said on Monday the contract was to spud and drill a minimum of two exploration wells in its Block 50 Oman concession for a minimum period of 50 working days, starting between mid-October and mid-November.

Hibiscus Petroleum's jointly-controlled entity, Lime Petroleum Plc (Lime), through its subsidiary Masirah Oil Ltd, had secured the services of Aban VII drilling rig, an independent leg cantilever jack-up rig, to undertake the project.

Aban 7 is an international drilling contractor that owns and operates 18 drilling rigs.

"After an international tender exercise and careful evaluation of available rigs in the region, the Aban VII was chosen for several reasons including certainty of the rig's delivery schedule, strong past operating performance, crew competence and goodhealth, safety and environment record alongside good regional support," said Hibiscus Petroleum.

Hibsicus Petroleum managing director Dr Kenneth Pereira said the company was excited to get its drilling programme under way.

"From our days as Malaysia's first SPAC and being the country's first and only listed independent exploration & production company, the awarding of this contract represents a significant milestone for us. Through the use of Rex Virtual Drilling, we believe we stand a good chance of success and hope to reward our loyal shareholders," he said.

Malaysia Airlines up in active trade on privatisation hopes

Posted:

KUALA LUMPUR: Shares of Malaysian Airline System (MAS) rose to a high of 35.5 sen in very active trade early Monday, sparked by investor expectations of a possible privatisation.

At 9.13am, MAS was up two sen to 35 sen. There were 39.96 million shares traded at prices ranging from 34.5 sen to 35.5 sen.

The FBM KLCI was down 11.84 points to 1,776.40. Turnover was 223.59 million shares valued at RM120.17mil. There were 163 gainers, 153 losers and 171 counters unchanged.

Former Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad said on Sunday privatisation could be the answer to MAS' profitability problem after several unsuccessful efforts to turn the airline around.

He said privatising MAS would force the management to become more focuses in finding ways to make the airliners profitable.

China banks take a hit, world watching whether it can pull through financial reforms

Posted:

CHINESE banks' profits are expected to fall in the first half against a negative outlook for the next three years.

The nine Hong Kong-listed mainland banks are expected to report about 10% growth in net earnings when they start releasing results this month, according to analysts.

Meanwhile, the non-performing loans ratio is expected to rise by 0.93%.

Some analysts see an increase in bad loans and interest rate liberalisation as denting mainland banks' profits, says the South China Morning Post (SCMP).

Regulators have asked lenders not to extend new loans to sectors hit by overcapacity, such as steel and cement.

"That means companies will struggle in the case of a prolonged economic slowdown and have problems repaying existing loans," says SCMP.

Recent regulatory tightening in the interbank market also resulted in the shrinking of the interbank business, with most of the impact to be seen in the second half of this year.

Interbank rates on the mainland hit historic highs in June, as regulators decided to rein in shadow banking and crack down on the bond market.

Small and medium-sized banks were affected severely because they are the major borrowers in the interbank market, reports the SCMP.

Bank profits will be underpinned by a stable net interest margin (NIM), a key measure of lending profitability, and a recovery in fee income growth driven by credit card and wealth management fees, analysts were quoted as saying.

"The slow move towards deposit interest rate liberalisation will benefit the outlook of NIM," an analyst with a major mainland investment bank in Beijing was quoted as saying.

The central bank announced the abolition of the floor on loan rates last month, in a small step towards interest rate deregulation.

Market participants are now awaiting the move that would allow the market to determine the interest rate to be paid to depositors, says the SCMP.

It is a sign of the slowing economy in China and the world is watching whether it can pull through all the financial reforms it has on its plate.

Whether it affects the rest of Asia remains to be seen, as China has a certain influence on Asian economies by virtue of being the second-largest economy in the world.

But for a start, they will not be the role models for other Asian banks seeking greater regional expansion.

Their attempts at financial reform appear to be clumsy, hitting major sectors of the economy at the same time.

Good financial reform should be administered smoothly and progressively; things done in a bunched-up manner will have a negative result.

US commodities regulator, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), has subpoenaed several major metals warehousing businesses on complaints that metal prices were higher than what they should be. The international companies that have complained include Coca-Cola and brewer Miller Coors.

Officials are reported to have requested all information linked to trading on the London Metal Exchange since the start of 2010, in what is seen as the potential prelude to a full investigation of the metals market, says The Telegraph.

Over the past three years, competition has intensified from banks such as Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan, as well as commodities traders Glencore Xstrata and Trafigura.

This investigation into metal prices follows an earlier investigation into oil prices, which were suspected to be manipulated.

As commodities trading becomes bigger than its basic needs, this sort of manipulation towards profit-oriented goals will happen.

The problem for the CFTC, which played a major role in getting Barclays to admit to attempts in world interest rate rigging, is to monitor this increasing number of players.

France has warned of possible money laundering in vineyard sales to Chinese investors, says the SCMP.

The annual report of the anti-money-laundering unit of the French Ministry for Economy and Finance, Tracfin, released last month, has also singled out Russian and Ukrainian buyers.

Some of these buyers use "complex judicial arrangements with holding companies located in fiscally privileged countries" to obtain these vineyards, making it difficult to establish the origin and the legality of the funds brought into France, says the SCMP.

Money laundering is usually associated with banks, but this time, it is the purchase of vineyards.

This is something highly unexpected and speaks of the ingenuity of the investors.

Although the report indicates that France, which badly needs the funds in the current economic situation, is not likely to exert pressure on the case, it should at least send out signals that such acts are undesirable.

If left unchecked, it can blow up to be a big thing.

Money laundering is a serious crime in many parts of the world.

As an example, major banks have been fined heftily for laundering money belonging to drug barons and terrorists.

Columnist Yap Leng Kuen would like to see all forms of money laundering being taken seriously.

Kredit: www.thestar.com.my

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Blood & Beauty: A Novel Of The Borgias

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Were they truly a family of utter evil? This fascinating fictional account of Lucrezia Borgia begs to differ.

THE Borgias. Ah, those delicious vowel and consonant sounds that roll around the mouth, full of an initial opulence only to end with a sibilant "s" like the hissing of a very sinister and dangerous snake. If the world is in the name, the name of Borgia with all its connotations of luxury, depravity and skulduggery is the Renaissance in a word.

And if what we remember most about the Renaissance is the beauty of its art and the genius of its figurehead, Leonardo da Vinci, then not far behind follow the brutality of its politics and the corruption of its church. These were, to put it mildly, turbulent times and turbulent times breed wheelers and dealers and power mongers and the Borgias were all of these things. There is nothing surprising there; what is more difficult to come to terms with is that they were the leaders of the greatest religious body on earth.

Sarah Dunant opens her more than accomplished account of their reign with the ascendancy of Rodrigo Borgia to the papal throne as Pope Alexander VI in 1492. He has four illegitimate children, one of whom at least, Lucrezia, has gone down in history as the epitome of cruel treachery. Dunant begs to differ. "Because they lose, the victors write the history about them. That means that all the things about them that were seen as gossip and scandalous when they were alive suddenly become history," she has said.

Blood & Beauty is a novel, not a revisionist piece of history, but we do well to bear in mind her point. According to history she adds, "Rodrigo, the Pope, had four children. True. He slept with his daughter. Not true. We discover that she is also supposed to have slept with her brother. Not true. You discover that she was a poisoner. Not true.... The Borgias have become representative of all that was wrong with the Renaissance but partly because the people who wrote the history were the people who beat them."

Whatever the exact truth of what Lucrezia went on to do in later life, in Blood & Beauty she is far more victim than ruthless killer. As a young unmarried beauty, and a Borgia to boot, she is a powerful piece of political capital. Her arranged marriages are strategic. There is little love in the first one but a great deal in the second and if her first husband remains unmourned when the marriage is annulled, her tears at the murder of the second, on her brother's orders, are genuine and prolonged.

Italy at this stage is not Italy as we now know it. It is a series of city states vying for territory and power. Throw into the mix the ambitions of the kings of Spain and France and the need for political alliances forged through marriages becomes clearer. Lucrezia, though greatly loved, is very much a pawn on the chessboard of her father and brother's ambition and is simply married off in accordance with their strategic plans.

History has seen much speculation on the nature of the relationship between Lucrezia and her brother, Cesare, with outright incest the most scandalous option. Dunant's portrayal of their relationship is far more turbulent, and certainly hints at Cesare's rather stiflingly unhealthy love for his sister, but draws a line at incest.

And if there is an outright villain in the Borgia family it is surely Cesare. Made a cardinal as a teenager, he cannot wait to throw off his religious robes and replace them with armour, rampaging over Italian soil, bullying rival city states into submission and eliminating rivals with callous indifference. Cesare glories in battle for its own sake and much of the blood in the book's title is shed by him.

It will come as no surprise that Dunant handles this mass of contentious material with skill and elegance. Admirers of The Birth Of Venus (of whom I am very much one) will know her ability to capture a sense of time and history. As always, her eye for detail conveys the sumptuous fabrics and jewellery of the period, its sensual love of fine things and the luxury that the artistic flowering of the Renaissance was able to bring to the lives of the rich. But behind this is the drive of a powerful story with some great central protagonists, be they the Borgias themselves or their foes and allies.

Dunant knows how to tell a story and how to keep her readers turning the pages. And the Borgias is such a great story to tell: "I think if the Borgias hadn't existed, history would have had to invent them because they are the perfect bad guys," she has said. You might like to remember that when you watch with gleeful horror the ruthless machinations of the Lannisters in TV's Game Of Thrones.

The Golem And The Jinni

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Can two opposing elements combine harmoniously? Can two very different, even hostile, cultures, thrown together in a New World, learn to live together?

EARTH and fire are two opposing forces, with earth being able to put out fire, and fire able to scorch the earth. How then do two creatures of such contrary elements become friends?

In 1899 New York, a golem formed from clay, and a jinni, a being of fire, form an unlikely friendship, fuelled by the fundamental loneliness of being the only supernatural creatures of their kind in the teeming, crowded city of humans. Not only are they singular in nature, but each must also hide their true traits, for fear that humans might turn against them.

However, while Chava the golem takes the stricture of having to hide her real self to heart, Ahmad the jinni chaffs at not being able to use his natural abilities.

Created by a dabbler in the darker Kabbalistic arts, Chava was made to be the "wife" of Otto Rotfeld, a rich businessman's son from Danzig (now known as Gdansk in Poland), who squandered the family fortune and now wants to start anew in America.

While she has the traditional qualities of a golem – unquestioning obedience and loyalty to her master, as well as Hulk-like strength and the Hulk's tendency to go into a blind rage when adequately provoked – Rotfeld also requests for her to be curious and intelligent. These two qualities are what help her to survive the early death of her master (and purpose for being), when he dies of a ruptured appendix soon after he brings her to life on board the ship from Danzig to New York. In the city, she catches the attention of retired rabbi Avram Meyer, who takes her under his wing despite his doubts and fears of her.

Meanwhile, we are first introduced to the jinni when he is accidentally released from an ancient copper flask – a family heirloom of coffeeshop owner Maryam Faddoul, who resides in the Little Syria neighbourhood of New York. Maryam requests local tinsmith Boutros Arbeely to refurbish the battered-looking flask, and in doing so, he accidentally breaks the seal imprisoning the jinni within it.

Like Rabbi Meyer, Arbeely also (kind of) takes the jinni, whom he names Ahmad, under his wing, as he feels responsible for him.

Still trapped in human form, Ahmad is unable to either use his powers or transform back to his original form to return home to the Syrian desert. Even worse, he cannot remember anything about how he was captured by a human wizard.

The story initially unfolds along parallel lines as we follow Chava and Ahmad on their individual journeys of self-discovery and attempts to fit in among the humans.

Chava learns to control her mind-reading abilities and her automatic empathetic response, while Ahmad reluctantly learns how to interact with humans. When their paths soon intersect accidentally, a friendship slowly develops between them.

While the stories of Chava and Ahmad are the core of the novel, author Helene Wecker also gives good space to the development of the characters around them.

From Rabbi Meyer, his nephew Michael, and Chava's creator Yehudah Schaalman to Arbeely, Maryam and Ice-Cream Salleh, each supporting character gets his or her own story heard – and this, at the same time, gives the reader a feel for the Jewish and Arabic immigrant neighbourhoods in New York at the time.

While the exposition of these characters' histories might seem tangential at times – although I have to say, Wecker writes well enough that it all feels quite organic – everything takes on a deeper significance when the threads are gathered up towards the end of the book.

I appreciated Wecker's technique in allowing the reader to follow Chava's story right from the beginning, ie her creation, while we are dropped into Ahmad's story midway, ie as a captive who can't remember how he was imprisoned, and then slowly learn how he was captured.

What elevates the story is that as disparate as their origins may seem, there is a connection between the golem and the jinni, beyond their unlikely friendship.

This final revelation is not one that many, if any, readers will see coming, while the ending is bittersweet in a way, but satisfying.

First-time author Wecker writes a well-told story with depth and originality, and well-realised characters readers will feel for.

Strongly recommended for those who appreciate stories.

Kredit: www.thestar.com.my

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All aflutter as National Day draws near
Too many doctors, too little training
Two held after shooting and slashing of Indian citizen

All aflutter as National Day draws near

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KOTA KINABALU: A Merdeka air is evident in the state capital with the Jalur Gemilang adorning many premises.

Among the attractions are the 800 national and Sabah flags around the 154ha Sutera Harbour Resort here, a sprawling holiday retreat that encompasses two hotels, a marina and a golf course.

Launching the Merdeka Month celebrations at the resort, Chief Minister Datuk Seri Musa Aman said more government departments, agencies and the private sector should emulate the resort's example.

"By flying the Jalur Gemilang, we are actually showing our love, gratitude and appreciation for the freedom that we have enjoyed over the last 56 years," he said, pointing out that this year also marked the 50th anniversary of Malaysia Day.

Musa Aman arriving at the resort for the launch of the Merdeka Month celebrations.

"We have seen many changes and achievements, not only in terms of development and economic progress but also in the improved socio-economic status and well-being of Sabahans as a whole,'' he said.

Musa Aman said the Sulu intrusion in Lahad Datu in February should serve as a reminder to all Malaysians to stay united.

The Chief Minister said the Merdeka gathering at the resort had been made more meaning- ful with the participation of a battalion from the Third Royal Malay Regiment, which was involved in operations against the Sulu gunmen.

Najib waving a Jalur Gemilang during the flag waving ceremony at Dataran Zero in Sungai Petani as Kedah Mentri Besar Datuk Mukhriz Tun Dr Mahathir (third from left) and Communication and Multimedia Minister Datuk Seri Shabery Cheek (left) wave.

In Sungai Petani, thousands of people attended the "Fly the Jalur Gemilang" programme launched by Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak at Dataran Zero on Friday night.

The Prime Minister also flagged off the Kembara Merdeka expedition after decking five vehicles with the Jalur Gemilang. The team will tour the country to promote patriotism among the people.

Najib said the Jalur Gemilang should be waved "with respect and deep love for the country".

He said besides understanding the importance of independence, the people should also be prepared to defend the sovereignty of the country.

Too many doctors, too little training

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The future remains uncertain for aspiring doctors unless more training hospitals are opened.

COME next year, some 5,000 doctors are expected to be jobless.

This is because there are not enough government hospitals to train the large number of medical graduates being churned out, says Malaysian Medical Association (MMA) president Datuk Dr N.K.S. Tharmaseelan.

"There are just too many doctors and too many medical institutions flooding the market," he claims, adding that there are now about 40,000 active doctors in the country.

"Some 5,000 doctors are graduating yearly but where are they going to do their housemanship and compulsory training?

"Currently in government hospitals, there are some 60 doctors in one unit so how are they going to learn?" he asks, adding that soon there will not be enough posts for medical officers in government hospitals.

According to the 2011 Health Ministry Annual Report, 21,765 out of 28,309 vacancies for medical officers have been filled, he says.

"This means that by now, the 6,544 available posts would have almost been filled. Where will the fresh graduates go next year?"

Dr Tharmaseelan calls on the government to build more hospitals, increase the number of beds in existing ones and equip the district hospitals with training facilities to accommodate the influx of aspiring doctors.

"There were 130 government hospitals in 2007 and 132 in 2011 – that's an increase of only two hospitals in four years. It's definitely insufficient. If this continues, doctors will soon join the flock of some 15,000 unemployed nurses," he claims.

He adds that although the Health Ministry has assured the association that there are some 1,000 vacancies for doctors this year, the future remains uncertain for aspiring doctors unless more training hospitals are opened.

He believes the problem of unemployed doctors would be worse if the compulsory two-year government service is stopped.

"There is talk that after completing their housemanship, the doctors won't need to serve at government hospitals anymore. MMA is concerned because this will result in doctors who are not adequately trained," he says. MMA is urging the Education Ministry to monitor closely the many medical colleges that have sprouted recently, adding that entry requirements are too low for most.

"Students from colleges that are not recognised can sit for an examination to make them eligible to practice locally.

"We have an Air Asia 'everyone can fly' syndrome – it seems that everyone can become a doctor. Adopting Henry Ford's industrialisation of car production to training doctors will result in poor quality medical practitioners," he adds.

He attributes the glut to a lack of co-ordination between Education Ministry and Health Ministry, with the former bent on allowing medical colleges to mushroom without considering the Health Ministry's needs.

He adds that medical colleges should have their own hospitals instead of sending their graduates to train in government hospitals.

"Another way to prevent unemployment from setting in is for doctors to become specialists and 'super specialists' in niche areas of medicine," he says.

MMC member and senior medical practitioner Dr Milton Lum points out that there are currently almost 9,000 housemen nationwide.

"How many of them can the government hospitals absorb? Unemployment is not a possibility – it's a probability.

"In one to two years' time, government hospitals won't be able to take in housemen anymore so medical graduates will have to leave the country to find work because they can't get registered here," he says, adding that less than 50 hospitals in the country are equipped with the necessary training facilities.

Quoting a Health Ministry study done last year, he says housemen now see less than three new patients daily.

"When I was doing my housemanship 40 years ago, I was seeing between 15 and 25 patients daily.

"Medical graduates today are not getting enough exposure and experience which will definitely result in a drop in quality for doctors," he cautions, adding that in recent years, the MMC had received more than 100 complaints concerning doctors yearly. Before 2005, the council only received about two or three complaints.

Federation of Private Medical Practitioners Associations Malaysia (FPMPAM) president Dr Steven Chow says there are more than 33 local medical schools in "full production" excluding overseas institutions.

"The total number of posts for doctors available in the Health Ministry, universities and other public institutions is about 25,000.

"We are already seeing difficulties in getting enough training posts for housemen and medical officers.

"This will worsen with influx from neighbouring countries in due course," he adds.

Comenting on the "glut of doctors", Health director-general Datuk Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah says the phrase is "very relative".

The Health Ministry, he says, is working closely with the Malaysian Medical Council (MMC) and the Education Ministry in managing the supply of doctors for the country.

The country has been producing more doctors yearly with almost 85% of the ministry's vacancies for doctors already filled, he adds.

"However, the posts available do not commensurate with the needs of the country.

"Malaysia will definitely need more doctors when we reach the status of a high income country.

"By 2020, the population is expected to reach 34 million so Malaysia will need a total of 85,000 doctors to attain the ratio of 1:400," he says, adding that the ministry will apply to Public Service Department (JPA) for additional posts for doctors.

More doctors are needed to accommodate the fast expanding private healthcare services, health tourism, new health facilities, higher level of care by the Health Ministry, rise in specialisation and sub-specialisation of medical practice, expansion of more complex speciality services like cardiothoracic and hepatobiliary surgeries, and the emergence of new infectious diseases, lifestyle-associated diseases and chronic disease patients.

"More are joining the post graduate and sub-speciality programmes and coupled with the brain drain of medical practitioners, we need doctors."

Two held after shooting and slashing of Indian citizen

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JOHOR BARU: Police arrested two men within seven hours after they were allegedly involved in the shooting and slashing of an Indian national inside a house in Taman Johor here.

They and two others had climbed over a gate and barged into the house before attacking the victim with a gun and parangs.

The victim, identified only as Magen, 31, was found unconscious in a pool of blood at the living room when one of his housemates came home from Singapore at around 12.45am yesterday.

Magen was staying with his employer, who operates a car workshop in nearby Taman Munsyi Ibrahim, and two other tenants.

Another housemate, who was at home at the time, ran to his room and locked the door to avoid being attacked.

Johor Baru (North) deputy OCPD Supt Beh Eng Lai said that police had recovered two bullet casings.

"We also found a finger print of one of the suspects at the gate which led to the arrests of the two men at around 7am in Taman Mount Austin and Tampoi here," he said.

He said that the victim was in critical condition after being shot and slashed.

Police were confident that the two remaining suspects would be caught soon, he added.

Kredit: www.thestar.com.my

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