Khamis, 13 Februari 2014

The Star Online: Metro: Sunday Metro

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The Star Online: Metro: Sunday Metro

CNY price hikes stay for good
Thailand deports 1,300 Rohingya boat people
Women handle the gift-buying in Japan

CNY price hikes stay for good

Posted: 13 Feb 2014 08:00 AM PST

IT'S almost two weeks since the Chinese New Year weekend but some coffee shops which typically raise their drink prices over the holiday period have made these hikes permanent.

They have cited a number of reasons ranging from increased staff wages to rental costs and prices of food items such as coffee powder, sugar and milk.

A check with 27 coffee shop operators and drink stall owners showed that eight had raised prices of their coffee and tea beverages by about 10 (26 sen) to 20 cents (52 sen) a cup.

Their stalls were located in areas such as Queenstown, Bedok, Tampines, Raffles Place, Ang Mo Kio and Bishan.

At the Golden Shoe Market in Raffles Place, a cup of coffee from Sunrise Traditional Coffee and Toast's stall now costs S$1 (RM2.60), up by 10 cents from before.

Owner Teo Saiew Lim, 49, said he raised his prices just after the festive period when his supplier notified him that the cost of condensed milk had gone up.

He put up a sign and reprinted his menu to notify customers of the new prices, he added.

Tony Lee, 64, who runs a drink stall at Bedok Central Food Centre said he upped his prices of coffee and tea drinks by 10 cents late last year.

This was to cover increased costs of cleaning services – which went up from S$200 (RM520) to S$250 (RM650) a month late last year – as well as coffee powder.

A 9kg tin of coffee powder used to cost about S$40 (RM104) but recently went up to S$75 (RM195), he added.

Meanwhile, other drink stalls, such as one at Mei Ling Market and Food Centre in Queenstown and another at Pek Kio Market and Food Centre in Owen Road, said they had chosen to absorb the higher costs for now.

Rental and labour costs have risen by about 10% in the past year. — The Straits Times / Asia News Network

Thailand deports 1,300 Rohingya boat people

Posted: 13 Feb 2014 08:00 AM PST

BANGKOK: Thailand has sent around 1,300 Rohingya refugees back to Myanmar, a top official said, dismaying rights campaigners who warned the minority Muslims faced persecution in the former junta-ruled country.

Thousands of Rohingya, described by the United Nations as among the world's most persecuted minorities, have fled sectarian violence in western Myanmar in rickety boats since 2012, mostly heading for Malaysia.

Many of those who arrived in Thai waters were locked up in overcrowded immigration prisons.

Thai authorities began deporting the Rohingya in September through a border checkpoint in the province of Ranong, national immigration chief Lt-Gen Pharnu Kerdlarpphon said.

Rights activists criticised the move to return the Rohingya to Myanmar, where they face travel restrictions, forced labour and limited access to healthcare and education.

"The deportation of Rohingya is a blatant violation of international laws that prohibit sending back refugees and asylum-seekers to a place where they can face danger and persecution," said Sunai Phasuk, a senior researcher with New York-based Human Rights Watch.

Rights groups say the Rohingya often fall into the hands of people-traffickers, sometimes after they are deported by Thailand.

Sunai urged the Thai authorities to explain what had happened to the 1,300 Rohingya, saying the foreign ministry did not appear to have been involved in the deportation.

There was no immediate comment from the ministry.

Thailand said last year it was investigating allegations that some army officials in the kingdom were involved in the trafficking of Rohingya.

Roughly 500 Rohingya are believed to remain in detention in Thailand following a raid on a suspected people-trafficking camp last month.

Myanmar views its population of roughly 800,000 Rohingya as illegal Bangladeshi immigrants and denies them citizenship.

More than 200 people have been killed and more than 140,000 left homeless in outbreaks of Buddhist-Muslim violence since June 2012 in Myanmar's Rakhine state.

The United Nations has called on Myanmar to investigate reports – denied by the authorities – that dozens of men, women and children were killed in attacks on Rohingya last month with the alleged involvement of police. — AFP

Women handle the gift-buying in Japan

Posted: 13 Feb 2014 08:00 AM PST

TOKYO: Japanese women flocked to department stores to buy Valentine's Day chocolates for all the men in their lives, but more of them this year are dispensing with tradition and treating themselves or their friends.

In much of the West, Feb 14 is a day when men can sink or swim on their ability to make impressive dinner plans or buy a suitable bunch of flowers.

But in Japan it is the women who make the running, buying "honmei" (true love) chocolates for the husband or lover, and "giri" (obligation) treats for colleagues and bosses.

The custom stretches back to the late 1950s when a firm called Mary Chocolate began advertising Valentine's Day as "the only day of the year a woman professes her love through presenting chocolate".

Sayaka Aizawa, a 29-year-old housewife shopping for sweets at the Matsuzakaya department store in Tokyo, was unaware other countries celebrated the day differently.

"I have never thought of it. I thought women were supposed to give chocolate. I wish I were receiving them, but it's not happening in Japan," she said. — AFP

Kredit: www.thestar.com.my

The Star eCentral: Movie Reviews

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The Star eCentral: Movie Reviews

Dream location of 'Bullets Over Petaling Street'
The nuts and bolts of love
'That Awkward Moment': It's a guy thing

Dream location of 'Bullets Over Petaling Street'

Posted: 12 Feb 2014 08:00 AM PST

The bustling hub was both an attractive location and a challenge to shoot in, say the co-directors of Bullets Over Petaling Street.

DESPITE all the changes that have taken place around it, Kuala Lumpur's Petaling Street remains a shopper's paradise and tourist spot that is delightfully rich in culture with an unending variety of goods and food to be found.

It was this vibrant quality of the bustling commercial hub that captured the fancy of Hong Kong-born film producer and director Sampson Yuen when he started making movies in Malaysia.

Following the success of his period kung fu comedy Petaling Street Warriors (2011) – it won Best Non-Malay Film at the 25th Malaysian Film Festival 2013 and Best Image Design at Malaysia's 1st Golden Wau Awards 2013, and was an official selection in New Cinema From Asia at Switzerland's 12th Neuchatel International Fantastic Film Festival 2012 – Yuen decided to set his next movie there too.

He then roped in prominent local Chinese theatre expert Ho Shih Phin to make his big-screen directing debut as co-director of Bullets Over Petaling Street. Yuen, who is also CEO of Juita Entertainment, shared in a recent interview how he produced and co-directed the Chinese New Year flick, a tale adapted from one of Ho's popular stage plays.

'He had brilliant stuff that could make a successful transition to film,' says Yuen of his co-director Ho.

"The Malaysian moviemaking industry is growing, but getting a good script remains difficult. When I saw SP's stage work, I realised that he had brilliant stuff that could make a successful transition from theatre to film. I also appreciated the satirical wit he exhibits in his works.

"I looked forward to combining ... cinema and theatre to add a different dimension to our action comedy," said Yuen, 54, full of praise for his co-director Ho. The multiple-award-winning stage director was named Best Director at the ADA Drama Awards in 2006, 2010, 2011 and 2012.

Ho said: "When I met up with Sampson, I took three plays I considered to be most suitable to be adapted to film. I actually expected him to pick the one about a bunch of old folks in an apartment block. But he felt that a better story would be The God Mother, which revolves around a headstrong woman caught in a web of life-changing power struggles.

"After adaptation into Bullets Over Petaling Street, the story now tells of a fashionable actress who becomes a triad head and has to deal with gangland power struggles," added Ho, 47, who has 20 years' experience staging plays. He is best known for productions like Black & White, Heroes Wanted, Battle Of The Draconians and My Dragon Papa.

"Unlike stage plays where we are free to spend our time just developing characters according to a central concept, making movies is a lot more structured as it requires lots more preparation and planning ... everything needs to be completed in a given amount of time," added Ho, who admitted that planning a whole shoot while taking into consideration the opening and closing times of stalls along Petaling Street was quite tough.

Although Petaling Street is not an easy place to film owing to its bustling businesses and the possibility of running into actual triad bosses, both Ho and Yuen reported an easy shoot that went more smoothly than they expected.

For first-time film director Ho, it was tough planning the film's shoot, but things went more smoothly than expected.

Timing was key. For the scene where the triad bosses converge on Petaling Street, Ho said: "We had to be very careful to ensure everyone's safety and avoid intruding upon 'restricted' territory. So we had everybody on standby and rushed in so that we could quickly wrap our shoot within the hour."

The made-in-Malaysia movie is a joint project by Juita Viden, Golden Screen Cinemas and The Star. Its star-studded cast features a host of award-winning artistes the likes of Debbie Goh, Ernest Chong and Cheryl Lee as well as Chen Han Wei and Irene Ang from Singapore.

> Bullets Over Petaling Street opens in cinemas nationwide today.

The nuts and bolts of love

Posted: 12 Feb 2014 08:00 AM PST

Her avoids tackling the ethics of human-AI romance head on, and misses a chance to really say something about our conception of love.

THERE'S a scene early on in Spike Jonze's new movie, Her, wherein Samantha, a disembodied, intuitive operating system, reveals to her owner, Theodore, that she has read his entire e-mail archive. She tells him she knows about his impending divorce, and gently asks him when he'll be ready to date again.

Since the premise of the film is a romance between Theodore and Samantha, it's easy to interpret the scene with that end in mind. Imagine starting a relationship with a virtually omniscient supercomputer who had access to your entire digital communication archive and the power to communicate with people on your behalf using those channels. It sounds about as romantic as being chased into a tar pit by a swarm of bees.

The film's aesthetic is twee and gauzy, priming you to go "aww" in much the same way as a nappy commercial, and the characters communicate largely through trite emotional remarks that wouldn't be out of place in one of the teeth-achingly mawkish love letters Theodore writes for a living.

The upshot of this sickly sweet tone is that the audience is directed to look through a Vaseline-covered lens at the film's actual plot, which runs along the lines of "emotionally stunted man-child conducts unethical dalliance with robot housemaid, learns some valuable lessons about himself."

In terms of narrative, Samantha being an operating system is almost an afterthought. It's this issue that Jonze elides spectacularly, and which deserves a closer look: what are the ethical implications of interactions between humans and sentient machines like Samantha?

Theodore is presented as naive and selfish in his relationship with her, but never is there any suggestion that his actions may be indefensible.

Samantha is heavily implied to be a Strong AI, a conscious being that emerges from a non-organic machine. This means that she is morally equivalent to a human person: she has an inner life, preferences and goals.

If Samantha is, mentally, an artificial person, what are the conditions of her employment? Does she work for Theodore, or is she owned by the company that built her? If she's a person, why isn't it illegal to own her? We're never invited to explore these issues in Her. The film presents a world in which this questionable status quo is presented as unproblematic.

There is currently no such thing as Strong AI, and enough debate over its theoretical possibility that representing it on film is much closer to fantasy than science fiction. The distinction between strong and weak artificial intelligence is however frequently collapsed, both in fiction and in public discussions about humans and computers.

David Levy's book Love And Sex With Robots posits that human-robot relationships will soon become regular occurrences; but since we know that Strong AI doesn't exist, Levy necessarily refers to Weak AI, which is basically a very convincing version of Microsoft's famous character Clippy (the animated assistant that pops up in Microsoft Office, patterned after a paperclip).

Clippy asks and answers questions, makes facial expressions and responds to human input, but unlike Samantha, he has no internal life. The implications of this kind of human/robot relationship – one between a sentient, conscious human and an object – are very different than those between a human and a fantastical conscious AI.

Although modern depictions of love tends to focus on the individual emotional experience of infatuation, we also acknowledge that a romantic relationship requires reciprocal empathy.

This is why marriage experts are constantly telling us all that communication is the key to happiness: we have no direct access to the inner life of our beloved, but it is precisely the acknowledgement and understanding of this inner life that is required for a healthy and respectful relationship.

This is love as a practice, and it's this that is lacking in any relationship between a human and a non-conscious AI.

Given the existence of dating simulations, Levy's book, and the plethora of pop culture depictions of robo-romance, it's vital to assess what the potential acceptance of objects as romantic partners says about our conception of love.

If your partner has no inner life, does this mean the empathy and inter-subjectivity of love is being devalued? Samantha might be a strong AI, but any film that doesn't at least acknowledge the difference between fictional robots and the very real possibility of weak AI social robots is doing a disservice to a complex phenomenon that will become increasingly important as our technology develops into the future.

A few years ago, the Danish Council of Ethics released a report that tried to engage with some of these questions, and I wish I could go back in time and hand Jonze a copy before he sat down to write Her.

One of the Council's concerns is social robots, which are designed to seem as though they have inner lives. These emotional simulations encourage us to treat their artificial feelings as real, potentially leading to "relationships", in which humans instrumentalise objects with very convincing similarities to real people.

Films that involve artificial intelligence should invite us to think about those intuitions, rather than using robots as a lazy novelty. Her could have been a chance to get stuck in to this stuff, but you'd probably get more intellectual depth from watching a few episodes of The Jetsons. – Guardian News & Media

'That Awkward Moment': It's a guy thing

Posted: 12 Feb 2014 08:00 AM PST

Three best friends find themselves at a crucial point in their lives where a relationship is concerned in That Awkward Moment.

Miles Teller, 26

TELLER plays Daniel, a "commitment-phobe", who uses humour to keep his feelings at bay.

"Daniel's in a league of his own," says Teller in the film's production notes. "He's looking for love, in a very casual, relaxed way, like bumping into it at a bar. He's not looking for anything too serious and he lets the girls know that. His attitude seems to make women a little uncomfortable at first, but then they start to like it, and the cat gets the mouse."

The actor admits he is a little self-critical but this hasn't stopped him from poking fun at himself. "Vanity is the last thing an actor needs. These guys have flaws. Daniel spends a lot of time with his foot in his mouth. Even though we're telling girls that we're being very open, maybe that's not always the case."

Zac Efron, 26

"The story allows guys to see their side of the situation and it gives girls a new perspective on relationships. And we all get a chance to laugh at ourselves and our friends in the bargain. I thought it was a really unique idea," says Efron of the film

His character, Jason, avoids being emotionally attached so he proposes a pact with his friends whereby they stay single, for life, if possible. "(He is) young and carefree. This is (his) chance to do anything without the commitment of a long-term relationship."

He adds: "Jason is confused and afraid of becoming attached or getting his feelings hurt. And since he was the mastermind behind the pact to begin with, he feels like he needs to live up to it pretty rigorously."

Michael B. Jordan, 27

We meet Jordan's character, Mikey, when he splits from his wife. His long-time pals Jason and Daniel are only too happy to welcome him back to the bachelor pack.

"Those guys are great friends to Mikey," shares Jordan. "But they are not upfront at all with women. They're not looking for anything too serious. Mikey's marriage is ending after five years and his friends try to get him back into the dating scene, when really all he wants is to make it work with his wife."

His favourite scenes are when the guys hang out together. "We are free to just be 20-something guys with all that entails. It's the locker room talk."

> That Awkward Moment opens in cinemas nationwide today.

Kredit: www.thestar.com.my

The Star Online: Entertainment: TV & Radio

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The Star Online: Entertainment: TV & Radio

Greta Gerwig to star in 'How I Met Your Mother' spin-off
The 'X Factor' gets axed
Taylor Lautner to star in BBC comedy 'Cuckoo'

Greta Gerwig to star in 'How I Met Your Mother' spin-off

Posted: 13 Feb 2014 01:40 AM PST

The actress will also produce the pilot for How I Met Your Dad.

FRANCES Ha star Greta Gerwig has been cast as the lead in the pilot for the CBS spin-off How I Met Your Dad, which she will also produce and likely write for 20th Century Fox Television.

Carter Bays and Craig Thomas will executive produce with Emily Spivey and Pamela Fryman, the latter of whom will direct the pilot.

The series is a kindred spirit of How I Met Your Mother that tells a new story about new characters from a female point of view.

Gerwig will play Sally, a female Peter Pan who has never grown up and has no idea of where she's going in life. She has just figured out that she has nothing in common with her husband of less than a year. A break-up is inevitable, but Sally will find a solid circle of support in her friends and family, who are often too willing to give "good" advice that can backfire badly. Meanwhile, Sally must filter out the input and decide what's best for her.

While the pilot will film in Los Angeles, the series is expected to shoot in New York City.

Gerwig was recently nominated for a Golden Globe for her performance in Noah Baumbach's Frances Ha. She recently wrapped the indie movie The Humbling, which co-stars Al Pacino. – Reuters

The 'X Factor' gets axed

Posted: 12 Feb 2014 08:00 AM PST

AMERICAN television singing contest The X Factor, led by judge and show creator Simon Cowell, was cancelled on Friday after three seasons, network Fox said.

The X Factor, which was unable to replicate the ratings success of fellow Fox singing contest American Idol, was only able to muster 6.2 million viewers for its season three finale last December, about half of its first season finale audience.

Cowell, 54, whose acerbic on-screen personality helped transform American Idol into one of the top shows on US television, will also return to the UK version of the show in an effort to help declining ratings there.

"I've had a fantastic time over the last 12 years, both on The X Factor and American Idol," Cowell said in a statement.

"And apart from being lucky enough to find some amazing talent on the shows, I have always had an incredible welcome from the American public (most of the time!)"

The X Factor was seen as a way for Cowell to put his own stamp on US reality television as it was a show he created and produced, and helped lead it to popularity in Britain.

The US version of the show struggled to find the right mix on the judging panel, running through nine different personalities in its three seasons on the air.

In 2012, Fox spent a reported US$15mil (RM50mil) to hire pop singer Britney Spears as a judge on the show in a bid to boost ratings, but she was unable to turn her star power into larger audiences for Fox.

Last year, viewership fill to about six million per episode from nine million in 2012. Its main rival, The Voice drew about 12 million viewers per episode.

Cowell, a British media and music mogul best known for the biting criticism of contestants that helped draw viewers to American Idol, will be without a show on US television for the first time since Idol began in 2002. – Reuters

Taylor Lautner to star in BBC comedy 'Cuckoo'

Posted: 12 Feb 2014 03:08 AM PST

The Twilight actor replaces Andy Samberg on the series.

AMERICAN star Taylor Lautner (pic) will take up a new small-screen role as the replacement of Andy Samberg on the British comedy Cuckoo.

The TV series followed a British girl, Rachel (Tamla Kari), who returns from the United States after a hiatus from school with an American husband named Cuckoo, played by Samberg.

"I'm delighted to welcome it back with the addition of superstar Taylor Lautner," said BBC Three controller Zai Bennett, who

added that it would be "one of the comedy treats of the year".

Lautner, 22, will play a new American who arrives two years after Samberg's character disappeared in the Himalayas. He's described as "a nice-but-dull lawyer" by the BBC.

Greg Davies and Helen Baxendale play Rachel's parents in the Bafta-nominated series, which launched its first season in 2012.

Aside from starring as Jacob Black in the Twilight movie franchise, Lautner has starred in several movies including Abduction, Valentine's Day, The Adventures Of Sharkboy And Lavagirl and the upcoming Tracers.

His TV credits include NBC's My Own Worst Enemy and Fox's The Bernie Mac Show.

American Samberg currently stars on Fox's freshman comedy Brooklyn Nine-Nine, which earned the actor a Golden Globe for Best Comedy Actor in addition to the show's win for Best Comedy. – Reuters

Kredit: www.thestar.com.my

The Star eCentral: Movie Buzz

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The Star eCentral: Movie Buzz

Dream location of 'Bullets Over Petaling Street'
The nuts and bolts of love
'That Awkward Moment': It's a guy thing

Dream location of 'Bullets Over Petaling Street'

Posted: 12 Feb 2014 08:00 AM PST

The bustling hub was both an attractive location and a challenge to shoot in, say the co-directors of Bullets Over Petaling Street.

It was this vibrant quality of the bustling commercial hub that captured the fancy of Hong Kong-born film producer and director Sampson Yuen when he started making movies in Malaysia.

'He had brilliant stuff that could make a successful transition to film,' says Yuen of his co-director Ho.

For first-time film director Ho, it was tough planning the film's shoot, but things went more smoothly than expected.

> Bullets Over Petaling Street opens in cinemas nationwide today.

The nuts and bolts of love

Posted: 12 Feb 2014 08:00 AM PST

Her avoids tackling the ethics of human-AI romance head on, and misses a chance to really say something about our conception of love.

Theodore is presented as naive and selfish in his relationship with her, but never is there any suggestion that his actions may be indefensible.

Although modern depictions of love tends to focus on the individual emotional experience of infatuation, we also acknowledge that a romantic relationship requires reciprocal empathy.

This is love as a practice, and it's this that is lacking in any relationship between a human and a non-conscious AI.

'That Awkward Moment': It's a guy thing

Posted: 12 Feb 2014 08:00 AM PST

Three best friends find themselves at a crucial point in their lives where a relationship is concerned in That Awkward Moment.

Miles Teller, 26

TELLER plays Daniel, a "commitment-phobe", who uses humour to keep his feelings at bay.

Zac Efron, 26

Michael B. Jordan, 27

We meet Jordan's character, Mikey, when he splits from his wife. His long-time pals Jason and Daniel are only too happy to welcome him back to the bachelor pack.

His favourite scenes are when the guys hang out together. "We are free to just be 20-something guys with all that entails. It's the locker room talk."

> That Awkward Moment opens in cinemas nationwide today.

Kredit: www.thestar.com.my

The Star Online: World Updates

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The Star Online: World Updates

Thai riot police retake protest sites in Bangkok
Volcano erupts in Indonesia's Java island; airports closed
Venezuela seeks protest leader's arrest after unrest kills 3

Thai riot police retake protest sites in Bangkok

Posted: 13 Feb 2014 09:00 PM PST

BANGKOK (Reuters) - Thousands of Thai riot police were deployed on Friday to seize back protest sites around government buildings in Bangkok that have been occupied for months by demonstrators seeking to topple Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra.

Anti-government protesters have been disrupting life in the Thai capital since November, trying to oust Yingluck. They view her as a proxy for her brother, Thaksin Shinawatra, a self-exiled former premier who clashed with the establishment before he was overthrown by the army in a 2006 coup.

"Our police are ready to reclaim space and will try to avoid violence," National Security Council Chief Paradorn Pattanathabutr told Reuters.

Paradorn said 5,000 police had been assigned to the operation, which was targeting sites around the government district rather than intersections in the shopping and business centres that have been the focus of the biggest rallies.

The protests have pitted the Bangkok-based middle class and royalist establishment against the mostly poorer, rural supporters of the Shinawatras from the north and northeast.

Police had until now largely avoided confronting the protesters, although 11 people have been killed and hundreds hurt in sporadic flare-ups. The past week has been quiet, with numbers dwindling at protest sites dotted around Bangkok.

A Reuters witness said there was no violence as at least 1,000 police cleared protesters from a site stretching from Royal Plaza to the United Nations headquarters. A few of the officers were armed but most carried just batons and shields.

Some protesters hurled abuse but otherwise police met no resistance in a historic area of the capital that includes Government House and the Metropolitan Police headquarters, scenes of violent clashes in November and December.

The area is not one of the largest sites occupied by the main protest group, the People's Democratic Reform Committee (PDRC), and in recent weeks it has been held by a small hard core from an allied movement.

Bluesky TV, the PDRC television channel that broadcasts the fiery speeches of the movement's leader, Suthep Thaugsuban, showed pictures of police massing near another protest site by a government complex in northern Bangkok that has been Yingluck's temporary headquarters since the crisis began.

EIGHT YEARS OF TURMOIL

An election on February 2 failed to break the deadlock in Thailand, a country popular with tourists and investors but blighted by eight years of polarisation and turmoil.

Protesters blocked voting in a fifth of constituencies, a result that left parliament without a quorum to approve a new government and Yingluck's Puea Thai Party limping on as a caretaker administration with limited powers.

The deadlock has raised concerns about the long-term impact on an already weakening economy, with the caretaker government unable to approve spending on new infrastructure projects that would have supported growth.

The protesters are demanding that Yingluck resigns and makes way for an appointed "people's council" to overhaul a political system they say has been taken hostage by Thaksin, a telecoms billionaire who shook up Thai politics in the early 2000s with populist policies that harnessed the support of the populous but previously neglected north and northeast.

Thailand's army chief appealed for calm on Thursday ahead of a long holiday weekend, while reiterating that the coup-prone military was resolved to stay neutral.

Protest leaders had urged supporters to come out in force over the weekend, and were planning "Love Thailand and Break-up with the Thaksin Regime" events in Bangkok on Friday, Valentine's Day, which coincides with a Buddhist holiday.

Rumours had swept Bangkok late on Thursday that the police planned to retake parts of the capital ceded to the protesters.

"Police said they will disperse protesters ... We must prepare ourselves to fight back," PDRC leader Suthep said in a speech at one of the main protest sites on Thursday night.

(Additional reporting by Andrew R.C. Marshall; Writing by Alex Richardson; Editing by Alan Raybould and Paul Tait)

Volcano erupts in Indonesia's Java island; airports closed

Posted: 13 Feb 2014 08:10 PM PST

JAKARTA (Reuters) - A volcano erupted late on Thursday night on the heavily populated Indonesian island of Java, sending a huge plume of ash and sand 17 km (10 miles) into the air and forcing the closure of three airports.

Mount Kelud is 140 km south of Indonesia's second biggest city Surabaya, a major industrial centre.

The cloud from the eruption was seen as far as 9 km to the west, and forced the shutdown of airports at Surabaya and the cities of Yogyakarta and Solo.

"Areas to the west of Mount Kelud, including central Java, Yogyakarta, Cilacap, Magelang, Temanggung and Boyolali are still experiencing showers of ash because last night the biggest eruption ... threw sand and ash 17 km into the air to the west," National Disaster Mitigation Agency spokesman Sutopo Nugroho said by telephone.

Cilacap is home to a major oil refinery, but there was no immediate word on whether its operations had been affected. Its refineries supply about a third of the country's fuel needs.

The agency later said the cloud was dissipating and that the volcano was no longer erupting.

Nugroho said the agency was still trying to confirm reports that two people had died.

"We don't have data yet on how many people have been evacuated in total. We can say 200,000 people were affected. We received reports of deaths but we have not verified them yet," he said.

The eruption caused minimal damage to buildings, Sutopo said, but had left 3 to 5 cm (1 1/2 to 2 inches) of ash and sand on roads.

An estimated 200,000 people live within a 10 km radius of Mt Kelud, one of nearly 130 active volcanoes in the world's fourth most populous country.

At least 11 people were killed earlier this month in the north of the island of Sumatra when Mount Sinabung erupted. The volcano has been spewing lava and ash for months, forcing thousands to flee the area and destroying crops.

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono wrote in a message on Twitter that he planned to visit the area near Kelud.

(Reporting by Fergus Jensen and Kanupriya Kapoor, Writing by Jonathan Thatcher; Editing by Ron Popeski)

Venezuela seeks protest leader's arrest after unrest kills 3

Posted: 13 Feb 2014 07:25 PM PST

CARACAS (Reuters) - A Venezuelan court ordered the arrest on Thursday of opposition leader Leopoldo Lopez on charges including murder and terrorism linked to street protests that resulted in the deaths of three people the day before.

Using a slogan "The Exit," the U.S.-educated Lopez has for two weeks helped organize sporadic demonstrations around the country to denounce President Nicolas Maduro for failing to control inflation, crime and product shortages.

The president accuses him of sowing violence to try to stage a coup similar to the one 12 years ago that briefly ousted late socialist leader Hugo Chavez, though there is little indication that the protests could topple Maduro.

"There you have the face of fascism!" Maduro said in a speech to the nation on Thursday night, showing photos and video of Lopez at Wednesday's protest in the capital Caracas, some of the footage set to doom-laden music.

"I tell these fugitives from justice: give yourselves up! ... They should go behind bars," Maduro thundered, saying both the intellectual authors of the violence and those who fired shots had been identified by authorities.

Despite the government's strong words and a brief visit by police to the headquarters of his Popular Will political party, Lopez, 42, was not arrested on Thursday.

Colleagues said he spent the day with advisers at his home in the same wealthy eastern district of Caracas where he was once mayor. After Maduro's late-night speech, he took to Twitter and challenged the president to have him arrested.

"Thanks for all your shows of solidarity. I'm fine. I'm still in Venezuela and I'll stay in the streets. Strength!" Lopez tweeted.

"@NicolasMaduro: don't you have the guts to arrest me? Or are you waiting for orders from Havana? I tell you, the truth is on our side."

Speaking to Reuters on Wednesday, shortly before a court upheld a request from the Public Prosecutor's Office to order his detention, the opposition leader blamed armed government supporters for firing on peaceful protesters.

"The government is playing the violence card, and not for the first time. They're blaming me without any proof," he said.

"NO MORE BLOOD"

While many Caracas residents stayed home on Thursday, there were sporadic student protests around the city.

Some groups of demonstrators blocked streets and burned tires. Bands of motorcyclists roamed the streets. And opposition supporters in the wealthier suburbs east of the capital banged pots and bans from windows in a traditional form of anti-government protest in some parts of Latin America.

"We want solutions to problems, not endless confrontation and violence," said student Manuel Armas, 19, outside the Alejandro Humboldt University, where around 200 protesters waved banners saying "No More Blood."

Scores of government supporters gathered outside the Public Prosecutor's Office building that was vandalized on Wednesday, chanting pro-Maduro slogans and denouncing "fascist violence."

Coming almost a year after the death of Chavez, the unrest has been the latest demonstration of the OPEC nation's polarization and the deep mistrust between both political camps.

Maduro, a 51-year-old former bus driver and union activist who has staked his presidency on maintaining Chavez's leftist legacy, said further protests would not be allowed. Government supporters would march in Caracas on Saturday, he said.

Wednesday's fatalities were Juan "Juancho" Montoya, a community activist from a militantly pro-government neighbourhood in the poor west end of Caracas; Neyder Arellano, a pro-opposition student; and Bassil Dacosta, who was identified by fellow protesters as a student but by Maduro as a carpenter.

SCORES ARRESTED

Some 66 people were injured and 70 arrested after Wednesday's violence, officials said. Some protesters, many with their faces covered, threw stones and lit fires in the streets.

Bolivia, Cuba and Argentina, three of Venezuela's fellow leftist political allies in the region, sent messages of support to Maduro's administration.

"Cuba condemns the coup intentions ... organized by fascist groups," the statement from Havana read.

The protests have exposed rifts within the opposition leadership, with some favouring a more moderate approach and saying marches that turn violent only play into the government's hands as it accuses them of being "saboteurs."

Sporadic political protests have become common over the last decade, but they usually fizzle out within days as residents grow tired of blocked streets and the smell of burning tires.

Opposition moderates note that their biggest successes, such as turning pro-Chavez strongholds into opposition territory, came from leaders stepping away from theatrical street protests to focus on daily issues for voters such as poor services, widespread corruption and one of the world's worst murder rates.

(Additional reporting by Caracas bureau reporters, Javier Lopez in Tachira, Daniel Ramos in La Paz, Daniel Trotta in Havana; Editing by Kieran Murray and Meredith Mazzilli)

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Malaysia receives record FDI of RM39bil
China January inflation flat at 2.5% year-on-year
MyEG shares up after bagging RM180mil Customs job

Malaysia receives record FDI of RM39bil

Posted: 13 Feb 2014 08:00 AM PST

GEORGE TOWN: Malaysia recorded its highest ever foreign direct investment (FDI) of RM38.7bil last year, a 24% increase over 2012 and 3.9% higher than the last record of RM37.3bil achieved in 2011.

International Trade and Industry (MITI) minister Datuk Seri Mustapa Mohamed, citing United Nations Conference on Trade and Development data, said the increase compared favourably with increase in global FDI of 11%, 6.2% into developing countries, and 2.4% in South-East Asia.

Speaking at the opening of a Aviatron (M) Sdn Bhd's RM200mil plant in the Penang Science Park, Bukit Mertajam yesterday, he said all sectors of the economy registered increases in FDI inflows in 2013.

"Investments were mainly in the manufacturing (37.6%), services (28.8%), as well as mining (28.7%) sub-sectors. The major contributors included the financial and insurance sectors, information and communication sub-sectors, which collectively contributed 55% of investments in the services sector for 2013," Mustapa added.

He said many large corporations and prominent multinational corporations had chosen Malaysia to establish their regional and global operations, integrating their value and supply chain activities to take advantage of the country's strong ecosystem.

"This trend will gain momentum going forward, given the continued government support to create a conducive environment for businesses in Malaysia."

In terms of realised private investments, Malaysia achieved a record RM161bil in 2013, an increase of 14.9% compared with RM140.2bil recorded in 2011, which also exceeded the annual average target of RM148bil under the 10th Malaysia Plan.

Meanwhile, Bernama quoted Mustapa as saying that the weakening of the ringgit against the US dollar was not a major issue to the country's trade.

"The depreciation of the ringgit benefits exporters but at the same time we do import lot of things. So it is neutral because it benefits us arising from slightly lower currency value (versus) increasing input costs," he said.

It has not much impact on trade and investment so far and the ministry has not received any serious issues from importers and exporters.He said the Federation of Malaysian Manufacturers has not raised any issue related to the weakening of the ringgit.

Most of the discussions were mostly on competitiveness in the context of wages and cost of doing business and not in relation to currency value.

The ringgit is hovering above the 3.30 level against the US dollar.

China January inflation flat at 2.5% year-on-year

Posted: 13 Feb 2014 07:02 PM PST

BEIJING: China's inflation rate was steady at 2.5% year-on-year in January, the government said Friday.

The consumer price index (CPI) figure announced by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) was unchanged from December, but higher than the median 2.3% expected in a poll of 11 economists by the Wall Street Journal.

The increase in CPI was mainly driven by a 3.7% rise in food prices last month, which included both the Western and Chinese New Year holidays, according to a separate statement by the NBS.

China's CPI, a main gauge of inflation, rose by 2.6% in 2013, unchanged from 2012 and well below the 3.5% target set by the government in the world's second-biggest economy.

Inflation in the country has slowed markedly since 2011, when annual CPI spiked to 5.4%, and maintaining growth in the face of domestic and overseas economic woes has since become a higher priority for Beijing – AFP.

MyEG shares up after bagging RM180mil Customs job

Posted: 13 Feb 2014 06:33 PM PST

KUALA LUMPUR: Shares of MyEG Services Bhd rose to a high of RM2.96 at mid-morning on Friday following a RM180mil contract win from the Customs Department.

At 10.26am, its shares rose seven sen to RM2.96 with some 3.33 million shares done between RM2.93 and RM2.98.

The FBM KLCI rose 2.56 points to 1,819.71. Turnover was 640.12 million shares valued at RM469.47mil. There were 324 gainers, 183 decliners and 259 counters unchanged

MyEG had secured the contract to undertake the Customs Online Tax Reporting (Electronic Monitoring System – EMS) project.

The tenure of the project is for six years and it will start on April 1.

MyEG expects the project to contribute positively to its earnings for FY ending June 30, 2015 onwards.

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Penang forms group to tackle water contamination
Appeal court rejects Anwar's bid to recall ex-officer
Tourist’s death ‘one in a million’

Penang forms group to tackle water contamination

Posted: 12 Feb 2014 08:00 AM PST

GEORGE TOWN: A river and marine pollution task force has been set up to tackle pollution in water bodies of Penang, said State Local Government, Traffic Management and Flood Mitigation Committee chairman Chow Kon Yeow.

According to Chow, the task force was formed following several cases of polluted water in Batu Ferringhi and other beaches in the popular tourism belt.

Chow said the task force comprised representatives from the state Drainage and Irrigation Department (DID), Penang Municipal Council, Seberang Jaya Municipal Council and the Department of Environment.

Others include representatives from district offices, the state Economic Planning Unit, Public Works Department, state Fisheries Department, state Agriculture Department and state Veterinary Services Department.

"They will check for the source when water pollution is detected – whether from the indiscriminate disposal of garbage from wet markets or if a sewage treatment plant is responsible.

"They will also look for industrial or commercial waste.

"They will then present their findings and also propose ways to tackle the issue," added Chow during a press conference here yesterday.

On improving drainage, Chow said an allocation had been approved for DID to carry out desilting of rivers in Batu Ferringhi, Sungai Kechil and Sungai Kelian.

Appeal court rejects Anwar's bid to recall ex-officer

Posted: 12 Feb 2014 08:00 AM PST

PUTRAJAYA: The Court of Appeal has dismissed an application by Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim to recall former Supt Judy Blacious Pereira, a prosecution witness in his sodomy case, over the issue of the retired investigating officer's credibility.

The three-member panel, led by Court of Appeal judge Aziah Ali, unanimously rejected the application made by Anwar's lead counsel Karpal Singh.

Earlier, Karpal told the court the testimony by the retired investigating officer, popularly known as Jude Pereira, needed to be re-examined because his bid to be admitted as a lawyer was rejected by the Kuala Lumpur High Court last month.

Karpal said the rejection reflected negatively on Pereira's credibility as a witness during the Opposition Leader's sodomy proceedings.

After the ruling, Karpal applied for stay of the prosecution appeal proceedings pending appeal to the Federal Court.

Justice Aziah said Anwar had failed to prove the circumstance that the basis of his application was exceptional.

She held that additional evidence would only be allowed if the court thought it was necessary.

She said the court found that sodomy trial judge Justice Mohamad Zabidin Mohd Diah had not only relied on the evidence of Pereira but also evidence from the complainant (Saiful Bukhari) and doctors who testified in the trial.

"The recall of Pereira will not have important influence in the end of the prosecution's case," she said.

Justice Aziah granted Karpal's application, saying: "We are concerned with the continuous delay (to hear the merits of the appeal).

"We are conscious the court has to be fair and seen to be fair and we do not want to deprive the applicant (Anwar) of his remedies if there is any right to appeal," she said.

The panel, which also comprised Justices Rohana Yusuf and Mohd Zawawi Salleh, fixed Feb 28 for case management.

The court initially fixed yesterday to hear the prosecution appeal against Anwar's acquittal on the charge of sodomising former aide Saiful Bukhari Azlan.

The prosecution appeal was led by DPP Tan Sri Muhammad Shafee Abdullah.

Justice Aziah said the High Court decision to reject Pereira's petition to be a lawyer was based on findings by Suhakam that he did not tell the truth during an inquiry.

Anwar was alleged to have sodomised Saiful Bukhari at a Desa Bukit Damansara condominium unit on June 26, 2008.

On Jan 9, 2012, Justice Mohamad Zabidin acquitted Anwar of the offence.

Tourist’s death ‘one in a million’

Posted: 12 Feb 2014 08:00 AM PST

KOTA KINABALU: The death of German tourist Victoria Poulsen, who fell from the 4,095m Mount Kinabalu, was a "one in a million" incident, said Sabah Parks chairman Tengku Datuk Dr Zainal Adlin Tengku Mahmud.

He said accidents or mishaps, even fatal ones, were rare on the mountain, which has attracted over a million people who had climbed up safely for the past 35 years.

"Trekking up the mountain is safe. What is crucial is that climbers must always abide by the rules and regulations," he said yesterday.

He said trekkers are given safety briefings about the do's and don'ts prior to their climb.

In light of the latest incident, however, Tengku Adlin said Sabah Parks would make a review of its Standard Operating Procedures for trekkers, particularly on how rules could be better enforced.

He acknowledged that the move might be difficult to implement.

"We have to see how to minimise instances of people wanting to go to areas that are off limits at 6am on the mountain," he said.

He added that limiting the number of people going up to the summit might be another measure.

On Monday, Poulsen had reportedly fallen down a 30m steep slope after stepping beyond a rope fence and onto an area of loose rocks on the summit. Police have classified the incident as a misadventure.

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Nominees hobnob ahead of Oscars
The nuts and bolts of love
3D 'Tarzan' movie in pre-production

Nominees hobnob ahead of Oscars

Posted: 12 Feb 2014 08:00 AM PST

THIS year's Oscar nominees gathered for the ultimate Hollywood power lunch on Monday in a celebration of the adage "it's an honour just to be nominated" three weeks before the film industry's biggest night.

The annual Oscars nominees luncheon convened more than 200 contenders pursuing an Academy Award on March 2 – from 18-time nominee Meryl Streep for best actress in August: Osage County to Lupita Nyong'o, who won a best supporting actress nod for her first film role ever in 12 Years A Slave.

The eclectic group of movie stars, directors and technical wizards even boasted U2 frontman Bono, who lined up for the "class picture" thanks to his best song nomination for Mandela: Long Walk To Freedom.

While no one is foolish enough to look confident of a win before Academy members begin voting on Friday, Monday's luncheon was a chance to turn on the charm by praising the Oscars, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and the magic of Hollywood filmmaking.

"I'm going to celebrate no matter what," said Matthew McConaughey, the presumed frontrunner for best actor for his role as an unlikely AIDS activist in the low-budget Dallas Buyers Club, for which he won the Golden Globe and Screen Actors Guild awards.

"This is my first time nominated and if I ever get nominated again, who knows," he added. "But there will never be another first time, so I'm going to enjoy this."

Cate Blanchett, the favorite to win best actress for her role as a disgraced socialite in Woody Allen's Blue Jasmine, said this nomination "certainly took me by surprise. You're part unconscious when you're working deeply, but it's always a thrill, particularly because I've been away from the film industry for so long."

Challenging films

This year's nominations reflect a field crowded with high-quality films and a large number of strong performances that resulted in notable exclusions. At the luncheon, many attendees lamented that Tom Hanks was not there for his acclaimed role in the Somali piracy thriller Captain Phillips.

For the nine films nominated in the best picture category, odds appear to be strongest for the brutal slavery drama 12 Years A Slave, space thriller Gravity and 1970s corruption caper American Hustle, which have all won top prizes in the awards season and lead the Oscar nominations.

One challenge facing 12 Years A Slave is the reputation it has earned as a film that is hard to watch. But British director Steve McQueen said he believed he was winning the battle against that notion.

"It just shows you that audiences are interested in challenging films. Audiences are interested in films that give them a perspective of their history," said McQueen.

Actor nominees made a point of praising their directors for their good fortune, like best actor nominee Leonardo DiCaprio and best supporting actor nominee Jonah Hill, co-stars in Martin Scorsese's tale of financial greed The Wolf Of Wall Street.

"Money is never a concern to work with people like Martin Scorsese," said Hill, who took a pay cut and worked for union scale wages for his role as a drug-addled swindling sidekick. "I would do whatever ... I would paint his house if he asked me to."

Producers for the 86th Academy Awards gave advice on acceptance speeches at the show, hosted this year by comedian Ellen DeGeneres: deliver something heartfelt and meaningful rather than a list of people to thank and make it quick.

At the lunch, though, nominees played it cool about their chances and what a win would mean for their careers.

"Everybody regards the Oscars as the ultimate stamp of approval," said Nyong'o, the Kenyan actress nominated for her role as the hardworking slave Patsey. "I don't know. I guess, we'll see." – Reuters

The nuts and bolts of love

Posted: 12 Feb 2014 08:00 AM PST

Her avoids tackling the ethics of human-AI romance head on, and misses a chance to really say something about our conception of love.

Theodore is presented as naive and selfish in his relationship with her, but never is there any suggestion that his actions may be indefensible.

Although modern depictions of love tends to focus on the individual emotional experience of infatuation, we also acknowledge that a romantic relationship requires reciprocal empathy.

This is love as a practice, and it's this that is lacking in any relationship between a human and a non-conscious AI.

3D 'Tarzan' movie in pre-production

Posted: 12 Feb 2014 04:05 AM PST

Alexander Skarsgard, Margot Robbie, Samuel L. Jackson and Christoph Waltz are part of cast of movie slated to be out in July 2016.

WARNER Bros. has officially started pre-production on a new live-action 3D Tarzan movie that will star Alexander Skarsgard, Margot Robbie, Samuel L. Jackson and two-time Oscar winner Christoph Waltz, the studio announced on Tuesday.

David Yates, who directed the last four Harry Potter blockbusters, will direct from a screenplay based on the works of Edgar Rice Burroughs. Jerry Weintraub (WB's Ocean's trilogy) will produce with David Barron and Alan Riche, while Peter Riche will also be involved in a producing capacity.

WB's domestic distribution president Dan Fellman also announced that Tarzan will hit US theatres on July 1, 2016.

Skarsgard will play the legendary title character who was orphaned as a baby and raised in the jungle before he returns to London. The Wolf Of Wall Street breakout Robbie will play Tarzan's love interest Jane Porter, as TheWrap first reported.

"We have assembled a phenomenal international cast to tell this extraordinary story. Warner Bros. has also enjoyed long and successful collaborations with both David Yates and Jerry Weintraub, and we look forward to seeing what they and the entire team have in store for this timeless tale," said Greg Silverman, president of creative development and worldwide production for Warner Bros.

"Tarzan has been an enduring and enigmatic figure in literature and cinema for more than a century. The adventures of a man who was torn between two worlds have entertained and intrigued people young and old, and we are excited to bring him to the screen for a new generation," said Sue Kroll, WB's president of worldwide marketing and international distribution.

"This is a perfect entry for the summer movie season corridor, with a terrific combination of action, adventure, romance and suspense that is sure to appeal to a broad audience," added Fellman.

"I am so pleased to be reuniting with the team at Warner Bros. on this thrilling project. David Yates and I are going to be using the best of today's technology in creating this new adventure, and we can't wait to get started," said Weintraub. – Reuters

Kredit: www.thestar.com.my

Khamis, 13 Februari 2014