hospitals and food distribution had multiplied in and around the capital
around food rations and tents were distributed monday by the
world food programme and humanitarian groups from neighboring dominican
republic haitian official said
amid the death and desperation the life affirming tales of survival that had
provided glimmers of hope in preceding days were drying up although an
month old baby was found alive on monday
emergency workers expanded their operations to battered communities outside of
port au prince including gressier petit goave and leogane which were all
leveled by the quake
kraft set to clinch cadbury takeover
london jan afp
us food giant kraft was set tuesday to win control of british confectioner
cadbury as the pair revealed they were finalising terms of friendly takeover
ending bitter war of words
the pair released brief statement in response to mounting press speculation
that cadbury would agree to sweetened bid worth up to billion pounds
billion euros billion dollars
takeover of cadbury would end more than years of history for the colourful
maker of dairy milk chocolate bars and trident chewing gum the group began life
as small grocer shop in birmingham central england in
the boards of kraft foods inc and cadbury plc confirm that they are finalising
the terms of recommended offer for cadbury plc further announcement will be
made shortly the companies announced
prior to tuesday cadbury had repeatedly rejected the takeover offer from kraft
arguing that it was derisory and undervalued the london listed firm
reports suggested that deal could be announced later tuesday after the pair
held late night talks ending prolonged war of words that has raged since the
us firm launched hostile bid last year
kraft had until tuesday to raise its cash and shares offer which currently
values the iconic british firm at about billion pounds
the bbc which did not cite its source said kraft may hike its offer to between
and pence share adding that at pence cadbury would be valued at
around billion pounds
cadbury spokeswoman refused to comment further on tuesday while kraft was
unavailable for comment
the deal if it is agreed by cadbury management comes after months of
hostility between the two groups
kraft had made billion pound offer for cadbury in september
however cadbury led by american chief executive todd stitzer rejected the
bid saying that it fundamentally undervalued the group
cadbury has put up staunch defence insisting recently that its
performance had been outstanding claim which was dismissed by kraft as
underwhelming
but the us firm raised the cash component of the offer earlier this month after
selling its north american pizza division to swiss rival nestle for billion
dollars
the kraft tie up also faced opposition in britain with protest from senior
ministers over the attempt by huge american firm to take over homegrown
company
there have also been fears about british job losses with trade union unite
warning kraft would be saddled with huge debts leading them to axe posts
at cadbury and at the company sub contractors
meanwhile us chocolate maker hershey had also been considering counter offer
for cadbury the wall street journal reported last week adding that it planned
to bid at least billion dollars
cadbury the world second biggest confectionery company behind mars also
produces chocolate bar brands crunchie fudge flake and wispa it now employs
staff in countries
dairy milk is the most popular chocolate bar in britain and the company sells
more than million bars every year in countries around the world
other top selling brands include cadbury creme eggs halls throat lozenges and
milk tray chocolate boxes
kraft the world second biggest snacks group after nestle makes numerous
well known products including dairylea cheese milka and toblerone chocolate and
oreo cookies
tennis federer overcomes early andreev test to progress
melbourne jan afp
swiss world number one roger federer had some early rocky moments against tricky
russian igor andreev but safely negotiated his way into the second round of the
australian open on tuesday
federer chasing his th grand slam title dropped the opening set but rattled
home against the th ranked andreev in two hours
minutes on rod laver arena
the performance gave federer an early indication of how he stacks up in the
opening grand slam tournament of the season after losing to russian nikolay
davydenko in his last two matches
know if my body is there and my game is there can beat anybody federer
said
you only see that after the first week is over who really in good shape and
stuff
so the way feeling now very happy can really concentrate on the way
want to play and not on my body or anything
through in the second round it not very deep yet but at least got
some information and feel like playing really well
although he stormed through the final set to love with three service breaks it
looked early on as though the swiss legend was facing tough tussle against the
man who took him to five sets in the fourth round at the us open
it needed federer to win in the fifth set back then to see off andreev but
once he got over dropping the first set here he charged home
knew from the start it was going to be tough match federer said
he got incredible acceleration on his shots especially his forehand
he very physical and intense so was happy with the start got today
there were few hiccups but think those are more due to his good play and
because of also playing against the wind
federer broke andreev serve nine times but perhaps of concern to him will
have been his own serve broken five times
federer who is bidding to win his fourth australian titles has never lost in
the first round of the year opening grand slam in attempts
the latest victory his australian open record to as he competes in his st
consecutive grand slam tournament
if all goes to plan federer is projected to face davydenko in the quarter
finals
andreev who has given federer contest in each of their three meetings said
he had his chances but could not convert them
that the difference in the rankings that why he number one andreev
said
three times had really good chances but then something missed something
went wrong
the key point was third set when didn use the set points then after that
went little bit down in the fourth physically mentally
federer has missed playing in only one of the last grand slam finals and
bookmakers have again installed him the favourite to capture his th major
title
last year he finally broke through at roland garros clinching the french open
at his th attempt and followed up with sixth wimbledon crown in seven years
he became the all time grand slam leader in men tennis in the process passing
the won by american pete sampras while retrieving the number one ranking off
rafael nadal
alert
jal to receive billion dollar investment of public funds govt
malaysian man fails in attempt to overturn sodomy ban
kuala lumpur jan afp
malaysian man has failed in bid to overturn ban on sodomy after court
ruled that the law criminalising the act was constitutional his lawyer said
tuesday
lawyer fahri azzat said the case was the first constitutional challenge against
the ban on sodomy in muslim majority malaysia which is punishable by up to
years imprisonment even if between consenting adults
the legal challenge was launched by abdul rahim abdul rahaman who was
appealing against his conviction of years in jail for counts of sodomising
year old boy he had said the acts were consensual
we have argued that this law is wrong and it is unconstitutional because it
breaches your rights to privacy and it also creates inequality in terms of
gender fahri told afp
fahri said the nation highest court had assured the right to privacy in
ruling last year but that the law penalising sodomy breaches this right and
treats homosexuals as potential criminals
the court of appeal however rejected the defence arguments and upheld the
verdict against abdul rahim city hall worker who was also sentenced to
strokes of the cane
are you saying that homosexuality among consenting adults is legal in other
words what happens in the bedroom is none of the government business judge
suriyadi halim omar said in opposing the argument according to state media
corrected obama calls lula about joint us brazil canada relief effort
brasilia jan afp
us president barack obama called his brazilian counterpart monday to propose
joint us brazilian canadian leadership for relief efforts in quake stricken
haiti brazilian government official said
obama and president luiz inacio lula da silva spoke for about minutes the
official said with obama suggesting that his government and its chief ally in
the region brazil should work together in rescue efforts
the official with lula office said the us president proposed that the united
states brazil and canada should lead and coordinate efforts by the
international community of haiti donors and other parties
obama and lula discussed aid related issues with the brazilian leader stressing
the need to supplement the efforts of the un mission in haiti minustah
especially with regards to the distribution of food and water
brazil heads minustah which has roughly troops police and about
civilian personnel
un secretary general ban ki moon asked the un security council monday to deploy
an additional police and soldiers to haiti
the united states has approximately us troops overseeing and providing
security to the aid effort and has promised to send more in the coming
weeks
alert
japan airlines to slash about jobs government
urgent over people rescued from haiti debris since quake un
geneva jan afp
more than people have been pulled out alive since international search and
rescue teams began combing through the debris from last week deadly earthquake
in haiti the united nations said tuesday
urgent japan airlines files for bankruptcy company
tokyo jan afp
japan airlines announced tuesday that it had filed for bankruptcy protection as
part of an overhaul of the debt ridden carrier in one of the country biggest
ever corporate failures
alert
japan airlines files for bankruptcy protection company
alert
over people rescued from haiti debris since beginning of quake un
hong kong disneyland shrinks losses on cost cutting
hong kong jan afp
hong kong disneyland saw its annual losses fall to billion hong kong
dollars million us dollars from billion dollars owing to cost cuts at
the struggling venue it said tuesday
sales in the fiscal year ended october slid one percent to billion hong
kong dollars while the park hotel occupancy rate fell to percent from
percent in fiscal disney said
the global financial crisis and an outbreak of swine flu sparked the decline
disney said adding that attendance still rose two percent year on year to
million visitors
the park majority owned by the hong kong government also said its
operating loss declined percent to million hong kong dollars driven by
cost cuts and stronger attendance figures
rita lau hong kong secretary for commerce and economic development described
the results as falling short of our general expectations
it is very important for the management to control its costs to improve its
efficiency in operations with view to boosting the performance of the
company she told reporters tuesday
since it opened in hong kong disneyland has been desperate to boost the
number and quality of its attractions as it struggles to attract visitors
the venue is investing billion hong kong dollars to build new attractions
over the next five years
but fresh doubts about its future reignited after china announced in november
that it had given the green light for disney to build its long awaited theme
park on the chinese mainland in shanghai
corruption biggest concern for afghans unodc
vienna jan afp
corruption is the biggest worry for afghans more so than insecurity or
unemployment according to the findings of new un report released tuesday
in report entitled corruption in afghanistan the united nations office on
drugs and crime unodc found that percent of the afghan population felt that
public dishonesty is bigger concern than insecurity with percent or
unemployment percent
the afghans say that it is impossible to obtain public service without paying
bribe said unodc executive director antonio maria costa
based on interviews with people in provincial capitals and more than
villages around afghanistan the report found that graft was part of
everyday life in afghanistan
during the survey period one afghan out of two had to pay at least one
kickback to public official more than half of the time percent the
request for illicit payment was an explicit demand by the service provider it
said
in most instances the bribes were paid in cash
the average bribe was dollars euros in country where gross gdp
gross domestic product per capita is mere dollars per year the unodc
noted
that meant that afghans paid out billion dollars in bribes over the past
months equivalent to almost one quarter percent of afghanistan licit
gdp
bribery is crippling tax on people who are already among the world
poorest costa said
the biggest culprits were police and local officials followed by judges
prosecutors or members of the government the unodc found
more than half percent of afghans believed that international
organistions and ngos non governmental organisations are corrupt and are in
the country just to get rich the report said
this perception risks undermining aid effectiveness and discrediting those
trying to help country desperately in need of assistance
the cancer of corruption in afghanistan is metastatic costa warned
in order to prevent this condition from becoming terminal president karzai
must urgently administer tough medicine based on the united nations convention
against corruption which he pushed so hard to ratify
corruption was the biggest impediment to improving security development and
governance in afghanistan costa said it is also enabling other forms of
crime like drug trafficking and terrorism
if the phenomenon meant that afghans were unable to obtain services and
protection from the government or able to do so only through bribery the
government of afghanistan will not have the support it desperately needs from
every community across the country if it is to win its battle against the
taliban insurgency the unodc said
for this reason corruption is not an issue that can be deferred for after
pressing matters of security health nutrition and education have been
addressed
in haiti floating provides succor for few
aboard the uss carl vinson haiti jan afp
lucky few survivors of haiti devastating earthquake have received treatment
from surgeons on us navy ship floating near port au prince but for the medics
aboard there is frustration they have not done more
on the uss carl vinson an aircraft carrier now in the bay of port au prince
staff darted between gleaming clinic with three operating tables to
radiology room to spotless beds that could be world away from the squalor
and chaos of the haitian capital
inside there was quiet as the ship surgeon anesthesiologist psychologist and
other specialists treated haitian patients most of whom were bedridden and some
of whom still slept
but this small floating hospital was almost empty
it was striking contrast to the clinics and emergency rooms of port au prince
where the victims of the january earthquake crowded in the vain hope of
getting help
it is contrast that was not lost on those working on the vinson
as doctor want to jump overboard go ashore and take care of as many people
as can said alfred shwayat head of the ship medical unit
all of us are trained for mass casualty scenarios initial stabilization of
traumatic injuries he said adding the vinson was like mini hospital
but we are not staffed to deal with thousands of patients our core mission
is to take care of the strike group to maintain our operational tempo
we bring patients aboard and try to operate as much as we can
since its arrival friday the uss carl vinson has treated patients three
americans and seven haitians
one patient year old haitian girl even managed to receive brain surgery
aboard carried out by american neurosurgeon and cnn medical correspondent
sanjay gupta who was in port au prince to report on the humanitarian
catastrophe
the girl was injured in last week earthquake and was diagnosed as having
centimeter inch chunk of concrete embedded in her skull
the surgery went well gupta said afterward
but for the ship commander admiral ted branch the main focus of his work was
not in the small hospital in the bowels of the ship but the helicopter deck
that crowns it
our main contribution is vertical lift he said
the vinson had arrived to haiti loaded with thousands of bottles of water and
energy drinks sheets and hundreds of camp beds
it also brought equipment to purify gallons liters of water
day by reverse osmosis
but after dozens of sorties lifting aid to land the ship was now largely empty
and fresh batches of water undelivered due to lack of containers the vinson
potential again restrained
dubai says abu dhabi lifeline only half originally reported
dubai jan afp
cash strapped dubai said on tuesday that the financial lifeline extended by abu
dhabi last month is only half of what was originally believed because it
included previously announced funding
in december as property giant nakheel was about to default on billion
dollars in islamic bonds and dubai looked set for more financial woes it
announced billion dollar bailout from neighbouring abu dhabi
however it was learned on tuesday that the billion dollars included five
billion that dubai had already been promised through bond issue in november
the billion dollar support funding from abu dhabi did include the five
billion dollars from the two abu dhabi banks government spokeswoman said
the spokeswoman who asked not to be identified was referring to the
subscription by two abu dhabi backed banks to dubai government bonds which was
announced in late november
that came shortly before dubai announced that it wanted to restructure the debt
of its largest conglomerate and nakheel parent dubai world
prince william given rousing aboriginal welcome to australia
sydney jan afp
britain prince william was tuesday welcomed to australia by an aboriginal
elder daubed in body paint and bearing smouldering gum leaves on his first
visit since he came here as baby years ago
up to cheering fans in poor inner city aboriginal neighbourhood in
sydney greeted the prince who last visited the country in the arms of his
late mother princess diana when he was just nine months old in
indigenous leaders wearing red loincloths one clutching boomerang another
didgeridoo and third wearing possum skin treated the second in line to
the throne to traditional smoking ceremony to welcome him to the continent
we re over the moon that he come to this part of the city to spend time with
us said aboriginal australian lewis kelly who went to sydney run down
redfern area to see the visiting royal
was surprised when heard it on the grapevine that he was coming here to see
the indigenous people the real australians
well wishers in the mostly indigenous crowd cheered and clapped after the prince
arrived while some people held up pictures of his mother
virginia hickey relative of year old tj hickey whose death while
being pursued by police in redfern sparked racially tinged riot said
william visit to the area was way of mixing black and white
it may bridge the gap she told afp as she waited for glimpse of the prince
it might help ease our pain as aborigines
in meeting with aboriginal elders william was presented with petition
to king george vi asking for treaty and also asked for help in finding and
returning the head of indigenous warrior pemulwuy
pemulwuy who opposed british settlers and was shot dead in was
decapitated after death and his head is believed to have been placed in jar
and sent to england its location is unknown
said pemulwuy was mighty aboriginal warrior it part of our history and
lot of our history is not acknowledged elder marlene cummins said
he was really interested when he talks to you he really talks and when he
listens he really listens that what love about this boy
william who requested the three day unofficial visit to get to know australia
flew into sydney after an official visit to new zealand where he represented his
grandmother queen elizabeth ii for the first time
after stepping off new zealand air force jet he was whisked off to meet the
queen representative in australia governor general quentin bryce at her
harbourside mansion
during tour of the grounds the prince described the view of sydney famed
opera house and harbour bridge as thrilling and waved to stunned passengers
on passing ferry
he and bryce were joined for lunch by prominent young australians including
cricketer michael clarke olympic diver matthew mitcham and wallabies skipper
rocky elsom
the prince tour comes as poll revealed the majority of australians who in
voted against model to become republic would prefer william to be
their next king instead of his father prince charles
the survey for british television channel itv news found percent of those
interviewed thought william should be the next monarch compared with percent
for charles
in redfern where the crowds stood for hours in the hot midday sun to see the
prince many said william reminded them of diana
he like his mother said mary silva he lovely person isn he he
wasn bit frightened to come here mean what place to come
but the prince after visiting hospital in wellington earlier tuesday
dismissed any comparisons with diana
wouldn say anywhere near her level she had fantastic affinity with
kids and with everyone just go and meet people and enjoy their company
like meeting people so it helps he told reporters
william will visit bushfire ravaged areas near melbourne on thursday before
returning home the following day
finland waertsilae to shift output to china
helsinki jan afp
finnish industrial group waertsilae said tuesday it would cut jobs
globally this year and move most of its propeller and auxiliary engine
production to china
to adjust to the fundamental changes in the market waertsilae plans to reduce
its manufacturing capacity it said in statement adding it would close two
plants in the netherlands and one in finland
in the netherlands waertsilae plans to cut jobs it currently employs
people there
the remaining reduction will impact various divisions functions and countries
and will be clarified during the first half of this year it said
waertsilae said it would book non recurring costs of million euros
dollars from the restructuring and hoped to make cost savings of million to
million euros
the effect of the savings will start to materialise gradually during and
will take full effect in the first half of it said
waertsilae which is due to report results on january said its net
sales grew percent last year and profitability before non recurring items
improved compared to
in waertsilae net sales will be impacted by the marine market situation
and lower order book net sales for will be percent below
profitability before non recurring items is expected to be approximately
percent which is at the upper range of waertsilae long term profitability
target it said
tennis federer serena live up to star billing
melbourne jan afp
top seeds roger federer and serena williams lived up to their star billing
tuesday as they charged into the australian open second round
the swiss world number one swept home after sluggish start to eliminate
russian igor andreev in four sets while williams wasted little energy in
demolishing pole urszula radwanska
federer was joined in the next round by in form russian nikolay davydenko who
laid down the gauntlet by saying the federer nadal dominance was over and th
seed jo wilfried tsonga
but eighth ranked swede robin soderling was sent packing the highest seed to be
eliminated so far
on the women side williams was joined by eighth seed jelena jankovic and
fellow serb ana ivanovic
federer said it was good first round test
tough match knew from the start it was not going be an easy one said the
time grand slam winner after winning
few hiccups but think those are more due to his good play and because of
also playing against the wind so it was good first round for me
williams who is searching for her th grand slam singles title to join billie
jean king as one of the all time greats was in fine form despite having her
right thigh heavily strapped
just supportive and preventive she said referring to her hamstring
williams four time champion in melbourne broke radwanska twice in the first
set and three times in the second on her way to comfortable victory
the scoreline seemed to be easy but it was long match out there said the
american well not long but it was tough points so was just happy to get
it over with
on blustery but dry day with organisers trying to clear backlog of matches
unable to finish due to rain on monday jankovic also progressed with an easy
win over romania monica niculescu
fellow serb and th seed ana ivanovic was another motoring through
ivanovic former world number one overcame some late serving jitters to beat
american shenay perry as she struggles to get her career back on track
was pleased with the way played and very happy to have victory
because she had lot of matches already and she dangerous opponent she
said
beaten in the final here by russian maria sharapova who was knocked out on
monday the year old is keen to put disappointing behind her having
battled injuries and indifferent form
other women staying alive included australian th seed samantha stosur who
struggled past chinese qualifier han xinyun in three sets french th seed
marion bartoli and th seed aravane rezai who beat india sania mirza
davydenko known as mr invisible for his low public profile was the first top
man into the second round tuesday dropping just four games in his
rout of germany dieter kindlmann
having won the atp world tour masters in london at the end of last year and then
beating rafael nadal in the final of the qatar open this month he is viewed as
strong contender
know can win mostly before losing against these top guys but now can
beat everyone it good feeling said the russian
it starting to change in tennis it not only nadal and federer any more
davydenko is scheduled to meet federer in the quarter finals
other top names going through were th seed tsonga who overcame sergiy
stakhovsky in straight sets and french th seed gael monfils who wrapped his
rain delayed match against australian matthew ebden
spanish ninth seed fernando verdasco was another staying in the hunt after
tough four set encounter with australian carsten ball
hong kong disneyland shrinks losses on cost cutting
hong kong jan afp
hong kong disneyland saw its annual losses fall to billion hong kong
dollars million us dollars from billion dollars owing to cost cuts at
the struggling venue it said tuesday
sales in the fiscal year ended october slid one percent to billion hong
kong dollars while the park hotel occupancy rate fell to percent from
percent in fiscal disney said
the global financial crisis and an outbreak of swine flu sparked the decline
disney said adding that park attendance still rose two percent year on year to
million visitors
however the park operating loss also declined percent to million hong
kong dollars driven by cost cuts and stronger attendance figures the park
said
since it opened in hong kong disneyland has been desperate to boost the
number and quality of its attractions as it struggles to attract visitors
the venue majority owned by the hong kong government is investing billion
hong kong dollars to build new attractions over the next five years
but fresh doubts about the park future reignited after china announced in
november that it had given the green light for disney to build its long awaited
theme park on the chinese mainland in shanghai
cadbury says it is finalising terms of takeover from kraft
london jan afp
british chocolate maker cadbury announced tuesday that it was finalising the
terms of an improved takeover bid from us food giant kraft after bitter
battle
the boards of kraft foods inc and cadbury plc confirm that they are finalising
the terms of recommended offer for cadbury plc further announcement will be
made shortly the companies said in statement
british media reported tuesday that cadbury was set to agree to takeover in
deal that could value the london listed group at up to billion pounds
billion euros billion dollars
prior to tuesday cadbury had repeatedly rejected the takeover offer from kraft
arguing that it was derisory
however reports suggested that deal could be announced later tuesday after
the pair held late night talks on monday move that would end prolonged war of
words that has raged since the us firm launched hostile bid last year
kraft had until tuesday to raise its cash and shares offer which currently
values the iconic british firm at about billion pounds
