SBC gives in to ultimatum

Transcription

www.today.sc
Tuesday 26 January 2016
Newsline
n News
n Sports
n Business
n Life
n
Biodiversity: UniSey
tackles invasive alien species
SR 10/-
Union for Change
(page 3)
The Union for Change movement had given a 14-day
ultimatum to the SBC to
respond to their grievances,
threatening a second protest
march in the event there’s no
reaction to their views.
n
Triathlon: Third Seychellois to take part in the
Dubai Ironman
(page 4)
T
he SBC board and its CEO have
agreed to meet with four leaders of the opposition movement
tomorrow at 10am at the station’s headquarters at Hermitage. The opposition
had given the SBC until Thursday 28
January to listen to their views, warning that a failure to do so would result
in another protest march. Since the
first demonstration on 14 January ,
the SBC had given no indication that
it intended to accommodate the opposition’s request, leaving a lot of people
guessing. However on Monday, TODAY
was informed by the leader of the Seychelles National Party (SNP), Wavel
Ramkalawan, that a positive reply had
been received from SBC’s CEO, Antoine
Onezime.
Continued on page 2
The ultimatum would have ended on 28 January. The last protest march took place on 14 January.
Island Sound Record studio
n
Trends: Nearly 40,000
Seychellois travelled in 2015
A politically motivated
eviction?
(page 7)
The owner of the Island Sound Record studio was supposed to vacate the
premises that house his studio on Praslin today but Steve Narty says he
won’t go unless he gets an eviction letter from the DA. The businessman
is claiming he is being victimised after his studio produced the SNP’s
“The Time Is Now” song.
By CM
See inside for a special
supplement on the
occasion of the
Republic Day of India
T
The studio has recorded numerous artists.
he owner of Island Sound Record has been
evicted from the Community centre of Baie
Sainte Anne on Praslin, where his studio
has been housed for nearly a year. He claims the
decision is politically motivated but the District
Administrator (DA) has denied those allegations.
The owner of the studio, Steve Narty also known as
“Selectah Narty”, aged 28, told TODAY that his troubles began after his colleague Nicholas Folette better
known as “Magnificent” collaborated on the political
song “The time is now”. The song was one of the Seychelles National Party (SNP) anthems, used during the
second round of the 2015 Presidential election.
Continued on page 2
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19.20
p2
Letters to the Editor
Disclaimer
The views and comments expressed are those of the writer and not necessarily
those of this newspaper
The winding road
to Independence
Dear Editor,
One cannot but feel some sympathy for Professor Eriksen of the
University of Oslo for having invoked the wrath of Sir James
Mancham by referring to him as an “unelected President”. It is
unlikely that Professor Eriksen was fully aware of the complicated route that the two main Seychellois politicians of the time,
James Mancham and Albert René, chose to bring their country, Seychelles, to full independence. Let it be said that much of
the fault lay with the British government which, after months
of stringing Mr Mancham along with the hope that he could
achieve some form of integration with Britain, let him down
badly, forcing the Democratic Party leader (then Chief Minister
of Seychelles) to make an about-turn and go for Independence.
As a result both parties, the DP and Albert René’s SPPF, contested the final election in October 1975 on a similar platform of
early independence.
The result was a disaster for René for although his party
gained 48 per cent of the popular vote it was awarded only 2 of
the 15 seats in the Legislature. Commenting on the result, British Prime Minister Harold Wilson wondered whether a territory
where a party required 47 per cent of votes cast in order to obtain
13 per cent of the seats was sufficiently mature and well-regulated to proceed to independence.
But proceed they did, with Britain at the final constitutional
conference encouraging both leaders to go for independence as
a coalition government. It was also agreed at the behest of both
parties that Seychelles would become a republic, with Mancham
as executive President, with a Cabinet consisting of René as
Prime Minister and other Ministers appointed by the President
from among members of the Legislature. Thereafter the President would be elected by popular vote, simultaneously with elections to the House of Assembly. Commenting on this outcome in
their book “In Search of Democracy”, Alain St Ange and Bernard
Georges wrote: “The Seychellois people were, not for the first or
last time in their history, presented with a fait accompli”.
In his thesis “Constitutionalism reconsidered in the Seychelles”, April 1993, Frank Ally notes that the Independence
Constitution was framed by a small group behind closed doors,
and was not adopted democratically by the population. He added: Its péché originel was that it was legally conceived by the UK
Parliament.
William McAteer
PO Box 158, Victoria
Dear Editor,
On what date was James Mancham “elected” as President of Seychelles? The question is pertinent in order to determine whether
Mr Mancham was “elected” or not. The Seychelles Democratic Party won the last pre-independence poll on 25 April 1974.
There was no Presidential election.
James Mancham became President at Independence following
an agreement in January at the second Seychelles Constitutional
Conference held in January 1976. Interestingly, the establishment of a republic was never the subject of a plebiscite but was
decided by the participants at the conference. The Seychelles
Act 1976 was the instrument which created the first republic and
was passed by the British House of Lords on 24 May 1976.
Delphi Oracle
Continued from page 1
“He has agreed to meet all four
leaders: Patrick Pillay, Alexia
Amesbury, Philippe Boullé and
myself at their headquarters
to address the issues set out in
our letter”, Mr Ramkalawan
told TODAY. Nearly two weeks
ago, the four leaders had led opposition supporters in a protest
march from the Stad Popiler car
park to the corporation’s headquarters. Once there, they delivered a letter to the chairperson
of the SBC board, Patrick Nanty,
and Mr Onezime, in which they
expressed their dissatisfaction
with “SBC’s continued and augmented bias in favour of the
Parti Lepep government in its
coverage of national affairs, to
the exclusion of other opinions,
in particular of the voice of the
opposition”.
In their letter, the leaders
wrote: “The editorial bias of
the SBC is contrary to its Constitutional mandate to be independent and is a disservice to
the democratization process in
Seychelles”. They called on the
chairperson of the SBC board to
ensure that editorial reforms are
carried out as soon as possible in
order to ensure that the broadcaster respects its Constitutional
mandate. They also called on
the SBC to implement recommendations set out in the Reilly
Report of 2007 which addressed
the need for independence of the
State-funded broadcaster.
The protest march, the first
to be organised this year by the
opposition movement under the
Union For Change banner, saw
the participation of between 800
and 1000 supporters.
A politically motivated eviction?
Continued from page 1
He said that they have also
been accused of producing the
song “Pil Lo Li” performed by Ras
Ricky, a tune that ruling party
Parti Lepep is particularly averse
to, claiming it has a violent message. But Mr Narty denies the
accusation, saying they did not
record that particular song.
Speaking to TODAY, the studio owner recounts that after the
first round of the Presidential
election, he received a call from
the DA of the Baie Ste. Anne
community centre, Kenneth
Pointe who asked him to “talk to
‘Magnificent’ about the song he
made”.
The warning came, he claims,
because “Parti Lepep heard the
song and did not like it. He told
me to speak to Nicholas and tell
him ‘not to do this’”. Mr. Narty
further claimed that “the DA told
me over the phone that he would
remove me” from the community
centre where the studio is based.
He goes on to claim that he “did
not hear anything else” on the
matter “until I was called into the
DA’s office on Tuesday (12 January) and told to vacate the premises by Monday (25 January)”.
Contacted, DA Kenneth Pointe
categorically refutes those allegations, saying that the matter was
more an issue of space rather
than a politically motivated move
as alleged by Mr. Narty. “The
President announced that there
will be district councils soon and
we do not know how many offices
they will actually need. We started the process and then realised
that we did not have any offices
for them”. He went on to explain
that as the DA, he had tried to
help Mr. Narty with his fledgling
business, going as far as to convert a store in order to be able to
provide him with a locale for his
studio, free of charge. He added
that the young entrepreneur was
also exempt from paying for electricity.
This was corroborated by Mr.
Narty who said that since March
2015 to date, he had not been
paying any rent. He adds nonetheless that in November last
year, he signed a rental agreement with the DA so that he
would start paying a rent of SCR2
000 per month as of January but
claimed that he never received a
copy of the document that was
supposed to be signed by the DA.
The DA, on the other hand,
says that an agreement was never
signed between them and told
TODAY to “ask him (Mr. Narty)
to provide proof of a signed document”.
Mr. Narty adds that “the community centre belongs to everyone” and not just people who belong to the ruling party.
On Facebook, pro opposition
supporters have been quick to
accuse government of victimising the businessman but the DA
laughed this off, saying that “Parti Lepep have their own offices so
this is not true”.
The DA reiterated his claim
that he asked “him (Mr. Narty) to
leave as we will need the premises. They are instigating things. If
there were any issues they should
have approached us because
when they needed the space, they
came to talk to us calmly and they
did not need TODAY to do so”.
The DA also says that Mr. Narty
had already agreed to vacate the
premises by Saturday 23 January.
Mr. Narty for his part, sticks to
his story that this was a politically
motivated decision, saying that “I
feel that we all have a right to an
opinion and to take a stand whenever we feel the need to”.
He says that he is still expecting a positive outcome because “I
work for whoever, regardless of
colour and belief. Island Sound
Record has worked for the ministry of Health, free of charge recently, to write and produce the
song ‘Mon lasante, mon responsabilite i konmans dan lakour’.
We were going to be working on
a project for the Seychelles Heritage Foundation (SHF), which
was a paid job for a song competition for Praslin and La Digue
school students”.
As of last Thursday, Mr. Narty
said that he had “Linyon Sanzman,
Anthony
Derjacques
and Wavel Ramkalawan in my
corner”, adding that Mr. Ramkalawan was supposed to have
discussed the matter with the
Designated Minister Vincent
Meriton, who is also the Minister
of Social Affairs, Community Development and Sports.
On Facebook, comments have
been rather harsh: “This is getting
more ridiculous by the day. We
need to show these hard working
young men that their investment
of energy and enthusiasm is respected. They are not playthings
that can be tossed around because of their political preference.
Victimisations will not be tolerated.” Another person noted that
“All community centres (sic) are
for the people of that community.
These young people are Praslinois so they have the right to be
there. It they have recorded songs
for others who have different political believes (sic) so what, this
building was constructed using
Seychellois money”.
Education
UniSey launches
first MBA
programme
T
Ryan Steve Narty, aka Selectah Narty’s shirt perhaps says it all.
he University of Seychelles (UniSey) yesterday launched its first ever
MBA programme at the International Conference Centre of Seychelles (ICCS). According to the
Vice Chancellor Dennis Hardy,
the programme has been tailor
made for the needs of Seychelles
and will be taught in collaboration by the University of West
of Scotland (UWS). The course
starts in May.
The Principal and Vice Chancellor of the UWS, Craig Mahoney spoke of the importance of
having an MBA in today’s business world, saying that in countries like the UK, “there are some
administrative jobs that you cannot do without an MBA”. More
on this, in tomorrow’s edition.
p3
Biodiversity
UniSey tackles
invasive alien species
The University of Seychelles has officially launched its Island Biodiversity
and Conservation Centre, alongside a publication on invasive alien species, in an effort to tackle threats to the country’s unique biodiversity.
Minister Dogley and Prof Dennis Hardy were handed a copy of the book by the
authors and staff of UniSey.
By Sasha-Lee
T
here are a number of invasive alien species on
the islands of Seychelles
that affect its natural biodiversity. Some such as cinnamon
or coconut were brought in for
economic reasons and to beautify the area. Others however
can create problems, such as the
popular hairy caterpillars, the
impact of which on biodiversity
still needs to be measured.
Countries such as Australia
and New Zealand were among
the first to address the issue of
invasive alien species, and now
Seychelles also gets on board in
a bid to understand and confront such issues.
World
Record hot years near impossible without
manmade climate change – study
New calculations show there is just a 0.01% chance that recent run of
global heat records could have happened due to natural climate varia-
T
he world’s run of recordbreaking hottest years
is extremely unlikely to
have happened without the
global warming caused by human activities, according to
new calculations.
Thirteen of the 15 hottest
years in the 150-year-long record occurred between 200014 and the researchers found
there is a just a 0.01% chance
that this happened due to natural variations in the planet’s
climate.
2015 was revealed to have
smashed all earlier records on
Wednesday, after the new study
had been completed, meaning
the odds that the record run
of heat is a fluke are now even
lower.
“Natural climate variations
just can’t explain the observed
recent global heat records, but
manmade global warming can,”
said Prof Stefan Rahmstorf, at
the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research in Germany and one of the research
team.
He said the record heat
brought substantial impacts:
“It has led to unprecedented local heatwaves across the world,
sadly resulting in loss of life and
aggravating droughts and wildfires. The risk of heat extremes
has been multiplied due to our
interference with the Earth sys-
tem, as our analysis shows.”
The UN World Meteorological Organization (WMO)
confirmed on Monday that the
global average surface temperature in 2015 shattered all previous records and said 15 of the
16 hottest years on record have
all occurred since 2000. “We
have reached for the first time
the threshold of 1C above preindustrial temperatures. It is a
sobering moment in the history
of our planet,” said WMO secretary-general Petteri Taalas.
The new research by Rahmstorf and colleagues, published
in the journal Scientific Reports, is based on a statistical
analysis that combines realworld measurements with
comprehensive computer simulations of the climate system.
This allowed natural climate
variability to be better separated from human-caused climate change. The results did
not vary significantly when UK
Met Office temperature data
was used instead of Nasa data.
The research was prompted
by earlier claims that the run of
record-breaking years was vanishing unlikely, a one in 650m
shot, according to one report.
However, the average global
surface temperature of the
planet each year is influenced
by the warmth of the previous
year, meaning that a record
broken one year is not independent of the year before. The
UK Met Office expects 2016 to
break the record set in 2015,
partly because of the continuing El Niño weather phenomenon.
“Natural climate variability causes temperatures to wax
and wane over a period of several years, rather than varying
erratically from one year to the
next,” said Prof Michael Mann
at Penn State university in the
US, who led the new study.
“That makes it more challenging to accurately assess the
likelihood of temperature records. Given the press interest,
it seemed important to do this
right, and address the interesting and worthwhile question of how unlikely it is that
the recent run of record temperatures might have arisen by
chance alone.”
The study concludes: “While
considerably greater than cited in some media reports, the
odds are low enough to suggest
that recent observed runs of record temperatures are extremely unlikely to have occurred in
the absence of human-caused
global warming.”
In 2013, the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change
concluded with 95% certainty
that humans are the main cause
of global warming.
SEYCHELLES PETROLEUM COMPANY LIMITED
WEEKLY PRICE UPDATE
In order to do so effectively,
the University of Seychelles
(UniSey) on Friday officially
launched the book, “Invasive
Alien Species in Seychelles”,
written by their resident scientists Drs Gerard Rocamora and
Elvina Henriette. In addition,
the university also launched
their Island Biodiversity and
Conservation Centre, which
will help promote biodiversity
inventories, publish research results, and develop lecturing and
student supervision capacity at
the university.
The ceremony held on Friday
at the Guy Morel Institute at the
Ma Joie campus saw a presentation of the book’s contents and
the long term goals of the conservation centre in the presence
of Minister Didier Dogley.
The book’s contents can be
compared to a reference material full of information on
invasive alien species, which
is a big step forward in understanding the issue. In 400 pages, the book tackles how and
why alien species exist, why we
must fight alien species, and
why small islands are vulnerable to them. The authors also
use a case study on the hairy
caterpillars, with all the eradication attempts. Mrs. Henriette
also pointed out that about 40
pages of the book is dedicated
to rats, based on the extensive
experience they have acquired
by exterminating them on the
outer islands because of their
threat to biodiversity.
For scientific reasons, the
book also contains 600 footnotes for references and sourcing, which took up about a year
of work. Dr Rocamora explained
that from conception to completion, the book was a long jour-
ney, which began in 2011 when
he originally had the idea to create such a book.
“At the time, it originally
started as a best practice booklet”, he explained. “But then it
turned into a book.” Some of the
challenges included finding financial support, and publishers.
It was finally the team from the
French Biopte Editions- Publications Scientifique du Musée
de Paris which agreed to publish
the book.
“Many persons from Seychelles and abroad have contributed to this book, most of
them voluntarily, by providing
unpublished information, pictures or by reviewing texts” Dr
Rocamora noted. “For example,
Dr Jeanne Mortimer reviewed
the entire text and improved
considerably the style and the
English grammar of the text.”
He also thanked Air Seychelles
for having agreed to bring the
books to Seychelles free of
charge, the Ste Anne Island resort and Miguel Torres wines,
“that had also provided some
funding for the book, kindly offered a cocktail to the more than
100 people that participated in
the event.
As for the launch of the conservation centre, Vice Chancellor Dennis Hardy noted that it
is “one of the most important
things that have happened to
the university. For us to be associated with these two leading
scientists in their field is important for the university to build
on its research reputation”.
The initiative to create a conservation centre comes from the
members of the local scientific
community and the university.
The centre was registered in
2014 and aims to promote bio-
diversity inventories. It will
have core members who need
to register with the university to
participate in all activities, and
associates, who can contribute
under their respective organisations.
The centre currently has 16
members, eight of which are
core members. Many of them
are involved in the university’s
Bachelor of Science course,
while other associates are experts from all over Europe.
“There is a lot of viable expertise in Seychelles”, noted Dr
Rocamora. It is his hope that the
publication, along with the centre, will help Seychelles promote
its understanding of invasive
alien species to international
standards.
Some of the future plans include publishing a second book
on the Orthopterans of Seychelles- a guide book on grasshoppers. The members also plan
to assist a scientific conference
in Portugal in July this year,
as well as begin to conduct research projects on seabirds on
the island.
During the ceremony, Minister Dogley restated his commitment to help the university
promote best practices for the
environment. Other votes of
confidence and support came
from a video message by Professor Daniel Simberloff of the Institute for Biological Invasions
at the University of Tennessee.
He made some contributions to
the publication and congratulated Seychelles on its efforts on
biodiversity conservation. He
noted that should the country
continue in this path, “it will not
be long before it overtakes the
United States on its efforts in
this field”.
p4
Triathlon
Third Seychellois to take part in the Dubai Ironman
Mervin Esparon will make his debut this weekend.
By AH
T
he Dubai triathlon or Ironman 70.3 competition will
take place this Friday. The
event is considered to be one of
the most the prestigious triathlon
dates on the world triathlon calendar. The good news is that Seychelles will have three athletes at
this event: the two professionals,
Nick Baldwin and Simon Brierley, and amateur Mervin Esparon.
Esparon will be taking his first
crack in a triathlon competition
since taking up the sport not too
long ago. Speaking to TODAY
Sports Esparon revealed that he
started triathlon training about a
year ago. “I used to be a swimmer
and was even part of the Seychelles
national team, but I stopped when
I was 20 and did nothing for a few
years and put on a lot of weight,
even reaching 115kg at one stage.
That was when I decided to exercise to lose weight and so I’ve been
training since then and then decided to enter the triathlon competition in Dubai,” he said.
Esparon elaborated most of
his fitness regime, especially in
cycling, with the help of local
cycling coach Joseph Clothilde
who trained with him for the past
seven months. The swimming
part wasn’t that hard given that
he used to be a swimmer but the
running part was another matter
completely. “I trained so hard for
the past year and now is the time
to see the results which is why I
have registered for the Dubai triathlon,” he revealed.
Esparon left Seychelles on
Monday and will benefit from
the support of his family who
are accompanying him and he
will participate in the 30-35 age
group. The semi Ironman triathlon he will be taking part in involves completing a 1.9km swim,
cycling for 90km and a 21km
run. The event has attracted
over 2 000 competitors, including the other two Seychellois,
Baldwin and Brierley. In fact he
will be hoping to meet his two
compatriots for the first time in
Dubai. “I think I have a chance of
making it into the first 20 in my
category and I know that there
are some good athletes taking
part but some of them are strong
in one aspect and weaker in the
others so anything can happen.
Maybe I can break into the top
ten, who knows?” said a confident Esparon.
The triathlon athlete finished
fifth overall in last year’s cycling
competitions and this year he will
be joining a new cycling club that
is being set up. He hopes that his
transformation from being overweight to a cyclist and international triathlon athlete can help
inspire other athletes. “Doing this
involves a whole new level of pain
but the most important thing is
that you have to be super strong
mentally. I think that in Seychelles we have all the elements
and facilities to promote and do
triathlon events and my hope is
to try and inspire more people to
compete in triathlons locally,” he
told TODAY sports.
Esparon will be making his debut in the half Ironman in Dubai
but as he puts it he is “hoping to
finish the full ironman one day –
a 3.8km swim, 180km bike race
and a full 42km marathon. Why
not by the end of the year?”
TODAY Sports wishes him the
best of luck in Dubai.
Mervin Esparon will be
attempting his first triathlon
competition in Dubai.
Squash
Pragassen retains title,
Canale triumphs again
The number one squash player cruised to retain the Vijay trophy with a
straight sets win over Mickey Noel in the first tournament of the 2016
season at the squash court at Mont Fleuri on Friday evening.
By RR
2
1 players took part in this
annual season opening
competition and Klaus
Pragassen had another opponent in the final in the shape of
Mickey Noel. Indeed, his usual
partner in crime Ridvan Prosper did not take part in this first
tournament after deciding that
he was not ready physically to
compete.
After disposing of SQA chairperson, Nathalie Houarau, in the
semi-final, Pragassen was always
favourite to claim his second Vijay trophy against Noel who had
done well to reach this stage with
victory over Arnaud Antao in the
semis on Thursday evening.
However, Noel did not make
the best of starts as he looked
nervous allowing Pragassen to
sweep him aside as he committed too many mistakes and the
first set ended in three minutes
in favour of Pragassen 11-4.
Noel improved in the next two
sets but he still made mistakes at
crucial points in the second set
to lose it 11-8 with Pragassen just
going through the motions.
In the third set, Noel showed
more determination and pushed
Pragassen all the way and even
surprised him to win 11-8, much
to the joy of the spectators. He
continued to keep the score tight
in the fourth set but then gave
the match away at 10-8 when he
lost his service to hand the set
and match to Pragassen 11-8.
Pragassen said that he played
very calmly trying to keep the
ball in play so as to force mistakes out of his opponent. “This
final was a mere formality for me
as I did not go for winning shots
but aimed for long rallies. In fact
I won points from my opponent’s
mistakes and it is a good start for
me in my quest to retain all my
The finalists pose for a photo with main sponsor, Vijay Patel and NSC CEO
Giovanna Rousseau.
Klaus Pragassen cruised to an easy win over
Micky Noel in the Vijay cup final tournament.
four titles as well as attempt to
win all the others that eluded me
last season,” Pragassen told TODAY Sports after the final.
As for Noel, he was just pleased
he made it to his first ever final
in this sport after being a very
successful basketballer in his
younger days with Mont Fleuri
Neutrons.
“It was a big achievement to
reach my first final and to play
Klaus was very demanding. I’m
very happy to have made it to
this final but I made a slow start
and struggled to keep the ball in
play as my opponent forced me to
make mistakes but I’m happy for
Klaus who was a deserved winner,” Noel related.
Tennis coach Frederic Canale
triumphed again in the Plate final as he overcame the same opponent in the shape of Guillaume
Albert in three tough sets to register his second title after winning the last tournament of last
season, namely the UCPS Plate
competition.
Canale sailed through in the
first set 11-3 and held off a strong
challenge in the second set to triumph 11-9. Albert led 4-1 in the
third set and had set points on
three occasions but finally succumbed to a much fitter Canale
13-11.
Canale though was full of
praise for his opponent whom
STA coach Frederic Canale won two consecutive
plate finals against Guillaume Albert.
he felt could have won this title
if he had warmed up well and
been better prepared physically.
“I started well but my opponent
gave me a tough match. I just
hung in there and kept on fighting for all the points to finally
overcome him. It is my second
Plate final but I would prefer
to be involved in the other side
of the draw. Due to the way the
seeding is done I always face the
top seed Pragassen in my first
match,” Canale stated.
As for Albert, he commended
his opponent who gave him a
tough match but was also pleased
to have reached the Plate final. “I
rushed into the first set against
an opponent who is constant and
I made crucial mistakes in the
second set. I should have won
the third but got distracted as
I served for the set though I’m
happy to have reached the final. I
had a tough match in the quarter
final and I know what I need to
work on to do better in my next
match,” Albert explained to TODAY Sports.
During the prize-giving ceremony, the SQA chairperson
thanked all the players who enrolled for this competition as well
as the main sponsor, Vijay Patel,
who has been a faithful sponsor
over the years and the NSC CEO,
Giovanna Rousseau, for her continued support during 2015.
Miss Rousseau congratulated
all the winners and thanked Mr
Patel for his continued sponsorship of the sport whilst Mr Patel
said that his company will keep
supporting this event next year.
The trophies and cash prizes
were presented by Mr Patel to
the finalists after which the evening proceeded with a happy
hour at the squash court.
Brief
Karting
All members are advised that the AGM will take place this Saturday
30 January at 2pm at the sports training room at the Stad Popiler in
Victoria. All members must have paid the 2016 membership renewals before the AGM. Class registration deadline is this Wednesday
27 January. Only those who have registered will be confirmed in
their respective classes whilst spare seats will be taken up by new
promotions.
p5
Tuesday 26 January, 2016
Australian Open
Azarenka, Kerber roll through to Melbourne
quarter-final showdown
V
ictoria Azarenka couldn’t get
off court quickly enough to
check the score after reaching the Australian Open quarterfinals.
To her excitement, it was a Broncos win.
The two-time Australian Open
champion had just beaten Barbaro Strycova 6-2, 6-4 in the fourth
round on Monday — continuing a
three-year sequence of wins against
the Czech player that started in the
second round in 2013 and included
the third round last year — when
she wanted to know the result of the
AFC title game.
“Can somebody please tell me, did
Broncos win?” she said, taking over
her on-court TV interview. When
she heard the Denver Broncos had
beaten the New England Patriots 2018, she shouted “Yesss!!” — stepping
back and raising both arms, “I’m so
happy now.”
“I was so nervous the whole morning, I didn’t watch. I didn’t want to
know the result,” she said. “As you
can see I’m a crazy sports fanatic, so
I understand you guys when you get
all nervous and stuff, because I felt
that.”
Peyton Manning’s Broncos will
face Cam Newton’s Carolina Panthers in the 50th Super Bowl. Azarenka has already shown some allegiance to Newton and the Panthers,
doing her version of the “dab” in her
Suspicions over match
fixing of mixed doubles
in Melbourne
S
uspicions of match-fixing
clouded the Australian Open on
Monday after an online bookmaker reported an unexpected spike
in bets on a mixed doubles match, a
news report said.
Wagers poured in hours before an
otherwise obscure match pitting a
Spanish and a Polish pair, prompting website Pinnacle Sports to alert
authorities in Melbourne where the
match was held, the New York Times
reported.
Lara Arruabarrena and David
Marrero went down against Andrea
Hlavackova and Lukasz Kubot 6-0,
6-3 on Sunday, with the first set lasting just 20 minutes, the report said.
Marrero blamed a knee injury for
the result.
The integrity of the sport was under scrutiny after news reports last
week said that more than a dozen
top-50 players in recent years had
been suspected of match-fixing, but
that the allegations were not followed
up by tennis officials.
After Sunday’s allegations, tennis
officials pointed out that unusual
betting patterns can also be triggered
by the leak of inside information, including for example of an injury that
could influence a match, the New
York Times report said.
“We saw a small number of people
placing a large amount of money,”
said Marco Blume, head of sports
betting at Pinnacle Sports.
“In context, these matches are
rather small. That means that any aggressive betting behavior is very easy
to detect on our side,” he was quoted
as saying.
In a separate case, a former Australian tennis professional told a
court he would plead guilty to throwing a match in 2013.
Nick Lukas Lindahl, 27, is accused
of deliberately losing a match in the
Toowoomba Futures Six tournament
to allow friends and contacts to win
thousands of dollars, the Sydney
Morning Herald reported. He has
been on bail since February.
Raonic beats 2014 champion Wawrinka, reaches quarterfinals
victory celebrations.
Told of the Panthers’ win over the
Cardinals in the NFC decider, Azarenka said “Well then, it’s going to
be my dream final, I can’t wait to see
that.”
Azarenka is coming off two injury-interrupted seasons, but is returning to the kind of form that took
her to the No. 1-ranked and back-toback Australian Open titles in 2012
and ‘13.
She won the Brisbane International leading into the first major of
the season, and dropped only five
games in her first three rounds at
Melbourne Park.
Next up she faces No. 7 Angelique
Kerber, who beat fellow German Annika Beck 6-4, 6-0 in the preceding
match on Rod Laver Arena.
Kerber, who saved match point in
her first-round win over Misaki Doi,
is into the quarterfinals for the first
time in nine trips to Melbourne Park.
Canada’s Milos Raonic fought
off a comeback by 2014 champion
Stan Wawrinka in a tense five-setter
before reaching his second straight
Australian Open quarter-final on
The 26-year-old is through to the Australian Open quarter-finals
after beating Strycova 6-2, 6-4.
Monday.
Raonic, who earlier spoke of his
grief over a high school shooting in
his home country, eliminated the
Swiss world No 4 6-4, 6-3, 5-7, 4-6,
6-3 and will face Gael Monfils in the
quarters.
The 13th seed, who beat Wawrinka’s fellow Swiss Roger Federer to
win this month’s Brisbane International, remains unbeaten this year
after his impressive victory in three
hours, 44 minutes.
It was Raonic’s first win against
the reigning French Open champion
in five meetings, and he has not lost a
match at tour level since going down
to Rafael Nadal in the third round of
last year’s Shanghai Masters.
Raonic, looking to take his game
to another level under new coach
Carlos Moya, was on track for a
straight-sets win after four service
breaks to lead by two sets in 76
minutes.
But Wawrinka lifted his intensity
and took the match to a fifth set.
“It is more about what always
comes down to me, trying to play in
my rhythm, dictate and control the
Canadian Raonic celebrates after winning a five-set thriller to reach
the quarter-final in Melbourne.
UFC
centre of the court and I thought
like I was able to carry that through
today,” Raonic said.
“It’s the next step for me to try
and achieve the goals I want to
achieve and I am always looking at
ways to get better and I am always
working for that.”
The match turned in the third
set when Wawrinka broke Raonic’s
serve in the 11th game and served
out to keep the encounter alive.
Raonic started missing more and
Wawrinka picked up his serving
percentage, and he broke the Canadian in the fifth game of the fourth
set and fought off four break points
on his serve in the eighth game.
Wawrinka steamed to triple set
point in the 10th game and took the
match into a fifth set with the momentum shifting his way.
But in the final set, Wawrinka
lost serve in a shaky sixth game
when on second break point his
forehand drive was just out, giving
Raonic a 4-2 lead.
Wawrinka saved a match point
in the eighth game but Raonic
brought up a further three match
points and finally won it with a putaway at the net.
Raonic, who dedicated his thirdround win over Viktor Troicki to
victims of last week’s school shooting which left four dead, has yet to
beat shotmaker Monfils in their two
meetings so far.
NFL
Broncos to face Panthers in Super Bowl
Ronda Rousey pays
Panthers crush Cardinals to set up Super Bowl with Denver Broncos
tribute to Holly Holm
on Saturday Night Live T
Rousey finally congratulates Holly Holm two months
after losing UFC title
I
t may have taken more than
two months but Ronda
Rousey has finally congratulated Holly Holm for winning
their bout at UFC 193 in her
first major public appearance
since the defeat.
Holm shocked the world
in Melbourne last November,
handing Rousey her first career loss with a devastating second-round knockout to claim
the bantamweight title.
Rousey immediately went
into hiding and has faced criticism in recent weeks for failing
to acknowledge the result.
But appearing on Saturday
Night Live over the weekend,
the 28-year-old paid to tribute
Holm and declared her a deserved winner.
“This is the first time I’m
talking to my fans since I lost
to Holly Holm in November,
which, by the way, was a fight
Holly deserved to win,” Rousey
said.
“And I just wanted to take a
minute to sincerely congratulate her.”
That’s as far as it went,
though, and as soon as the audience started clapping Rousey waved her hand and said:
“That’s enough!”.
Rousey was also able to have
fun at her own expense, saying:
“I’m so excited to be here because it’s the first time I’ ll be
live on television without getting punched in the face.”
And she will be hoping to
have the last laugh over Holm
with the pair set to meet in a rematch should the new champion defend her title against Miesha Tate at UFC 197 in March.
Ronda Rousey appeared as a host on Saturday Night Live alongside
singer Selena Gomez (left).
oday’s NFL is all about the
quarterbacks, so perhaps it’s
fitting that the 50th Super
Bowl features a matchup between
Peyton Manning’s Denver Broncos
and Cam Newton’s Carolina Panthers.
At 39, Manning — the only fivetime MVP in history and one of the
faces of the league — is the oldest
starting QB to lead a team to the big
game. Most folks figure his fourth
Super Sunday will be the last time he
dons a helmet.
“Oh, wow,” Newton said. “Playing
‘The Sheriff.’” Newton, meanwhile, is
part of the new guard. He is expected to be honored as the MVP for the
first time — fans chanted those three
letters during the NFC championship postgame ceremony — and he’ll
be playing in his first Super Bowl.
Carolina (17-1) ran away with a 4915 victory over the Arizona Cardinals
for the NFC title Sunday night, after
Denver (14-4) edged the New England Patriots 20-18 in the AFC.
“There’s no question, this is a
sweet day, this was a sweet victory,”
Manning said. “To me, this victory
sort of is a great example of what this
entire season has been like. It hasn’t
been easy.”
The Feb. 7 game at Santa Clara,
California, will be the Broncos’ record-tying eighth Super Bowl appearances — they won twice in the
late 1990s — and the Panthers’ second. Carolina opened as a 4-point
favorite with most bookmakers.
Manning, of course, will get so
much of the attention over the next
two weeks.
He is 1-2 in past Super Bowls, winning a championship with the Indianapolis Colts in 2007, then losing
with the Colts in 2010, before losing
with the Broncos in 2014.
But this is a different version of
Manning.
Yes, he’s still as good as anyone at
diagnosing defenses and changing
things up — or appearing to, anyway
— at the line of scrimmage.
Yes, he’s still out there yelling
“Omaha!” But he is not quite as capable as he was, once upon a time,
when it comes to putting the football
exactly where he wants it, especially
on deep routes.
This has hardly been a record-setting season for Manning — or, until
now, one worth remembering. Overall, the bad far outweighed the good,
including one game with a passer
rating of 0.0, 17 interceptions to only
nine touchdown passes in the regular
season, being sidelined for six weeks
with a series of injuries, his first NFL
game as a backup, and vehemently
denying a report linking Manning’s
wife to the banned drug HGH.
“My role has been different and
my contributions are different,”
Manning said. “But I’m fortunate
and grateful that I have the opportunity to contribute still, in some way.
And it’s a great honor to be going
back to the Super Bowl.”
He’s going to California thanks
in large part to the league’s best defense, which led the NFL with 52
sacks and allowed fewer yards than
anyone else this season, then made
life difficult as can be for Tom Brady
and the Patriots on Sunday.
“Defensively, we were just tremendous,” said Denver’s Gary Kubiak,
the seventh coach in NFL history to
get to the Super Bowl in his first year
with a team. Linebacker Von Miller
led the way for Denver, with 2 1/2
sacks and an interception.
“I wanted to do it for Peyton,” Miller said. “To get him back there.”
Miller and Co will have their work
cut out against Newton and a Carolina team that averaged a league-best
31.2 points during the regular season. And Carolina can play some serious “D,” too. The Panthers piled up
seven takeaways against the Cardinals — six on defense, one on special
teams — including an interception
returned for a score by linebacker
Luke Kuechly.
The Panthers led 17-0 after the
first quarter, 24-7 at halftime.
“We wanted to start fast,” Newtown said. “We wanted to keep the
pressure on.”
Should be fun to see how these two
talented defenses try to slow down
these two talented quarterbacks.
“We’ve just got to try to get some
pressure on (Manning),” Kuechly
said. “That’s the biggest thing.”
The Panthers finished the regular season with the best record in the
NFC - and will now represent the conference in the Super Bowl.
p6
Football - European roundup
Leicester, Barcelona top in England, Spain
Leicester City kept alive their remarkable title challenge by climbing back to the top of the Premier League as Barcelona also recaptured top spot and Bayern Munch
and Paris St Germain maintained their runaway form.
ENGLAND
Leicester City moved three
points clear at the top of the
Premier League as striker Jamie
Vardy scored for the first time in
eight matches to help them to a
3-0 home win over Stoke City.
Diego Costa’s first-half goal
earned Chelsea a 1-0 win at Arsenal to dent the title challenge
of their London rivals whose day
was made worse by the sending-off of defender Per Mertesacker.
Manchester City were held to
a 2-2 draw at West Ham United,
Tottenham remained fourth after
a 3-1 win at Crystal Palace and
Manchester United were booed
off after a 1-0 home defeat by
Southampton courtesy of a late
goal from new signing Charlie
Austin.
SPAIN
Champions Barcelona recaptured
top spot when they edged a 2-1 win
at Malaga thanks to Lionel Messi’s
second-half winner and Atletico
Madrid were held to a 0-0 draw at
home to Sevilla. It was a good weekend for Barca, who have a game in
hand over their main rivals, as thirdplaced Real Madrid also dropped
points when they could only manage a 1-1 stalemate at Real Betis.
In new coach Zinedine Zidane’s
first away match since taking over
from Rafa Benitez, Betis took a surprise seventh-minute lead thanks to
a stunning Alvaro Cejudo volley.
Karim Benzema levelled for Real
19 minutes from time and Betis held
out against waves of attacks to leave
Real four points adrift of the top
two with just over half the season
played.
Barcelona superstar Lionel Messi races away with delight after
scoring the winner on Saturday.
Aubameyang hits back at
criticism from Yaya Touré
after award win
P
ierre-Emerick Aubameyang
has admitted he was hurt by
criticism after he was voted
the African Player of the Year.
Aubameyang, the Borussia Dortmund and Gabon striker, was given the award this month, leading
to complaints from Yaya Touré and
André Ayew that he did not deserve it. But Aubameyang, 26, who
has scored 27 goals in 27 games
this season, hit back at Touré, the
Manchester City and Ivory Coast
midfielder, and Ayew, the Swansea
and Ghana forward. “I spoke with
Ayew, I did not understand [his attitude]. It doesn’t matter,” he said.
“The Golden Ball [of Africa] is
played on all season and my calendar year was not bad. It hurt me
and that’s a shame.”
Wayne and Coleen
Rooney announce birth
of third son
C
oleen Rooney has given birth
to her and Wayne’s third son.
The Manchester United
captain announced the news on
Twitter. He wrote: “Our gorgeous
little boy arrived today. Kit Joseph
Rooney. 8lb 1oz. We are over the
moon.” The couple, who married in
Italy in 2008, already have two sons
– Kai, six, and two-year-old Klay.
It is believed that Coleen, 29, was
admitted to the Liverpool Women’s Hospital on Saturday before
the birth as Wayne, 30, captained
Manchester United at Old Trafford.
They lost to Southampton 1-0. The
couple announced with simultaneous tweets in July that Coleen was
expecting. In a previous interview,
Coleen told OK! Magazine they
would “definitely not” find out the
sex of their baby. But she told the
magazine said she would “love a
girl because it would complete the
family”. She added: “Hopefully the
anticipation of the sex will make the
labour go a bit quicker.”
ITALY
Napoli stayed top of Serie A with
an impressive 4-2 win at Sampdoria
while Juventus beat AS Roma 1-0,
their 11th league win in a row, to stay
two points behind in second.
Inter Milan lost ground on the
leaders when they were held 1-1 at
home by relegation-threatened Carpi, leaving them a further four points
behind, and were joined in third
place by Fiorentina who beat Torino
2-0.
GERMANY
Bayern Munich stayed eight
points clear at the top after Robert
Lewandowski’s double gave them a
2-1 win at Hamburg SV as the Bundesliga resumed following the winter
break.
Second-placed Borussia Dortmund won 3-1 at Borussia Mo-
enchengladbach and Hertha Berlin,
who are third, lost ground when they
were held 0-0 at home by Augsburg.
FRANCE
Leaders Paris Saint-Germain
maintained their 21-point lead at the
top of Ligue 1 after thrashing Angers 5-1 with Angel Di Maria scoring
twice.
Monaco remain in second after
outclassing Toulouse 4-0, while Nice
beat Lorient 2-1 to keep pace with
the principality club.
Marseille extended their unbeaten run to nine league games after
drawing 1-1 at Lyon, who equalised
through Corentin Tolisso after Remy
Cabella’s opener.
Bottom-club Troyes won their first
game of the season when they beat
Lille 3-1 away.
After 22 matches, PSG are top on
Goalscorer Paulo Dybala (right) and Pogba celebrate breakthrough
with Dab dance.
Athletics
60 points, Monaco have 39 in second
and Nice are third on 36.
NETHERLANDS
Dutch champions PSV Eindhoven
were indebted to Mexicans Hector
Moreno and Andres Guardado in a
4-2 win over Twente Enschede on
Sunday to close on leaders Ajax Amsterdam. Moreno scored twice and
Guardado had three assists as PSV
moved to within three points of Ajax,
who beat Vitesse 1-0.
Third-placed Feyenoord stumbled
with a 4-2 defeat at AZ Alkmaar -including a hat-trick from Vincent
Janssen -- and now trail PSV by eight
points.
PORTUGAL
Sporting Lisbon kept their noses
in front in the Primeira Liga with a
3-1 win at Pacos de Ferreira as sec-
ond-placed Benfica, champions for
the last two years, triumphed 3-1 at
Arouca.
Sporting lead Benfica by two
points with FC Porto, who have a
game in hand, a further six points
adrift, while Sporting Braga closed
the gap in fourth after a 5-1 thumping of Rio Ave.
BELGIUM
Champions Gent continued their
pace-setting form with a 3-0 win at
Standard Liege to stay three points
clear of Club Brugge, who beat
Waasland Beveren 2-1.
Anderlecht defeated Sporting
de Charleroi 2-1 to maintain their
challenge, two points further back
in third.
KV Oostende faltered with a 2-1
defeat by KV Kortrijk to lose ground
in fourth.
Chelsea striker Diego Costa celebrates his 23rd-minute goal against
Arsenal after poking a Branislav Ivanovic cross into the net.
HSBC Championship
Adidas to end sponsorship In-form Fowler seals Abu Dhabi victory
American insists he can challenge Spieth and McIlroy after one-shot victory
of scandal-hit IAAF
German sportswear giant had signed a contract
until 2019
G
erman sportswear giant
Adidas, the biggest sponsor
of the scandal-hit International Association of Athletics Federations, is to end its multi-million
dollar backing of the governing
body four years early, the BBC reported Sunday.
The BBC said Adidas’s decision
was related directly to the doping
scandal engulfing global track and
field.
Adidas is understood to have
told the IAAF it was thinking iof
withdrawing from its agreement as
a a result of the World Anti Doping Agency (WADA) Independent
Commission’s first report, published in November, which detailed claims of “state sponsored
doping” within Russia.
Earlier this month, commission
chairman Dick Pound produced a
second report, which revealed that
“corruption was embedded” within
the IAAF under former president
Lamine Diack.
That, the BBC said, led Adidas
to terminate its agreement, with
officials at the company telling the
IAAF of its decision this week.
According to the BBC, Adidas
believes the doping revelations in
Pound’s report constitute a breach
of its agreement with the IAAF.
The 11-year sponsorship deal
was signed in 2008 and was due to
run until 2019. At the time it was
agreed, the deal was reported to be
worth $33 million (Â£23 million).
But the BBC, citing anonymous
sources, said the figure was much
higher and was worth around $8
million (Â£5.6 million) this year
alone.
On those figures, the projected
lost revenue for the IAAF over the
next four years will be $30 million
(Â£21 million).
Adidas’ move will add to the
pressure on IAAF president Sebastian Coe, who succeeded Diack
in August, having been one of his
vice-presidents for seven years.
Senior management at Adidas
have also voiced their concerns at
the corruption scandal surrounding FIFA, although the company
remains a commercial partner of
world football’s governing body.
Adidas has reportedly written to the IAAF president, Sebastian Coe, to
terminate its sponsosrhip agreement four years earlier than scheduled.
R
ickie Fowler won his fourth
title since May last year, producing magical shots en route
to clinching the $2.7 million Abu
Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship on
Sunday.
The world number six had taken
the outright lead when third round
play was completed early Sunday
morning, and then protected his lead
with solid play and pulling off crunch
shots when needed most.
He finished with a three-under
par 69 round for a four-day tally of
16-under par 272, one better than
long-hitting Belgian Thomas Pieters,
who closed with a five-under par 67.
World number three Rory McIlroy (68) made an eagle on the 18th
hole and world number five Henrik
Stenson (67) made three birdies in
his last four holes to finish on 14-under par 274, but that was never going
to be enough to catch the rock-solid
Fowler.
The 27-year-old American, who
is expected to rise to number four
in the world rankings when it is released on Monday, made an eagle
on the par-5 eighth hole – a perfect
response to a double bogey on the
previous hole where he skulled his
second shot from the native area.
And then, as he surveyed his chip
shot from edge of the green on the
17th hole, a loud roar went up signifying McIlroy making an eagle on
the 18th and moving to 14 under.
Fowler calmly walked up to the
ball and chipped in for a birdie to
move two shots clear of McIlroy and
Stenson as well as his playing partner
Pieters.
On the 18th, Pieters made a birdie
but Fowler got his par without any
issues and wrapped up his win.
World number one Jordan Spieth
fired a four-under par 68 on the final
day to finish at 11-under par 277 and
in tied fifth place.
“This was a big one. Last year, ob-
viously having multiple-win season,
but to come back and work on getting back in the winner’s circle after
a successful season and keep moving
forward; this is a great start,” said
Fowler, who also won the Scottish
Open on the European Tour last year
apart from the Players Championship and Deutsche Bank Championship on the PGA Tour.
“Obviously a great field here. The
course was in perfect shape. It was a
lot of fun today. It was a bit stressful
at times. “I just made a bad swing
on the seventh, so kind of deserved
a little bit of a penalty there. Got a bit
of a bad break having a boulder underneath the ball there. “So nothing I
can really do about that. I walk away
with five and then go to the next hole
and just try to hop back on the horse.
Hit a perfect bunker shot there.
“When something happens like
that, it definitely gives you a little
boost of confidence knowing that
you’ve got a good break with that
after having a bad break, and sometimes you need to have little luck on
your side to get some wins.”
- Agonizingly close Pieters, who won twice on the European Tour last year, came agonizingly close to forcing a play-off, but
his eagle putt on the 18th from 25
feet stopped inches short.
“A little bit disappointed. Played
pretty good today. Doesn’t get much
better: Perfect weather, good company. Just looking forward to next week
now,” said Pieters, who had finished
third in Abu Dhabi last year.
“I didn’t do much wrong today.
Maybe stay a little bit calmer, but I
think I did that too. Next time maybe
some more putts drop, that’s it.”
McIlroy was disappointed to finish runner-up for the fifth time in
Abu Dhabi, and said: “That 68 was
the best I could have done.
“I played well, but a stretch of 18
holes, the back nine yesterday and
the front nine today, I was one-over
par. You can’t do that against a field
like this.”
Stenson, who has pulled out of
next week’s Qatar Masters to rest his
knee and leg, was happy with how he
finished. “This is a really encouraging start to the season. I had not even
started walking properly when I
came here for the tournament, so the
first round was huge for me,” he said.
The next stop of the European
Tour’s Desert Swing is the Qatar
Masters in Doha, while Fowler flies
back to the US to play the Farmers
Insurance Open in Torrey Pines.
Fowler poses with the Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship trophy
and is targeting a major in 2016.
p7
Trends
Nearly 40,000 Seychellois travelled in 2015
The number of Seychellois who travel is steadily increasing. While the majority travel for pleasure, the number of business trips is also on the rise.
Fewer Seychellois travelled to Mauritius in 2015 compared to 2014.
T
Dubai is one of the favourite destination of Seychellois.
he number of Seychellois who travel outside
the country “temporarily” is steadily on the rise.
“Temporarily” in this context,
means when they are gone
from Seychelles for less than
a year. Information obtained
from the National Bureau of
Statistics (NBS) shows that in
2014, 35,431 people temporarily left Seychelles whereas
in 2015 that figure rose to
39,508. The NBS’ statistics
also reveal that the majority of
people who travel temporarily
are going abroad on holidays.
In 2015, 26,744 people went
abroad on holidays whereas in
2014, 23,773 went on holidays
abroad.
While the official statistics
from the NBS do not specify
how many people actually
went to which country, travel
agencies TODAY spoke to, said
that people who are going on
holidays generally go to Dubai,
Mauritius and South Africa.
Those three countries that are
connected to Seychelles by direct flights are in fact Seychel-
lois’ preferred holiday destinations. This is corroborated by
the official statistics, which list
these destinations as some of
the most frequented ones.
In 2015, there were 10,571
Seychellois who went to Dubai
compared to 9,039 in 2014.
About half that number went
to neighbouring Mauritius
- 5,618 people in 2015, compared to 6,353 in 2014. 6,235
Seychellois travelled to South
Africa in 2015, a figure slightly higher than in 2014 when
5,286 travelled to South Africa.
The trend for preferred continents to visit in 2015 remained
the same as in 2014, with more
people travelling last year than
the year before. For yet another year in 2015, Africa was
the top continent that Seychellois visited, with 15889 visits,
followed by the Middle East
(11,144), Asia (6,488), Europe
(5,315), the Americas (352)
and Oceania (320).
But leisure is not the only
reason Seychellois travel. In
2015, there were 6,799 who
went abroad for business, 1,196
for education purposes, 1,031
for medical treatment, 74 Seychellois went to work abroad
while 3152 travelled for reasons related to sports and other activities. In contrast, 2014
saw 6,592 people travel for
business, 1140 for education,
943 for medical treatment, 56
for employment and 2410 for
sports and other activities.
While business trips were on
the up in 2015 with 6,799 Seychellois travelling compared
to 6,596 in 2014, the data
does not say, for example, how
many of those who travelled
were public servants who were
travelling on public-funded
missions and how many travellers consisted of private
businessmen. In the “other”
or “sports” category, 3,152
people travelled compared to
the 2410 in 2,014 and this rise
presumably has to do with the
Indian Ocean Island Games
(IOIG) that were held in Reunion island in August and
there is indeed a spike of 643
travellers in August last year.
The games opened on 1 Au-
Cape Town is one of the most visited African cities by Seychellois.
gust and closed on 9 August.
There were 1196 people
who travelled last year for
educational purposes, which
is up from 2014 but again,
there are no specifications
as to where the students
were going. The number of
people who went for medical treatment went up by 88
compared to 2014 while the
number of people who went
abroad to work also went up
- 74 last year, compared to
56 in 2014.
p8
Fishing
Island Star shines brightest
in marlin firmament
The team says that being at the right
place at the right time helped them
win the Marlin Slam 2016.
By AH
I
t is the third time that Island
Star has won the Marlin Slam
tournament, the competition
which kick starts the Seychelles
Sports Fishing Club’s (SSFC)
season. Contrarily to last year’s
edition when not a single team
succeeded in catching a marlin,
last Saturday was a fruitful day
for most of the 13 teams that left
the Eden Island Marina at 2am.
Indeed, no less than four boats
came back with marlins while
three sailfish were caught, satellite tagged and released as part
of the conservation efforts of the
SSFC. In addition, several dogtooth tuna and other fish species
were also reeled in by the boats.
The 13 teams that took part
in the Marlin Slam were: the A
team onboard Alati; Bob Marlin
on Top Gun; Albermarlin; Island
Star; Blue Lady who also had anglers from Dubai as part of the
team; Kuki; Oceana on board
Mazowe, team Water World onboard Canopus; Ocean Pearl,
Lucky Bait onboard Ocean Mist
with a team from United Arab
Emirates; team Paola; Sea Fever
onboard Heart Beat boat; and
team Fins onboard Special K.
The first two teams to reach the
Eden Marina were Water World
and Paola even if neither had
managed to bring in a marlin.
But Water World had caught and
released a sailfish and they also
came in with a large dogtooth
tuna weighing 55.5kg. Team
Paola also came in with a big
dogtooth.
A decent crowd watched the
proceedings at the Eden Marina
and some observers were probably thinking that the Marlin
Slam 2016 would be a repeat of
the previous year’s edition when
not a single marlin was caught.
There was thus a collective sigh
of relief when the third boat,
Ocean Pearl, docked for the
weigh-in and unloaded a marlin. Skippered by Gilbert Victor
and team captain Farouk JeanBaptiste, the Ocean Pearl team
had hooked a 73kg black marlin.
The team had also caught and released a sailfish.
Ocean Pearl was followed by
Ocean Mist with a team from the
UAE under the name Lucky Bait
onboard. And to the delight of
the crowd they had also hooked
a big black marlin weighing 81kg
meaning which put them ahead
of Ocean Pearl. The UAE team,
which was participating in the
event for the first time, was happy with their catch. “It was tough
bringing it in the boat as the sea
was a bit rough, but we made it.
We came here especially for this
tournament and will come again
every year,” said angler Saif Almheiri.
The next boat to come in was
Heart Beat with team Sea Fever.
They were unlucky as they had
caught neither a marlin nor a
sailfish. For its part, team Kuki
which counted the SSFC’s chairman, Tarak Patel, as its captain,
managed to catch and released
a sailfish. The next marlin to
be weighed at the Eden Island
Marina was brought in by Blue
Lady. Skippered by Wills Collie
and captained by Timothy Morin, Blue Lady also had anglers
from Dubai onboard and they
caught a blue marlin weighing
88kg, setting them in good stead
to win the SCR400 000 being offered for the heaviest marlin. “It
was fantastic and we were very
lucky as we managed to catch the
marlin early in the morning but
we also lost a very big one, bigger
than the one we came in with. It
is not the first time that we are
participating [in a competition
in Seychelles] as we also took
part in the Heineken Slam. I
caught a big blue marlin last No-
The Lucky Bait team on board Ocean Mist comprised of anglers from UAE and they hooked this
81kg marlin to finish 3rd overall.
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vember on the same boat and it
weighed 134kg. So I will be back
again and hopefully next time
we will get a bigger one,” said angler Elias Abou Rahal.
Yet the Marlin Slam 2016 had
not said its last word. Indeed
there were murmurs to the effect that a much bigger marlin
was about to come in. In fact,
Blue Lady was followed by the
competition’s defending champions and last year’s league
champions, Island Star. The
boat was skippered by Antoine
Hoareau and captained by Marc
Houareau and counted seven
other team members onboard.
There were big cheers when, after a lot of hard work, the team
unloaded a massive marlin. Just
by looking at it, everyone sensed
that this was the winning catch.
The beautiful beast was finally
hauled up and the scales read
179.5kg. Unless another boat
came in with another massive
specimen this looked like a surefire bet for the SCR400 000.
The skipper at the time that
the marlin was caught was Marc
Houareau and it was Guy Savy
who reeled in the catch. “Our secret is simple, all the other boats
went in a southern direction and
we were the only boat which
went in another direction. We
said that we wanted a big marlin
and we knew that in this area we
could get a big one or none at all.
And we were lucky because last
year we went to the same place
and did not catch a marlin. Two
years ago however my brother
and I caught one each and won
the tournament. Even if we had
caught this massive one we continued fishing hard as you never
know, another boat could have
caught a bigger one so we did
not relax at all and we got all
sorts of other fish. We did hook
another marlin but it managed
to get away,” said the team captain, Marc Houareau.
All the boats had to be inside
the Eden Island Marina basin
by 5pm. Out of the 13 boats, only
one, Albermarlin, was disquali-
fied for coming in a minute late.
On Sunday the anglers and
their teams gathered at the Chez
Batista restaurant for the prize
giving ceremony. A total of half a
million rupees were handed out
by the sponsors, Oceana Fisheries and the SSFC. Of course, the
grand winner of SCR400 000
was Island Star team which also
received a big trophy. “The type
of fishing we did on Saturday is
what I call lucky as it is different from the competitions where
we have to go out for two days
or more. It is tactically different; on Saturday we were at the
right place at the right time and
we were lucky. It took me about
two hours to bring the marlin in
and I am happy. It was a team effort as everyone chipped in, from
the ones who provided me with
water - it was so hot out there and I was getting dehydrated, so
we all did our part and we did it
well,” said Guy Savy.
Marc Hoareau said that he expects a tough season ahead but
he is confident that team Island
Star will give a good account of
itself. “I said last year that Island
Star is one of the best fishing
teams in the world as we are a
solid unit and this year again we
will prove our strength. On Saturday when we left we said that
we wanted 100 points - nothing
less - and we have a winning attitude and that is important.
This is our third Marlin Slam
title, even if last year we did not
get a marlin. It is always important to start the season on a good
note and 100 points to start the
league is fantastic,” he revealed.
For his part the Island Star skipper Antoine Hoareau celebrated
his birthday in style by winning
another major trophy.
Blue Lady and its team from
Dubai finished in second place,
winning SCR 75 000 and a trophy.
Their 88kg blue marlin was enough
to secure them the runners up spot.
In third place came the team from
the UAE onboard Ocean Mist.
Their 81kg marlin earned them
SCR25 000 in prize money.
Island Star team with their winning trophy and SCR 400,000 cheque.
During the prize giving ceremony, the SSFC’s chairman Tarak
Patel also updated the members
on the association’s conservation
efforts. Between last November and last weekend some 80
billfish had been tagged and released, compared to only six for
the same period of last year. In
total, some 257 billfish were released in 2015, a testament to the
success of the programme.
Next on the SSFC’s calendar is
the Seychelles National Fishing
Tournament. This trolling and
bottom fishing competition will
take place on Friday 15 and Saturday 16 April.
The Blue Lady team with their second place trophy and they also won SCR 75,000.
Island Star team has won the marlin slam for a 3rd consecutive year.
Ocean Pearl was the first team to bring in a marlin weighing 73kg.
Skipper Marc Houareau (left) and angler Guy Savy who reeled in this 179.5 marlin for the Island
Star team.
Ocean Mist crew with SSFC Chairman Tarak Patel (1st left) was part of the Lucky Bait team that
won the SCR 25.000 in 3rd place.
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The Fish Whisperer
Freshly out of lobster since the 1970’s
Ornate spiny lobster with eggs.
In the latest instalment of his weekly column, Charles Savy charts the tragic demise of
this coveted decatopod.
A
t age five, I clearly remember my father and
uncle walking out on a
reef on La Digue and collecting two gunny bags of lobster
during the low tide in broad
daylight. There was definitely
no shortage of lobsters at the
time. This lobster catching
sortie was for a family feast
before the departure of my
immediate family to England
– first stop Nairobi, aboard
the Kampala.
By the time we came back
in 1977, the lobster population on the reefs around Mahé
had already taken a hammering, and one would have to go
to less accessible areas to see
any lobsters, and go by night
to have a chance of catching
some. The opening of the Seychelles International Airport
in 1972 and the arrival of visitors to our shores would have
greatly increased demand, for
the tasty decatopods which
were fished without restraint.
The fishing of lobsters continued with increasing effort
as more people got diving
equipment, boats and then
faster boats, GPS, and chart
plotters, and does not seem
to have subsided. Since some
time back catching lobsters
became a licenceable activity,
supposedly controlled by the
Seychelles Fishing Authority
and where those in possession
of the licence were supposed
to record all catches, and
fishing was limited to a minimum size and a fixed season.
It would seem that the control of this fishery was absent
or ineffective, as I have witnessed people in possession of
numerous lobsters below the
minimum size and also specimens carrying eggs (known as
Berry). With restaurants advertising that they want to buy
fresh lobster, and high profile
supply companies getting into
the business of supply, unless
we get some real control, the
lobster population is as good
as dead!
The fact remains that lobsters have been overfished in
our waters for many years.
Worse still, most, if not all, of
those fishing the lobsters do
not understand the complex
reproduction cycles of rock
lobsters and the importance
of not overfishing the species.
Those selling them probably
don’t care!
The original populations of
rock lobsters on the Seychelles
Bank probably took a great
many years to establish. A
large lobster releases approximately 800 000 eggs into the
water, which hatch as a pelagic larval form, and spend
usually between seven months
to over one year in the water
column. Over this time, the
larval forms slowly develop
into small lobsters after numerous moultings (20 or more
for most species). The pelagic
phase larval and post larval
lobsters are not strong swimmers though they can control
their vertical position in the
water column. Hence distribution of the eggs and larval
stages of any lobster is highly
dependent on the location of
the lobster releasing the eggs,
as well as the currents, local
and oceanic at the time, and
following the release of the
eggs.
Current research indicates
that the pelagic phases travel
long distances, with their destinations controlled by the
oceanic currents. Our reefs
and rocky coastlines where
these lobsters might make
their homes are but specks
in a large ocean! As one may
imagine, only few of the original eggs survive to adult lobsters.
The next question is: how
does a larval phase lobster
drifting over the Mahé Plateau decide to settle down and
become a lobster? Science has
shown that settlement of certain species of marine animals
is initiated by chemical identifiers in the water that indicate appropriate settlement
locations for the appropriate
animal. It’s possible that in
the case of some species of
lobsters, adult lobsters themselves may release the necessary settlement initiators, so
as to guarantee reproduction
and long term survival. This
idea is based on the observation that even small fished
populations continue to exist
if the fishing is not total. However, completely fished locations seem not to be able to recover. As such the bad practice
of catching all animals when
one discovers a colony, or area
with a reasonable population,
is a sure way of ensuring the
demise of the colony.
Recent research has shown
little diversity in the DNA of
Panulius Penicillatus (a lobster preciously common here
in Seychelles) in our area of
the Indian Ocean, effectively
confirming the continual but
probably slow distribution
through the Indian Ocean of
this species. Unfortunately,
Seychelles was not included in
this study, quite probably because the number of lobsters
needed for the DNA sampling
was unavailable!
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Lifeline
Celebrity Profile:
Amitabh Bachchan (1942–)
Writer Steven Moffat to
leave Doctor Who
Bollywood actor Amitabh Bachchan is known for his roles in action movies like Zanjeer, and for hosting the Indian version of Who Wants to Be a
Millionaire?.
Source: Biography.com
The head writer and executive
producer of Doctor Who, Steven
Moffat, is to step down from the
show, the BBC has confirmed.
His last series will go out in
spring 2017 following a Christmas special, after which he will
be replaced by Broadchurch
writer Chris Chibnall.
Moffat took over the reins on
series five of the world’s longest
running sci-fi series in 2010.
BBC One’s controller, Charlotte Moore, said Moffat was an
“absolute genius”.
In a statement, the BBC said
he had been responsible for
introducing the 11th and 12th
Doctors - Matt Smith and Peter
Capaldi - as well as two companions in Karen Gillan and Jenna
Coleman.
Adele’s Hello video
reaches a billion views on
YouTube
It’s not like Adele needs any
more record-breaking titles to
her name - but it seems the internet doesn’t care.
Her single Hello has hit a billon views on YouTube in 87 days.
It’s beaten Psy’s Gangnam
Style which took 158 days to hit
a billion.
Adele’s third album, 25, was
the most popular of 2015 and it
was only released in November.
YouTube says there are 17 videos which have reached a billion
on the platform. They include
Sugar by Maroon 5, Lean On
by Major Lazer, Love The Way
You Lie by Eminem, Party Rock
by LMFAO, Counting Stars by
OneRepublic, and Chandelier
by Sia.
James Bond Aston Martin
DB10 Spectre vehicle up
for auction
Aston Martin will auction one of
10 DB10 cars made for last year’s
James Bond film Spectre along
with 23 other Bond-related items
for charity.
The car, which was specially built
for the film, will be put up on 18
February with a minimum price of
£1m.
It forms part of “Spectre - The
Auction”, timed to coincide with
the release of the 24th Bond film on
DVD.
The car has a 4.7-litre V8 petrol
engine and a top speed of 190 mph,
but it cannot be driven on public
roads. Aston Martin has been associated with James Bond since
the 1964 film Goldfinger, which
featured a DB5. Most of the DB10s
were modified for use in the filming
of Spectre, but the DB10 offered at
Christie’s auction house is one of
only two “show” cars, which were
left unmodified and used for display purposes.
Synopsis
Amitabh Bachchan was born
on October 11, 1942 in Allahabad, India. In 1969, he debuted in Saat Hindustani. His
role in 1972’s Zanjeer made
him an action movie star. In the
1980s, Bachchan held a seat in
the Indian Parliament. In the
‘90s, he started his own production company. He returned
to acting in 1997, with Mrityudaata. In 2000, he began hosting the Indian version of Who
Wants to Be a Millionaire?.
Early life
Amitabh Harivansh Bachchan, best known as Amitabh
Bachchan, was born in Allahabad, India on October 11,
1942. India was still a British
colony at the time, and would
not achieve independence until
five years later. Bachchan’s father was renowned Hindi poet
Dr. Harivansh Rai. His mother,
Teji Bachchan, was a Sikh socialite. Amitabh Bachchan was
his parents’ firstborn. He has
one younger brother, named
Ajitabh.
Bachchan went to Sherwood
College boarding school before
enrolling in Delhi University,
where he earned his Bachelor
of Arts degree. Once he graduated, he became a freight broker
in Calcutta. After a few years in
Calcutta, Bachchan was ready
for a change. He decided to
move to Bombay and take a stab
at Bollywood show business. By
this time, India had been independent for nearly two decades,
and Hindi cinema was thriving.
Early film career
In 1969, Bachchan made his
film debut in Saat Hindustani.
Although the movie tanked at
the box office, Bachchan still
managed to capture the attention of directors. Soon enough,
the offers started rolling in.
By the early 1970s, Bachchan
had garnered popularity with
audiences as the “angry young
man” in a series of successful
Hindi feature films. His starring
role in Zanjeer was particularly
instrumental in launching him
to stardom as an action-movie
hero. Bachchan’s performances
in films like Laawaris, Coolie,
Naseeb, Silsila, Shaarabi and
Jaadugar continued to enamor
fans of the tall and handsome
action hero, and also landed
him multiple Fanfare Awards.
From the 1970s through the
early ‘80s, the swashbuckling
Bachchan appeared in more
than 100 films. He seized opportunities to work with India’s
most acclaimed directors, such
TODAY in History
January 26th is the 26th day of the year
1788: Australia
Day
1950: Republic of
India born
calling and returned to the
silver screen in 1997 with the
film Mrityudaata, produced by
ABCL. In 2000, he also started hosting the Indian version
of the television game show
Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?. Despite a few box-office
failures in the 1990s, in the
2000s, Bachchan climbed his
way back up to stardom as a
film actor, earning additional
Filmfare and International
Film Award nominations for
his work on films like Baghban
(2003), Khakee (2004) and
Paa (2009).
as Prakash Mehra, and dominated the silver screen with
films like Trishul, Sholay and
Chashme Buddoor. In addition
to acting, Bachchan’s roles often required him to sing.
Politics and Business
In 1982, Bachchan had a serious accident while filming.
Fans prayed for his recovery.
Bachchan survived the accident, but it prompted him to
change career paths. In 1984,
he traded his Bollywood stardom for a seat in the Indian
Parliament. His political aspirations proved to be shortlived; in 1987, he left his seat
due to unexpected controversy.
By the 1990s, the limelight
surrounding Bachchan had begun to fade. But his decision
to start his own entertainment
production company, Amitabh
Bachchan Corporation Limited, and make himself CEO, put
him back in the headlines.
Back to acting
Bachchan followed his true
Personal life
Bachchan married movie actress Jaya Bhaduri in 1973.
The couple have two children,
a daughter and a son. Their
daughter, Shweta Bachchan
Nanda, is married to industrialist Nikhil Nanda, whose grandfather was the film director Raj
Kapoor. Bachchan and Bhaduri’s son, Abhishek Bachchan, is
also an actor and is married to
actress Aishwarya Rai.
In addition to being a father
and an actor, Amitabh Bachchan devotes his time to charitable causes. In 2003 he was
appointed a goodwill ambassador for the United Nations
Children’s Fund (UNICEF).
Film
Academy diversity pledges
welcomed by Hollywood
Pledges made to double the number of female and minority members of the
organisation behind the Oscars have been welcomed by Hollywood figures.
Source: BBC.com
On this day in 1788, Captain
Arthur Phillip guides a fleet of 11
British ships carrying convicts to
the colony of New South Wales,
effectively founding Australia.
After overcoming a period of
hardship, the fledgling colony began to celebrate the anniversary
of this date with great fanfare.
Captain Arthur Phillip of the
HMS
Sirius,
commissioned
by the British in October led a
1,000-strong party, of whom
more than 700 were convicts,
around Africa to the eastern side
of Australia. The voyage lasted
eight months, claiming the lives
of some 30 men. The mission was
to establish an agricultural work
camp in the penal colony for British convicts.
The day became an official
holiday in 1818 marking the 30th
anniversary of British settlement,
and later became the national
holiday known as Australia Day,
which serves both as a day of celebration for the founding of the
white British settlement, and as a
day of mourning for the Aborigines who were slowly dispossessed
of their land as white colonization spread across the continent.
On this day in 1950, the Indian
Constitution took effect and the
Republic of India, the most populous democracy in the world,
was born.
Mohandas Gandhi had struggled through decades of passive
resistance before Britain finally
accepted Indian independence.
Self-rule had been promised
during World War II, but after
the war triangular negotiations
between Gandhi, the British,
and the Muslim League stalled
over whether to partition India
along religious lines. Eventually,
Lord Mountbatten, the viceroy of
India, forced through a compromise plan. On 15 August, 1947,
the former Mogul Empire was
divided into the independent
nations of India and Pakistan.
Gandhi called the agreement
the “noblest act of the British
nation,” but his exhilaration was
soon marred by religious strife
between Hindus and Muslims
in which hundreds of thousands
died, including Gandhi, assassinated by a Hindu fanatic in
January 1948.
But Prime Minister Jawaharlal
Nehru, a leader of the independence struggle, persisted in his
efforts to stabilize India and by
1949 the religious violence began to subside. In late 1949, an
Indian constitution was adopted.
A
ctor Don Cheadle called
the measures “a step in
the right direction”.
Oscar nominee Matt Damon
also praised the initiatives, but
added the industry had “a long,
long, long way to go”.
Academy president Cheryl
Boone Isaacs announced the
changes following a backlash
over the lack of diversity in this
year’s Oscar nominations.
The all-white line-up in the
four acting categories prompted
director Spike Lee, actress Jada
Pinkett Smith and her husband
Will Smith to announce they
would not be attending next
month’s awards.
Three new seats will be added
to the Academy’s board of governors to improve diversity in leadership, while voting rights will
be stripped from those who have
not been active in the industry
for the past decade.
“The Academy is going to lead
and not wait for the industry to
catch up,” Cheryl Boone Isaacs
“These new measures regarding governance and voting will
have an immediate impact and
begin the process of significantly
changing our membership composition.” Speaking at the Sundance Film Festival in Utah,
Cheadle said he applauded the
Academy’s attempts to do something about an issue that has
threatened to overshadow this
year’s ceremony.
Cheadle (left) and Damon appeared together in the Ocean’s Eleven film
series.
“But people really have to have
access to tell the stories they
want to tell,” he continued.
“So what we really need is
people in positions to greenlight
those stories, not a hunk of metal.”
Writing on Twitter, Selma director Ava DuVernay - whose
omission from last year’s best
director shortlist was the source
of some controversy - said
“shame [was] a helluva motivator”. “Marginalised artists have
advocated for Academy change
for DECADES,” she continued,
claiming their calls had been
met with “deaf ears [and] closed
minds”.
The film-maker said the new
measures represented “one good
step in a long, complicated journey for people of colour [and]
women artists”.
Spike Lee also expressed qualified support for the new measures, describing them as “a
start”.
“I commend the Academy for
what they’ve done,” he continued,
while reiterating his own pledge
that he would not be attending on
28 February. Damon, who is up for
best actor for his role in The Martian,
said the moves were “a wonderful first
step” but said Hollywood must do
“much, much, much more’’ to more
accurately reflect society. Meanwhile,
the producer of this year’s Academy
Awards telecast has confirmed that
Chris Rock will host the 28 February ceremony as planned.
Race issues
Macklemore releases “White Privilege II”
Regardless of which side they’re on, people are having much to say about the song in America.
I
f the purpose of art is to move
and critically engage you, then
Macklemore’s almost nine
minute long song “White Privilege
II” is doing just that at the moment
in America. The Seattle-based rapper who gained world-wide popularity in 2013 thanks to his songs
“Thrift Shop” and “Same Love”
is now tackling the issue of racial
privilege. Tensions are high in
America with several black people
who have been killed by the police
in questionable situations and the
white rapper has now added his
voice to the debate. Macklemore
collaborated with Ryan Lewis
on the song and they are finding
many supporters, as well as their
fair share of critics, for the song.
According to the rapper, the song
explores racism, police shootings
and the Black Lives Matter movement in America. “We take all we
can from Black culture, but will we
show up for black lives,” are just
some of the confronting questions
he asks of himself, based on his
perceived “white privilege” in the
song.
The artists, a Caucasian, comments on his own discomfort and
feelings of alienation towards the
black culture despite the fact that
he, like many others in the industry, have appropriated. Macklemore participated in the November 2014 march in protest of
the Michael Brown case, in which
officer Darren Wilson was spared
an indictment. While the majority of those protesting were black,
people of other races joined in
solidarity. Being one of those who
protested, Macklemore nevertheless questions the authenticity in
his demonstration of support as he
says “Zipped up my parka, joined
Macklemore.
the procession of marchers/ In
my head like, ‘Is this awkward?
Should I even be here marching?’”.
The artist, a white American says:
“I want to take a stance cause we
are not free / And then I thought
about it, we are not ‘we’,” not to
mention the fear of overstepping
boundaries “They’re chanting out,
‘Black Lives Matter’, but I don’t say
it back / Is it ok for me to say? I
don’t know, so I watch and stand”.
Macklemore seems to ask whether
he has the right to protest against
something that he, as a white man,
has never experienced.
In the song, he echoes his own
critics who have called him out
for being a white rapper, “You’ve
exploited and stolen the music,
the moment, the magic, the passion, the fashion, you toy with,” he
says, before dropping some names
of other artists he has been compared to- “The culture was never
yours to make better / You’re Miley, you’re Elvis, You’re Iggy Azalea
/ Fake and so plastic, you’ve heisted the magic.” Australian-born
rapper Iggy Azalea was not happy
with her name mentioned and she
responded to a fan on Twitter regarding the reference by saying “he
shouldn’t have spent the last 3 yrs
having convos and taking pictures
together at events etc if those were
his feelings,” she said.
Macklemore does not profess to
have the answers. As a matter of
fact, the http://whiteprivilege2.
com/ website does state that “we
recognise that there are no easy
answers, any one piece of legislation, or quick fix to undo institutional racism in our country,”
before saying “we wish to support
direct organising and be led by
the expertise of those on the front
lines as we proceed”. Despite not
knowing the answers, the voices
of certain seemingly prejudiced
people does bring to light what
some white people in America are
feeling regards black people. One
man says “See, more people nowadays are just p@$!&?s / Like, this
is the generation to be offended by
everything,” before another one
adds that the “’Black Lives Matter’
thing is a reason to take arms over
perceived slights,” before finally
another man says “99% of the
time, across this country, the police
are doing their job properly”. The
black voices on the track advise
that “The best thing white people
can do is talk to each other, having
those very difficult, very painful
conversations with your parents,
with your family members,” while
another one says “I think one of
the critical questions for white
people in this society is, ‘What
are you willing to risk? What are
you willing to sacrifice to create a
more just society?’”
Currently available for free on
iTunes, the project is “the outcome of an ongoing dialogue with
musicians, activists, and teachers
within our community in Seattle
and beyond,” says the website.
The website goes on to say that
they are attempting to reach black
activist organisations like Black
Lives Matter and Black Youth
Project 100, to assist in their fight
against inequalities against the
black community.
“White Privilege II” features
Chicago poet-vocalist Jamila
Woods and it will appear on
Macklemore and Ryan Lewis’
new album, This Unruly Mess I’ve
Made, currently slated for a 26
February release.
Land for Sale
Land Parcel V2080 is 1379 Sqm2 situated at the lower Copolia – La Louise, with
an excellent view of the ocean, Victoria
Harbour and Eden Island. Serious purchaser to please call 2529413/2558677.
House and Land for sale
House for sale on a beautiful flat piece
of land (1449sqm) at Souyave Estate
Praslin. Ideal for Staff Accommodation
or private dwelling house in a quiet
neighborhood. Next to the main road
and within walking distance to Cote
D’Or beach.
For more information call
4373532/4373443 or
email mejelect@Seychelles.net
For Sale at Cote D’ Or Praslin Souyave
Estate.
Cosy two bedroom house with garage
situated on 1514sqm flat land suitable for
hotel management staff accommodation
or private dwelling house on a private
estate.
For further information please contact
Ivy Orr (Mrs.) on 251 24 25.
FOR SALE SUV
Suzuki Grand Vitara (Pearl white) / Automatic / 4WD / 5 doors / Full option /
Leather seats. Year 2008 / 80,000km
mileage / Very good condition. Serious
buyers only / Call 251 1185
Guest house at Sans Soucis looking for
Chambermaid and Breakfast Cook. Also
a therapist in massage ready to learn
new protocol. Reference requested. Call:
4225372 / 2761498
Villa De Mer, Praslin, is looking for:
1 cook - minimum 3 years of experience
1 waiter/waitress - minimum 1 year of
experience 1 receptionist – minimum 2
years experience Accommodation will
be provided for applicants from Mahe /
La Digue. Contact 2511959 or 4233972
for an interview. CV and references from
previous employers are required.
Britannia Hotel, Praslin,is looking for a
cook with at least 3 years of experience.
Accommodation will be provided for
applicants from Mahe / La Digue. Contact
2511959 for an interview. CV and references from previous employers are required.
Diving Equipment. Divetek Mk 30
regulator. Divemaster Bc. D2 Octo and
Cylinder. Rs 11000.00
Ryobi Electric Chain Saw Rs 3200.00
Flymo Electric Lawn Mower Rs 4500.00
Contact: Mike 2562491
For Sale
Jet Ski Wave runner 2013 - $10,000
(price on disputed)
Fly board - $4000 | Transparent Canoe
- $2500. For more information contact
Vesta on 2524049
PRODUCTS FROM AMERICA
We are a US based company and we
can supply quality products direct from
America to your destination in a timely
manner. Ranging from Oil Refinery
Parts, Power Tools, Electronics,
Consumer Items and more.
Contact:
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Web: www.qpsusa.net
21 Jan – 19 Feb
There is always something
to be thankful for and there
is always something to look
forward to, so do what you
have to do today with a
smile on your face. Your
positive attitude is sure to
cheer up those who are
feeling sad.
23 July – 22 Aug
Something you hear today will cheer you up no
end. It would appear that
something you thought
was a problem now turns
out to have been mostly,
if not all, in your mind.
It’s not the first time and
it won’t be the last!
20 Feb – 20 March
Now that mind planet
Mercury is moving out of
its retrograde phase you
can start believing in what
you are doing. The planets
suggest that if you refuse
to let go of your dream it
will, sooner or later, begin
to come true.
23 Aug – 23 Sept
There is something you
need to say and now that
Mercury, your ruler, is
ending its retrograde
phase, you will leave no
one in any doubt about
what you think. Just be
careful you don’t go too far
and alienate your friends.
21 March – 20 April
Some people might lose
heart at the tasks that await
you but you are not some
people you are an Aries.
Today’s cosmic activity will
inspire you to aim for the
top. It won’t be long before
you are looking down on
everyone else.
24 Sept – 23 Oct
Come and go as you
please today and ignore
those who don’t like it. No
one has the right to dictate where you should be
going or what you should
be doing with your time
or your energy – though
it won’t stop them trying.
21 April – 21 May
Everyone needs powerful
friends. There is only so far
even a Taurus can go on
their own and once you recognize that fact you won’t
be quite so eager to keep
a barrier between yourself
and other people. Reach
out and make contact.
24 Oct – 22 Nov
You will receive invites left,
right and centre over the
nextfewdaysbutthereisone
event that stands out from
the rest, not least because it
will give you the chance to
rub shoulders with important people. Time for a bit of
social climbing!
22 May – 21 June
Something that costs a
bit more than you wanted
to pay will turn out to be
an excellent investment,
while something you get
on the cheap will turn out
to be a waste of money. Everything is the wrong way
round at the moment.
23 Nov – 21 Dec
As mind planet Mercury
moves in your favour today you will at last be
confident enough to take
a risk of some kind. But
don’t get carried away
and start taking risks all
over the place. That’s just
asking for trouble.
22 June – 22 July
You will have to put up with a
number of petty criticisms today but words can’t harm you
so don’t take them seriously.
Others can talk big if they
wish but actions always speak
louder than words. What is
your next move going to be?
22 Dec – 20 Jan
These may be serious times
for some but you are finding
it hard to be worried about
what’s going on. With your
Capricorn sense of the absurd you can no doubt see
that it’s all a bit of a joke –
and jokes make you laugh.
NOTICE OF FINAL DISSOLUTION
ICVA Ltd.
Notice is hereby given under Section 92(8)
of International Business Companies Act,
1994 ICVA Ltd., IBC No. 096200 was dissolved and struck of the Register of International Business Companies on 18th day of
January 2016.
Dated this 25th day of January 2016
Mr. Jurgis Naunikas
Liquidator
Notice of Dissolution of OCEAN EIGHT
VENTURES CORP. - IBC No. 059905
The company in accordance with Section
88(2) of the International Business Companies Act 1994 of the Republic of Seychelles
and in the matter of OCEAN EIGHT VENTURES CORP., a Seychelles International
Business Company No. 059905 of F20, 1st
Floor, Eden Island, Eden Plaza, Seychelles we
hereby inform that on the 21st day of January, 2016, the company is in the process of
being dissolved as a company under the International Business Companies Act.
Dated this 25th day of January, 2016
Ms. WAN Tingjuan
Rm 2507, Blk B, Tian’an International
Building
Renmin Nan Road, Luohu District,
Shenzhen City,
Guangdong, China
Liquidator
KEYZONE INVESTMENT LIMITED
(IBC No. 027896)
(In Voluntary Dissolution)
NOTICE is hereby given that in accordance with Section 92(4) of the International
Business Companies Act (Cap. 100A):
- KEYZONE INVESTMENT LIMITED,
is in dissolution;
- The date of commencement of dissolution
is 22nd January, 2016.
- Stylianos Christodoulou, of 16 Kyriakou
Matsi Avenue, Eagle House, 3rd Floor, 1082
Nicosia, Cyprus, is the Liquidator.
Dated this 25th day of January, 2016.
Down
1. Petrol
2. A commander in the Ottoman
Empire
3. Sack
4. Fifty-two in Roman numerals
5. Beseech
6. Tiff
7. Not there
8. A sudden short attack
9. Emergency Care Unit
10. Regardless
11. French for “After”
12. Tomb
13. Tool for cutting grass
18. Body powder
22. S
23. 10 percent of your income
24. French for “Love”
25. Torrent
26. Dried hemp leaves
27. Stitched with yarn
29. Buckle
30. A fruit of the gourd family
31. Construct
34. Transports
35. Group of 8
36. Requires
38. Immense
39. Wise men
41. “Long-hairs”
42. Making a noise during sleep
43. D
44. A polite way of interrupting
45. Anagram of “Cadet”
46. A Bantu language
47. Anagram of “Acres”
50. Reflected sound
51. Threesome
52. Bumpkin
55. The utmost degree
56. Neither ___
57. Avenue (abbrev.)
58. Golf ball support
59. Old age (archaic)
Yesterday’s solution
Across
1. Actor Clark _____
6. Rip
11. Annual General Meeting
14. Once more
15. Tranquility
16. Not against
17. The Archer in the zodiac
19. Uncooked
20. Valued or ranked
21. Vex
23. Tuft of loose cords
27. One who smooches
28. Charges against public officials
32. Browned slices of bread
33. Strange or spooky
34. Dear
37. Hovels
38. Manservant
39. Ceremonial staff
40. Before
41. Mayhem
42. Fry quickly in little fat
43. Extricated
45. Exclude
48. Machines for lifting heavy objects
49. Bird sound
50. An anesthetic
53. A prominent rock
54. Accuse
60. Father of Jehoshaphat
61. Moral principle
62. Written fictional story
63. Hyrax
64. Agitated
65. Lust for wealth
1. What handicraft takes its name from the French word for hook?
2. What is a French street that means regret In English?
3. The mountain town of Berchtesgaden is the location of whose fortified retreat?
Published by TODAY Publishers (Seychelles)
Limited, P.O. Box 999, Victoria, Mahé, Seychelles
Printed by “The Print House (Pty) Ltd.”, Providence
Industrial Estate,
Mahé, Seychelles.
Tel: +248 4290 999/950/951
Fax: +248 4325999
info@today.sc
4. Berry Gordy founded: Coca-Cola; Motown Records; Washington state; or Ford?
5. The ‘latte’ coffee drink means in original Italian: Sugar; Milk; Mild; or Frothy?
6. The rotator cuff is a tough sheath of tendons and ligaments which supports the human: Knee; Elbow; Shoulder; or Brain?
7. Oyster, Portobello, Button, Chestnut and Flat are varieties of what?
Grand Anse, Praslin
Tel: +248 4237 441
Fax: +248 4237 442
8. In 2015 Volvo developed an automatic detection/braking system for what in its
Australian cars?
9. What is the common name for the inflammatory arthritis called podagra when
Editor - Deepa Bhookhun
deepa.bhookhun@today.sc
frequently affecting the big toe joint?
10. Obelix and Dogmatix are companions of which eponymous Frenco-Belgian comic
book character?
Quick Quiz Answers: 1. Crochet 2. Rue 3. Adolf Hitler 4. Motown Records 5. Milk 6.
Shoulder 7. Mushrooms 8. Kangaroos 9. Gout 10. Asterix
Fully furnished 1 bedroom Apartment in
quiet, cool, safe area of La Misere. Fenced
and small garden. For Scr 12,000. Utility
bills inclusive. Call: 2718325
How To Play
The objective is to fill the blank squares with the correct numbers
•Every row of 9 must include all digits 1 to 9 in any order
•Every column of 9 must include all digits 1 to 9 in any order
•Every 3 x 3 sub-grid must include all digits 1 to 9 in any order
Fill the other empty cells with numbers between 1 and 9
A number should appear only once on each row, column and 3 x 3 region
Business Development Manager - Veronica Maria
veronica.maria@today.sc
ISSN: 1659-7265
p15
pI
Republic Day of India Special Supplement
Message by the High Commissioner of
India H.E. Mr. Sanjay Panda
O
n the occasion of the
67th Republic Day
of India, I convey my
greetings and best wishes to
all Indian nationals, Seychellois of Indian origin and all
friends of India in Seychelles.
It was on the 26th day of November 1949 that the newly
adopted Constitution of India
proclaimed India a Republic,
and exactly two months later
on the 26th day of January
1950 the country celebrated
its first Republic Day. On this
special day, 1.3 billion Indians
in India and over 30 million
members of the Indian Diaspora the world over pay tributes to the founding fathers
of the Indian Constitution
who echoed the sentiments
of every Indian in declaring “We the people of India
having solemnly resolved to
constitute India into a Sovereign Democratic Republic…”
On this day we salute the visionaries who conceived of
an India that respects human
values and democratic ideals
while moving on the path of
progress and prosperity.
It is befitting that today we
remember the principal architect of our Constitution,
Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar,
whose birth centenary we celebrate this year. As Chairman
of India’s Constituent Assembly that drafted this historic
document, Dr. Ambedkar ensured that alongside political
freedom and rule of law, the
infant democracy should ensure socio-economic equality
across all strata of society. By
enshrining Gandhian values
in the Constitution, he ensured that these ideals remain
embedded through generations as India surges ahead
towards democracy and pluralism.
On the 66th anniversary of
our Republic Day, it is now
time to introspect whether we
have attained what visionaries like Mahatma Gandhi and
Dr. Ambedkar dreamt for India and the Indians. On a candid note, we are moving in the
right direction but still not
quite there. Looking back, the
world’s largest democracy has
not been completely immune
to the environment of hatred
and violence that the world
and the humanity at large
confront today. The scourge
of terrorism continues to
threaten the philosophy of
peaceful coexistence that Mahatma Gandhi espoused and
practised throughout his living years as part of his twin
doctrine of Truth and Nonviolence. But for a resilient
India, there is light at the end
of the tunnel. For a young
country in its 60s, it is left to
the young Indians under the
age of 25, who comprise more
than half the total population,
to lead us to our destination.
Sanjay Panda.
There is also a bright ray of
hope from the global Indians,
particularly the youth, who
are progressively reaching out
to their country of origin. It is
equally a matter of immense
pride that the world is now
seriously looking towards India and embracing Gandhian
values in search for world
peace and universal brotherhood.
We in India are proud of
our close ties of friendship
with the Republic of Seychelles that has stood the test
of time. We embarked on the
journey together when Seychelles was born as a sovereign nation four decades ago.
Our traditional linkages have
now culminated into a mutually beneficial relationship
based on shared values and
commitment to the ideals of
democracy and development.
We have withstood several
global challenges together,
ranging from the threat of
climate change to the piracy
menace in recent years. Notwithstanding the turbulent
waters, our partnership has
had a smooth sailing. And,
the pinnacle of our close ties
of friendship was attained
during the year that we bid
adieu barely four weeks ago.
2015 has indeed been a special year in our bilateral calendar. The visit of our Prime
Minister to Seychelles in
March, the first Prime Ministerial visit from India in
34 years, and the subsequent
State Visit by President James
Michel to India in August reflect the depth and substance
in our bilateral engagement.
The positive outcome of
both the visits has not only
helped further deepen IndiaSeychelles relations but also
taken our partnership to the
next level.
Our strategic convergence in
the Indian Ocean region has
manifested itself in an elaborate architecture of bilateral
defence and security cooperation that we have developed
over the years. As two maritime neighbours, we have a
stake in each other’s security
and safety. Located in a strategically sensitive region,
augmenting our defence preparedness assumes particular
significance now more than
ever before with several nontraditional threats perpetrated by non-State actors looming in the horizon. Although
the piracy menace is seemingly on the wane, it could well
be a temporary calm before
the storm as the likelihood of
their regrouping in the near
future cannot be ruled out.
Moreover, there has been an
increasing threat from the
equally dangerous economic
offenders, with instances of
illegal fishing, poaching and
drug trafficking in the resource rich waters around us
on the rise. Seychelles with
its Exclusive Economic Zone
(EEZ) spread over 1.3 million
square kilometers is particularly vulnerable. Hence, it is
important to ensure that we
do not to let our guard down.
Recognising this, India and
Seychelles have drawn up a
cooperation agenda that covers within its purview enhanced EEZ surveillance and
monitoring, besides launching operations to prevent intrusions and act against potential economic offenders.
It is in this context that the
gifting of the Fast Interceptor Boat PS Hermes to the
government of Seychelles last
week assumes significance.
We were honoured by the
presence of President Michel
and our Coast Guard Chief
Admiral HCS Bisht at the
elaborate ceremony to mark
the handing over of the Boat.
It was a proud moment for
our two countries, and I have
no doubt like her sisters Topaz and Constant, PS Hermes
will serve Seychelles in securing her waters and the EEZ.
The induction of PS Hermes
into the Seychelles Coast
Guard fleet marks a useful
addition to its existing asset. With speeds reaching up
to 45 knots, the Interceptor
Boat can effectively confront
and counter any low intensity threat scenario, keeping the adversaries engaged
before supplementary aerial
and maritime support comes
in. Such indigenously built
fast-moving crafts have been
successfully deployed by the
Indian Coast Guard to safeguard India’s long coastline
and extensive EEZ, and its
induction will no doubt go
a long way in augmenting
the operational capability of
the Seychelles Coast Guard.
PS Hermes will also indirectly contribute to the Blue
Economy by supporting the
sustainable development of
the island nation’s marine resources.
In recent months, our two
countries have made considerable progress in our ongoing defence cooperation projects and those in the pipeline.
After the launch of the Coastal Surveillance Radar System
project by the Prime Minister
of India during his visit to
Seychelles in March last year,
the implementation is firmly
on schedule and all the six radars are expected to be fully
operational by March 2016. A
new landmark in our bilateral
ties is the MOU signed last
year on hydrographic cooperation, in pursuance of which
extensive surveys were recently carried out in the areas
adjoining Port Victoria and
the navigational charts are in
the process being produced
for commercial use by the
Government of Seychelles.
We look forward to the participation of Seychelles in
the International Fleet Review “IFR 2016” to be held
off the Eastern Coastal city of
Vishakhapatnam in the first
week of February. Arrangements have also been firmed
up for the India-Seychelles
Joint
Military
Exercises
“Lamitye 7” to be conducted in
Mahé from 15 to 27 February.
Following the exchange of
visits at the highest level in
2015, our two countries have
put in motion efforts to diversify our bilateral engagement
across a broad spectrum, focusing in particular on enhanced economic content
in the relations, trade and
investment, and people-topeople contacts. The signing
of agreements for cooperation in the fields of renewable
energy, agriculture, tax information exchange, air services
and Blue Economy reflects the
large canvas on which our bilateral relations have evolved
over the years. Following the
launch of direct air connectivity between our two countries,
the introduction of gratis visa
for Seychelles nationals to
travel to India for a period of
up to 90 days and the recent
electronic
visa-on-arrival
scheme provides the perfect
platform to upgrade our bilateral economic engagement,
including trade and investment, besides providing a new
impetus to tourism exchanges.
Recent cooperation between
our two countries in the field
of capacity building and human resource development
has been exemplary. Training programmes organized in
India under the Indian Technical and Economic Cooperation (ITEC) scheme have
been availed of in Seychelles
in large numbers. With over a
thousand ITEC alumni in Seychelles, it is remarkable that it
accounts for more than 1% of
the country’s population, a record in percentage terms. Our
development partnership has
also manifested itself in other
areas. Seychelles has been a
significant beneficiary of the
lines of credit and grants offered by the government of
India over the years. In February, 34 new TATA buses will
join the fleet of the Seychelles
Public Transport Corporation
funded by an Indian grant.
A remarkable similarity between India and Seychelles is
the unity in diversity and the
cultural synthesis, represented by the peaceful coexistence
of different communities. The
enthusiasm with which Seychelles participated in the 3rd
Seychelles India Day and the
Festival of India “IndiaFest
2015” speaks volumes of the
depth and appreciation of Indian culture in this country. I
compliment the Seychellois Indian community for being an
important part of this cultural
melting pot.
In recent years, India-Seychelles relations have gone
much beyond the bilateral as
the two countries have pledged
support for each other in the
international and multilateral fora. We commend Seychelles’ Blue Economy initiative, its leadership role among
the Small Island Developing
States, and appreciate its contribution to the Indian Ocean
Rim Association (IORA) initiatives and projects. I also
take the opportunity to congratulate Seychelles on assuming the Chair of the Contact
Group on Piracy off the Coast
of Somalia (CGPCS) and we
are happy to co-host the first
Strategy Meeting of the CGPCS in Mumbai on 1 February.
Finally, I would like to congratulate Seychelles for smooth
conduct of the recent Presidential election and the people for
participating in this exercise
in such large numbers, which
reinforces the democratic credentials of the island nation.
As India and Seychelles look
forward to a great 2016 and beyond, I convey on this Republic
Day my best wishes to all my
Seychellois friends and fellow
countrymen in Seychelles.
pII
Constitution of India
Of the people, for the people and by the people
The Indian Constitution, the longest of any sovereign nation in the world, provides a comprehensive framework to guide and govern the country, keeping in view her social, cultural
and religious diversity.
A
distinctive document with
many extraordinary features, the Constitution of
India is the longest written constitution of any sovereign nation in
the world. The original text of the
Constitution contained 395 articles in 22 parts and eight schedules. It came into effect on January
26, 1950, the day that India celebrates each year as the Republic
Day. The number of articles has
since increased to 448 due to 100
amendments.
The Constitution was framed by
the Constituent Assembly of India,
established by the members of the
provincial assemblies elected by
the people of India. Dr Sachidanand Sinha was the first president
of the Constituent Assembly. Later, Dr Rajendra Prasad was elected its president. Dr BR Ambedkar,
the chairman of its Drafting Committee, is considered the chief architect of the Indian Constitution
which provides a comprehensive
and dynamic framework to guide
and govern the country, keeping
in view her unique social, cultural
and religious diversity. It establishes the main organs – executive,
legislature and judiciary, defining
their powers, demarcating their
responsibilities and regulating
the inter-se relationship. It inter
alia lays down the basic structure
of governance and the relationship between the government and
the people. The rights and duties
of citizens are also spelt out. The
Constitution applies to the state
of Jammu and Kashmir with certain exceptions and modifications
as provided in Article 370 and the
Constitution (application to Jammu and Kashmir) Order, 1954. It
is the mother of all other laws of
the country. Every law enacted by
the Government has to be in conformity with the Constitution.
The preamble to the Constitu-
Indian Parliament building.
tion declares India to be a Sovereign Socialist Secular Democratic
Republic and a welfare state committed to secure justice, liberty
and equality for the people and for
promoting fraternity, dignity of the
individual and unity and integrity
of the nation. The objectives specified in the preamble constitute the
basic structure of the Indian Constitution which cannot be amended. The opening and last sentences
of the preamble: “We, the people...
adopt, enact and give to ourselves
this Constitution” signifies the
power is ultimately vested in the
hands of the people.
Although Article 1 of the Constitution says India shall be a Union
of States, the Constitution provides for a federal structure with
clear division of powers between
the Centre and the states, each
empowered by the Constitution
to enact and legislate within their
sphere of activity. The seventh
schedule contains three legislative
lists which enumerate subjects of
administration viz union, state
and concurrent legislative lists.
The Central Government enjoys
exclusive power to legislate on the
subjects mentioned in the Union
list. The state governments have
jya Sabha consists of representatives elected by the state legislative assemblies. The President is
the nominal head of the state and
the Parliament. In actual practice,
the Prime Minister, aided by the
Council of Ministers, heads the
executive and is responsible for
governance.
An impartial judiciary, independent of the legislature and the executive, is one of the main features
of the Constitution. The Supreme
Court of India is the highest court
of the country and acts as guardian of the Constitution and serves
as the final court of appeal. Each
ment to be approved by both the
houses of the Parliament.
The Constitution vests many
fundamental rights in citizens.
These are (i) Right to Equality,
(ii) Right to Freedom, (iii) Right
against Exploitation, (iv) Right to
Freedom of Religion, v) Cultural
and Educational Rights and vi)
Right to Constitutional Remedies.
These rights are justiciable and an
individual can move the Supreme
Court or the High Courts if there is
an encroachment on any of these
rights. However, Fundamental
Rights in India are not absolute.
Reasonable restrictions can be
imposed. By 42nd Amendment
in 1976, fundaments duties were
added in the Constitution to remind people that while enjoying
their right as citizens, they should
perform their duties for rights
and duties are correlative.
Another novel feature of the
Constitution is that it contains
a chapter on the directive principles of state policy, that are in
the nature of directives to the
Government to implement them
for establishing social and economic democracy in the country. Though not justiciable, these
principles are considered fundamental in the governance of the
country.
There are many autonomous
institutions set up under the
Constitution which perform a
key role, such as, Election Commission (responsible for holding
free and fair elections), Public
Service Commission (responsible
for selection to main government
services) and an Auditor General (for independent audit of accounts of the government and its
agencies).
One of the strengths of the Constitution is that it is a dynamic
instrument that can evolve with
time either by its interpretation
or amendment. On paper, an
amendment to the Constitution
is a difficult affair, and normally
needs, at least, two-thirds of the
Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha to
pass it. However, the Constitution
of India is one of the most frequently amended constitutions
in the world so as not to stand
in the way of the growth and development of the nation and her
people.
The success of the Indian Constitution, for a country as diverse
and complex as India, continues
to intrigue, impress and inspire
experts around the world.
Jawaharlal Nehru signing the Constitution.
Dr. Ambedkar is hailed as the prime architect of the
Indian Constitution.
full authority to legislate on the
subjects of the state list. And both
the Centre and the state can legislate on the subjects mentioned in
the concurrent list with the residuary powers vested in the Central
Government. It can be said that
India has cooperative federalism.
The Constitution provides for the
Parliamentary form of Government with a bicameral legislature
at the Centre consisting of Lok
Sabha (Lower House of Parliament) and Rajya Sabha (Upper
House of Parliament).While the
Lok Sabha consists of the elected
representatives of people, the Ra-
state has a High Court as its highest court. Under powers of judicial
review, the Supreme Court and
High Court can declare a law as
unconstitutional or ultra vires if it
contravenes any provisions of the
Constitution. This power of judicial review constitutes a middle
path between the American judicial supremacy on one hand and
British Parliamentary supremacy
on the other. In order to ensure the
impartiality of the judiciary, the
judges are appointed by a process
free of influence of the executive.
The judges can only be removed
by a rigourous process of impeach-
The original text of the Preamble and artwork of Beohar Rammanohar
Sinha, before the 42nd Amendment of the Constitution.
pIII
The Make in India initiative
“Come, Make in India!” Prime Minister Modi’s aggressive push to revive an ailing manufacturing sector has found resonance with India Inc. Single-window clearances, minimal
procedures and cutting out of any red-tapism – Indian Prime Minister Modi sees Make in India as a vital impetus for employment & growth.
T
he Make in India initiative
was launched globally in
September 2014 as a part
of India’s renewed focus on Manufacturing. The objective of the
Initiative is to promote India as
the most preferred global manufacturing destination.
Since the launch of this landmark initiative, the government
of India has taken several reform
initiatives to create an enabling
environment for providing an
impetus to manufacturing, design, innovation and startups.
India has emerged as the fastest
growing economy globally. India’s
rate of growth of 7.5% is accelerating and it remains an oasis of
growth in the midst of a subdued
economic landscape across the
world. The Prime Minister has
given impetus to growth with several innovative initiatives such as
“Make in India”, “Digital India”,
“100 Smart Cities” and “Skill India”.
The Make in India initiative
aims to make India an integral
part of the global supply chain.
It is about making Indian companies excel in a globalized
workspace. India has vigorously
opened up its economy – defence,
railways, construction, insurance,
pension funds, medical devices
have all been rapidly opened up
for Foreign Direct Investment.
India today is one of the most
open economies of the world.
In order to achieve this, the
government of India has taken
tion
• Volvo, Ford in with R&D facility
up a series of measures to radically improve Ease of Doing Business. Its objective is to make the
regulatory environment easy and
simple for business to flourish. It
has effectively used technology to
converge and integrate departments. 14 services are integrated
with eBiz portal which will function as a single window portal for
obtaining clearances from various
government agencies.
Make in India has already created a strong impact in form of
improved business environment
and economic growth, as follows:
• India is now first amongst the
world’s most attractive investment destinations
• First amongst world’s fastest
growing economies
• First among 100 countries on
the growth, innovation, and leadership index
• First amongst 110 investment
destinations polled globally
• Seventh most valued national
brand in the world
• India’s rank jumped 12 positions in Ease of Doing Business
2016 list by World Bank
• India moved 16 places in the
Global Competitiveness Index
2015-16
Some success stories of Make
in India so far:
Ministry of Railways signed
formal agreements with global giants AlstomBSE - 0.56 % and GE
Defence
• Hyundai to build warships
• Sun Group to build Russian
helicopters
• Reliance and international
partners to build nuclear submarines and stealth warships
Aviation
• Airbus to increase its exports
from India upto $ 2 bn USD
• Pratt & Whitney evinced interest to Makae in India
The clarion call “Come Make
in India” has transformed into
an effective strategy and has become a huge success in creating a
buzz globally. In order to provide
greater momentum to the Make
in India initiative, Government
of India is organizing a landmark
event called the “Make in India
Week” in Mumbai on February 13
to18, 2016. The week-long event
will be inaugurated by the Prime
Minister of India.
Indian PM Modi is a big proponent of the Make in India initiative.
Transport to set up locomotive
manufacturing factories in Madhepura and Marhaura in Bihar.
in India
• One Plus, ASUS announces
mobile manufacturing
Electronics:
• Foxconn announces 10-12 facilities in India
• Oppo, ZTE, Phicomm invest
Automobiles
• Mercedes Benz invest aggressively in India
• BMW increases 50% localiza-
Major Highlights of the
“Make-in-India Week” will include: Make in India Centre: This
will be the platform for exhibiting
innovative products and manufacturing processes developed in
India along with a vision to leverage design, innovation and tech-
nology in the backdrop of global
manufacturing. CNN-Asia
Business
Forum: Would comprise of a series
of seminars, CXO meets and
round-tables and networking
events on economic challenges,
investment opportunities etc.
The event would feature Global
visionaries, and leaders from the
fields of finance, industry and
design. Urban Planning Seminar on
re-imagining Mumbai: This
session would focus on new impetus for a smarter e-enabled
Mumbai collaborating with the
best-in-class technology partners. Hackathon: A 24-hour marathon event where coders, engineers, and designers collaborate
intensively for 24 hours to come
up with ideas to solve urban design problems. TIME India Awards: Recognizing excellence in the world of
manufacturing. The mega event will offer foreign investors and businesses
unprecedented access, insights
and opportunities to showcase,
connect and collaborate with
young Indian entrepreneurs,
industry leaders, academicians,
and government officials at the
central and state levels.
pIV
India
I
n an environment where
economic growth is modest, India today stands
as a bright spot among the
global economies. The International Monetary Fund
(IMF) in its report has projected India’s growth for
2015 at 7.3%, and rising to
7.5%in 2016. In its report
dated 12th November 2015,
the IMF said that while
emerging economy growth
remains fragile and could
be derailed in an environment of declining commodity
prices, reduced capital flows,
and higher financial market
volatility, India’s growth will
benefit from recent policy
reforms, a consequent pickup in investment, and lower
commodity prices. Moody’s
ratings revised India’s sovereign rating outlook to “positive” from “stable”.
Foreign direct investment
flows during the 2014-2015
reached US$ 44 billion. FDI
has also for the first time in
seven years exceeded the current account deficit. The government’s continued push towards FDI liberalization will
continue to aid FDI flows.
The Financial Times of London in its ranking of the top
destinations for greenfield
investment (measured by
estimated capital expendi-
Charting a New Reform Path
General Electric Co. (GE) will build a diesel locomotive factory in India.
ture) in the first half of 2015
shows India at number one,
having attracted roughly $31
billion, $3 billion more than
China and $4 billion more
than the US.
Administrative
reforms,
simplification of approval
processes, including online
project approval and easier
environmental
clearance
procedures, are expected to
improve business sentiment
and the ease of doing business in India. The Project
Monitoring Group (PMG)
set up under the Cabinet is
reviewing a total of 704 projects worth US$ 451 billion,
which have not received approvals because of hurdles
like lack of fuel, green clearances and land acquisition
with investments. To date the
PMG has cleared a total of
411 projects entailing investments of US$ 253 billion.
The government has set an
ambitious deadline of 2016
for implementing the Goods
and Services Tax (GST). A
clear cut road map for lowering corporate tax from 30%
to 25% over the next 4 years
has been laid down. Other forward looking initiatives by the government
include nod for IPOs/FPOs
by banks to raise funds, as
long as government equity
remains 52% or over. Nod for
real estate and infrastructure
investment trusts, with tax
benefits. Cabinet nod for 100
Smart Cities Project. US$130
billion proposed spending
on railways over five years
on schemes including highspeed trains. Successful conclusion of two rounds of coal
block auctions, more lined
up. Impasse in mining sector ended with the passage
of new bill for regulation
and development. Successful conclusion of auctions
for telecom spectrum for
mobile telephony and broadband. Single-window scheme
for various clearances to
steel, coal and power projects. Clarity in tax treatment
on income of foreign fund
whose fund managers are
located in India, as also on
transfer pricing for resident
and non-resident tax payers
and waiving of retrospective
imposition of a minimum
alternative tax (MAT) affecting foreign funds.
In November 2015 the Cabinet approved a bailout plan
for state government-owned
electricity distribution companies (Discoms) in a move
that could fundamentally
change India’s power sector
and also reduce the stress
on books of banks that have
loaned money to these financially unsound utilities. The
rescue plan, called Ujwal
Discom Assurance Yojna
(UDAY), which is optional
and to be operationalised
through signing of a tripartite MoU (between Ministry of Power, the concerned
State Government and the
Discom) seeks to provide a
solution to State Discoms
and empower them to breakeven in next 2-3 years.
November 2015 also saw
the government awarding
contracts to set up two locomotive plants. The contracts
are two of the first and the
largest to be awarded to foreign firms since India last
year allowed 100% FDI in
the railway sector. General
Electric Co. (GE) will build a
pV
diesel locomotive factory
and Alstom SA will set up
an electric locomotive in the
state of Bihar. The plants will
be set up at an estimated cost
of around Rs. 2,052 crore and
Rs. 1,294 crore respectively. The two projects involve
manufacturing 1,000 diesel
locomotives and 800 electric
locomotives over the next 10
years and are together worth
about Rs. 40,000 crore.
While the Railways will have
26% equity and provide land,
the foreign companies will
have a stake of the remaining 74% in each of the plants.
The plants will be up and
running within 3 years and
80% of all parts used in the
manufacture of the locomotives will be sourced locally.
Medium-term growth prospects have also improved following recent policy initiatives towards unlocking coal
and other mining activity,
liberalization of FDI limits
(100% in railways, 49% in
insurance, and 49% in defence with the caveat that
FDI in defence could go up
to 100% with the control
vested in the hands of the Indian JV partner and approval
be secured from the government) and a renewed thrust
on public investment in infrastructure, which would
help to improve the investment climate. To boost the
investment environment in
the country, the government
on November 10, 2015 further eased FDI norms across
15 sectors. Some of the new
FDI norms include: composite FDI cap in the Banking sector has been raised to
74%, minimum investment
commitment and floor area
stipulation for FDI in construction has been done away
with, FDI limit in news and
current affairs TV channels
and FM radio has been raised
to 49% from 26%, FDI limit
in Teleports, Direct-to-Home
(DTH), digital cable networks, Mobile TV has been
raised from 74% to 100%;
FDI of up to 49% under automatic route is now allowed
in Regional Air Transport
Services; FDI of up to 49% is
allowed in the defence sector
under the automatic route
and if in excess of 49% will
be considered by Foreign Investment Promotion Board
(FIPB). The cap for approval
by the Foreign Investment
Promotion Board (FIPB) has
been increased to Rs 5,000
crore from Rs 3,000 crore.
The Cabinet Committee on
Economic Affairs (CCEA)
will only decide on FDI proposals not under the automatic route and beyond Rs
5,000 crore.
As a result of the above measures, India has moved up 16
positions to rank 55th on a
global index of the world’s
most competitive economies
compiled by the World Eco-
Alstom to supply 800 double electric locomotives to Indian Railways.
nomic Forum. The jump in
India’s position underlines
the country’s recent economic recovery, improvement in
the competitiveness of the
country’s institutions and
its macroeconomic environment. According to the Baseline Profitability Index of the
Foreign Policy Journal, India
has recently been ranked No.
1 among 110 countries making it the world’s topmost investment destination. The US
International Trade Commis-
sion in its report Trade and
Investment Policies in India
(2014-15) mentioned that
the Indian government has
made significant changes in
addressing barriers to trade
and investment. Areas identified in the report where significant policy changes have
been made include: FDI; tariffs and customs procedures;
local content and localization requirements, particularly concerning ICT goods;
and standards and technical
regulations.
The World Bank now ranks
India at 130 out of 189 countries on the Ease of Doing
Business. That is up 12 places from its original ranking
last year and 4 places from
its rank on a revised list
(based on a new methodolog y). According to the WB
report, it takes 29 days to
start a business in India today, unlike the 127 days it
used to take in 2004. The
biggest improvement was
seen in the area of providing elec tricity connec tion
to businesses, where India’s
ranking improved from 99
in 2015 to 70 in 2016. India
is ranked 8th in terms of
protec ting minority investors, 42nd in getting credit,
but scores poorly in dealing with construc tion permit with a rank of 183 out
of 189 countries. Enforcing
contrac t (rank 178), paying
taxes (rank 157), resolving insolvenc y (rank 136)
are other areas where India ranks poorly. For ward
movement on the goods and
ser vices tax (GST), setting
up of commercial courts,
enac ting the bankruptc y
law, simplifying taxation
and corporate law, and easing the entr y-exit norms
are expec ted to give a boost
to India’s ranking in 201617.
pVI
Mars Orbiter Mission
Mars Exploration - Significance
O
India’s Orbiter Mission completed one year around Mars in September 2015.
f all the planets in the solar
system, Mars has sparked
the greatest human interest as the conditions in Mars are
believed to be hospitable since the
planet is similar to Earth in many
ways. Mars has surface features
reminiscent of both the impact
craters of the Moon and volcanoes,
deserts and polar ice of Earth.
Mars and Earth have almost
equal period of revolution around
their axis. Mars takes 24 hours
and 37 minutes to complete one
revolution around its axis. While
Earth takes approximately 365
days to orbit around the Sun, Mars
takes 687 days for the same. The
gravity of Mars is roughly onethird of Earth’s gravity and it has a
thin atmosphere with a pressure of
1 % of that of Earth.
For ages, humans have been
speculating about life on Mars.
The recent discovery of methane
on Mars suggests that life could
exist on Mars. It entails more and
more understanding of the Martian surface, its topography, geology, landforms, mineralogy, and its
upper atmosphere to understand
the evolution of universe.
The Indian Mission to Mars is
primarily intended to establish
Indian technological capability to
reach Mars, orbit around it and
also provide an excellent opportunity to the scientific community to
further understand the science of
Mars. Also, having demonstrated
the technological capability in
reaching the Moon, the next logical step go forth into interplanetary space is Mars.
Indian Mars Orbiter Mission
The Mars Orbiter Mission is
ISRO’s first interplanetary mission with an orbiter craft designed
to orbit Mars in an elliptical orbit of 366 km x 80 000 km. The
Mars Orbiter Mission (MOM) is
a complex technological mission
considering the critical mission
operations and stringent requirements on propulsion, communications and other bus systems of the
spacecraft.
Being the first Indian mission to
the planet Mars, the primary technological objective is to design and
realize a spacecraft with a capability to perform an Earth Bound
Manoeuvre, reach Mars (Martian
Transfer Trajectory) with the least
amount of fuel, Mars Orbit Insertion and then to orbit around
Mars. It has been configured to
undertake limited scientific studies during the orbital life of the
spacecraft, using the five Indian
scientific instruments onboard to
study the Mars surface and its atmosphere.
Technological challenges of the
Mars Orbiter Mission
To provide robust thermal environment and augmented radiation shielding to the spacecraft &
payloads to cope with a wide range
of thermal environment (from
Near Earth conditions to Mars
conditions) and harsh radiation
conditions due to prolonged exposure.
To build a robust and reliable
propulsion system (Liquid Engine), which needs to restart after almost 300 days of voyage to
insert the spacecraft into an orbit
around Mars.
The mission has achieved its planned objectives.
To build a high level of onboard
autonomy within the Orbiter to
deal with communication delay of
the order of 40 minutes. Autonomy logics manage the spacecraft
when communication interruptions occur when – (i) the spacecraft is occulted by planet Mars;
(ii) whiteouts/ blackouts due to
Sun; (iii) spacecraft enters Safemode
To augment Deep Space Network to be able to command the
spacecraft from the ground station
when it is at a distance of nearly
400 Million km, which is 1000
times more than the distance
Moon and earth.
Mars Orbiter is built with onboard
autonomy to handle such blackout
operations.
Mars Orbiter went under “solar conjunction” at Mars, which
means the Orbiter, which is orbiting Mars, is behind the Sun as
viewed from the Earth. As a result
of this event, which happens once
in 2.2 years for Mars, communication signals from the spacecraft
are severely disrupted by the Sun’s
corona (outer atmosphere).
Mars Orbiter was under solar
conjunction from May 27 to 1 July
2015. The communications from
ground to spacecraft were totally
stopped with effect from May 28,
2015. No commands were transmitted to the spacecraft during
this period and all payload operations were suspended.
In July 2015, the Mars Orbiter
successfully came out of the solar
conjunction. It is worth mentioning that no reconfiguration of the
spacecraft was required, as the
onboard autonomy properly functioned.
Current status
India’s Mars Orbiter Mission
(MOM) completed one year
around Mars on September
24, 2015 and accomplished its
planned mission objectives. MOM
and all its scientific payloads are
in good health and it continues
to provide valuable data of Mars
surface and its atmosphere. The
increased duration of observation
of Mars by five scientific payloads
will enhance the planetary science
data and would also enable coverage of Mars in different seasons.
was also estimated.
Significant achievements and
recognitions
First interplanetary mission realized by India and first Indian
spacecraft to incorporate full scale
on-board autonomy to overcome
the long distances and the communication gaps due to non-visibility periods.
First Mars mission in the world
to succeed Mars Orbit Insertion in
first attempt.
First Indian spacecraft to successfully survive Van Allen belt
crossing 39 times. First Indian
spacecraft to escape the Sphere Of
Influence of Earth and orbit Sun.
Most economical interplanetary
mission in the world and paved
way for cost-effective access to
deep space.
The Indian Space Research Organization’s (ISRO) Mars Orbiter
Mission (MOM) team won the
US based National Space Society’s
”Space Pioneer Award” for science
and engineering category for the
year 2015.
The Indira Gandhi Prize for
Peace, Disarmament and Development is awarded to ISRO in
recognition of its path-breaking
achievement, culminating in Mars
Orbiter Mission, its significant
contribution in strengthening international cooperation in peaceful use of outer space.
Indian Regional Navigation
Satellite System
IRNSS is an independent regional navigation satellite system
being developed by India. It is de-
with an equator crossing at 55°E &
111.75°E with an inclination of 29°.
A first four IRNSS satellites
viz., IRNSS-1A, 1B, 1C and ID
were successfully launched on
July 02, 2013, April 04, 2014,
October 16, 2014 and March
28, 2015 respectively and are already operational in orbit. With
the operationalisation of four
navigational satellites in orbit,
it is now possible to provide Position, Navigation and Timing
services.
Launch of fifth IRNSS Satellite - IRNSS-1E:
ISRO’s Polar Satellite Launch
Vehicle, PSLV-C31, successfully
launched the 1425 kg IRNSS1E, the fifth satellite in the Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (IRNSS) on January
20, 2016 at 09:31 hrs (IST) from
Satish Dhawan Space Centre
SHAR, Sriharikota. This is the
thirty second consecutively successful mission of PSLV and the
eleventh in its ‘XL’ configuration.
IRNSS-1E Satellite was injected to an elliptical orbit of 282.4
km X 20,655.3 km inclined at
an angle of 19.21 degree to the
equator (very close to the intended orbit). After injection,
the solar panels of IRNSS-1E
were deployed automatically.
In the coming days, four orbit
manoeuvres will be conducted
from Master Control Facility to
position the satellite in the Geosynchronous Orbit at 111.75 deg
East longitude with 28.1 deg inclination.
Launch and Post Launch Orbit
maneuvers
The country witnessed with pride
the successful launch of India’s
first interplanetary spacecraft, the
Mars Orbiter, on November 05,
2013 at 2:38 pm by India’s Polar
Satellite Launch Vehicle PSLVC25 from Satish Dhawan Space
Centre. The Mars Orbiter was
precisely injected into an elliptical
earth orbit (with a perigee of 248.4
km and an apogee of 23 550 km,
inclined at an angle of 19.27 deg to
the equator).
Subsequent to the six orbit-raising manoeuvres, the Tran-Mars
Injection Manoeuvre was precisely executed on December 1, 2013
and the Spacecraft was placed on
course to the Red Planet along a
helio-centric path of 680 million
km.
Mars Orbit Insertion on 24
September 2014
After a 300 days journey in deep
space, on September 24, 2014, India’s Mars Orbiter Spacecraft successfully entered into an elliptical
orbit around planet Mars by firing
its 440 Newton Liquid Apogee
Motor along with eight smaller
liquid engines.
With successful Mars Orbit Insertion, ISRO became the fourth
space agency to successfully send
a spacecraft to Mars orbit and India became the first country in the
world to do so in its first attempt.
Mars Orbiter successfully handled solar conjunction
The solar conjunction is a natural
phenomenon in which the Mars,
the Sun and the Earth get aligned.
Such an alignment affects all communication signals from the Mars
Orbiter towards the Earth. The
Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) launched its fifth navigation satellite- IRNSS-1E- onboard Polar
Satellite Launch Vehicle.
The images of Mars captured
by the Mars Colour Camera have
been received and found to be of
very good quality. The Mars Colour Camera has so far produced
513 images.
Joint morphological studies
using MCC and the high resolution mineralogical data with the
NASA CRISM data were carried
out, which enable the identification of different compounds like
sulphates and ferrous based compounds.
The dust patterns around high
altitude regions and in Valles were
studied and mean height of dust
layer was estimated to be ~1.5
km. Albedo using the 1.65 micron
studies of the reference channel of
Methane sensor for Mars (MSM)
signed to provide the position and
timing services through an independent Indian regional navigation satellite constellation of seven
satellites. The main objective of
IRNSS System is to provide positioning services with an absolute
position accuracy of better than
20 metres over Indian Land Mass
and a region extending to the
about 1 500km around India.
IRNSS consists of seven satellites in a constellation, three satellites in geostationary orbit (GEO)
and four satellites in geosynchronous orbit (GSO) with inclination of 29° to the equatorial plane.
Three GEO satellites placed at
32.5°E, 83°E & 131.5°E orbital locations and two geosynchronous
satellites each placed in the GSO
A number of ground stations
responsible for the generation
and transmission of navigation
parameters, satellite ranging
and monitoring, etc., have been
established in eighteen locations across the country.
Applications:
• Terrestrial, Aerial and Marine Navigation
• Disaster Management, Vehicle Tracking , Fleet Management
• Precision timing applications
viz. distributed survey systems,
power grid synchronization
• Mapping and Geodetic data
capture
• Visual and voice navigation
for drivers
pVII
pVIII

SBC gives in to ultimatum

Transcription

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