Search area for missing AirAsia plane to be expanded today |
- Search area for missing AirAsia plane to be expanded today
- In 2015, Putin will be an outright dictator — Leonid Bershidsky
- Gold holds biggest decline as strong dollar restricts demand
- Asian stocks fall as Japan’s shares slip on final trading day of 2014
- EPL: West Brom manager Irvine gets the sack after 7 defeats
- Shark attack! California surfer survives great white assault
| Search area for missing AirAsia plane to be expanded today Posted: 29 Dec 2014 04:56 PM PST
Juanda International Airport general manager Trikora Harjo said the SAR headed by Indonesia with the assistance of Malaysia and Singapore in the Java Sea, near Pulau Belitung, was called off late yesterday night. "I was informed that 24 ships and a number of aircrafts from the air force of three countries have joined the search mission," he told reporters, here yesterday night. Harjo in denying there were oil spills found, said there was no information or lead on the missing flight, or any objects or the flight's Emergency Locator Transmitter (ELT) found. Meanwhile, PT AirAsia Indonesia's President Sunu Widiatmoko who also attended the press conference said facilities for families of the passengers who are at the airport would be enhanced to ensure their comfort while waiting for information about their loved ones. Flight QZ8501 vanished from the radar screens on Sunday morning with 162 people on board, including seven crew, over the Java Sea about 40 minutes after taking off from Surabaya to Singapore. The Airbus A320-200 aircraft had reportedly requested to deviate from its original flight path to avoid thick clouds and rise to a height of 38,000 feet from the initial height of 32,000 feet. "The families have agreed to continue staying at hotels near the airport," he said. A visit by Bernama to the Crisis Centre situated at the Terminal 2 of the Airport, revealed family members of the missing passengers in a state of uneasiness and very emotional as they waited eagerly for news of their missing loved ones. One of them known as Abang Solo, said he and his family members would stay put at the airport because it was where they last boarded the flight. Those on board the missing flight comprise 155 Indonesians, three South Koreans, a Singaporean, a Malaysian, a Briton and a French. — Bernama  |
| In 2015, Putin will be an outright dictator — Leonid Bershidsky Posted: 29 Dec 2014 04:48 PM PST DECEMBER 30 — I hated what happened to Russia in 2014 so much that I decided to move away. It's safe to say, however, that 2015 will be worse. President Vladimir Putin's regime is one the verge of transitioning from mild authoritarianism to outright dictatorship. The country's newly amended military doctrine is an especially ominous sign. Judging by it, the Kremlin's response to the ongoing economic crisis will be to crack down on all signs of popular discontent. The Kremlin seems determined to turn inward and complete its break with the Western world. Russia's wariness of the West is nothing new. The 2010 edition of the country's military doctrine — issued under "liberal" President Dmitri Medvedev — listed as the top external threat the eastward expansion of NATO toward Russia's borders. Putin's new, post-Crimea version reiterates the vision of NATO as the arch-enemy creeping up on Russia. The new doctrine differs from the old one, however, in treating domestic challenges to the ruling regime as military dangers to the nation. Where the 2010 document merely referred to "attempts at violent change of the Russian Federation's constitutional order," the 2014 one adds "the destabilization of the domestic political and social situation in the nation" and even "information-related activity aimed at influencing the population, primarily the country's young citizens, with the goal of undermining the historical, spiritual and patriotic traditions in the area of defending the Fatherland." Political opposition, in other words, is now classified as an activity worthy of a military response. This marks an important shift. Despite a gradual tightening of the screws since Putin started his third presidential term in 2012, a 13-year-old consensus was still in effect at the start of this year: Less political and economic liberty for more wealth. Protests were usually ineffectual, but often tolerated. In 2013, I took part in demonstrations that clearly violated freshly adopted restrictive laws, and, like thousands of others, escaped unscathed. There were enough uncensored media to vary one's news diet and, if you were a journalist, to write for. The economy was slowing down and growing more dependent on colossal state projects like the Sochi Olympics. But banks weren't failing and workers weren't being laid off in droves. Moscow still emptied out for the New Year's holidays as wealthy Russians descended on European ski resorts and the tropical havens of Southeast Asia. You wouldn't have easily mistaken Russia for a European country, but, in the big cities at least, it was still a relatively prosperous one. Then the ice cracked in the frozen kingdom, and so did the edifice underneath. I think the tipping point was February 22, when Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych abandoned his sprawling Mezhihirya estate near Kiev and revolutionary crowds — and investigative journalists seeking clues on Yanukovych's corrupt rule — invaded the ornate residence. "We have no palaces," Putin said at a recent press conference, but of course he and his friends do. And as Yanukovych's home was defiled, ogled, Instagrammed and, inevitably, looted before a semblance of order was established, Putin submitted to paranoia. He mentioned the "capture" of Mezhihirya on several occasions last spring, though the residence was, in fact, abandoned and thus lay open to all comers. I visited Yanukovych's former house — soon to be nationalized — just as a handful of unbadged troops took control of the local parliament building in Crimea, laying the groundwork for the swift, bloodless, Anschluss-like operation that made Crimea part of Russia. The volunteer protectors of Mezhihirya were already suspiciously eyeing me, a Russian citizen, as a potential enemy, but I still found it difficult to imagine that Russia was actually preparing an invasion. The Kremlin had always meddled in governing Ukraine, but it did so through intrigue and economic pressure, never by force. I was glad I was not in Mezhihirya the following day as Putin asked the Russian parliament for permission to send troops to Ukraine. Overnight, Russia became a different country, roaring in unaccustomed defiance. Putin's support quickly soared above 80 per cent, and he made an unprecedentedly regal speech, welcoming Crimea as a new Russian region. Under a 2013 law that banned "the propaganda of separatism," it became a crime to mention in public Crimea's status as an occupied part of Ukraine. Editors of the few remaining independent media outlets became wary of such mentions. For me, these changes meant I could no longer write for Russian publications: This year, not saying that Crimea belongs to Ukraine would mean ignoring the elephant in the room. I had never contemplated leaving my country before. But it had now become a matter of being able to do my job as I understood it, and of finding a way to express my disapproval of what Putin was doing when most people around me backed him. My move to Germany, however, did not mean I liked the way Western governments framed their own disapproval — by imposing economic sanctions: first, ones that were ridiculously soft, then, in July, some with a little bite. Their main effect on Putin was to convince him, and his propaganda-brainwashed support base, that the West was intent on war with Russia, regardless of its actions. Indeed, by imposing financial restrictions, the West helped Putin forge a new political consensus: Less freedom for the sake of more national pride, expressed in the form of Russian defiance of Western pressure. The Kremlin's propagandists had plenty of time to drum this line into people's heads, using the conflict in Eastern Ukraine, in which Russian interference saved separatist rebels from a military defeat, to whip up nationalist sentiment. They also created a climate of intolerance for those who dissented: These people were now portrayed as a fifth column, working for Western masters who sought Russia's destruction. That's why, when oil prices tumbled from US$100 (RM351) per barrel in September and kept falling to less than US$60 per barrel, Russians did not protest against the ruble's quick devaluation and an accompanying jump in inflation, which should reach 10 per cent for the year. Putin's approval rating remained at 85 percent in December, according to a Levada Center poll. The pro-Putin intellectuals who talked to me in Moscow recently were certain of Russians' famed ability to put up with economic hardship if they felt it helped Russia stand as a great power. A joke from neighboring Belarus, with its longer experience of living under a dictatorship, has been making the rounds in Moscow. A guy tells his friend: "You know, I've been thinking: Let's put up with it a bit longer." And the friend replies: "Fancy that, I was just going to suggest it." Old Russia hand Chrystia Freeland, who once ran Financial Times' Moscow bureau and is now a member of the Canadian parliament, has likened today's Russia to the crumbling Soviet Union of the 1980's. "We are not dealing with a newly ascendant, domestically united world power," she wrote. "Russia today is divided and in decline." There is some evidence to support her point of view. Between January and September, Russia lost US$85.2 billion to capital flight, more than the US$55.3 billion decrease in the country's international reserves in the same period, meaning Russian business has been busy cashing out. Besides, a fresh Levada poll suggests that 24 percent of Russians, compared with 17 percent a month ago, consider economic protests possible in their area. It's not, however, Putin's billionaire friends who are voting against him with their money, as Freeland suggests. They are, quite the contrary, making out like bandits as the government awards them more and more contracts to compensate for the effect of Western sanctions. As for protest, the uptick in the relevant polls has been duly noted in the Kremlin. It could have responded by liberalising the economic climate, lowering payroll taxes, easing law enforcement agencies' malicious pressure on private enterprise. Instead, it chose to talk to potential protesters through its revised military doctrine — a dire warning if there ever was one. As 2015 rolls in, Russians are traveling less than a year ago, both because of the ruble devaluation and due to de-facto bans on foreign trips for law enforcers and officials working in other sensitive areas. The media are under Kremlin control or doubly cautious. Consumption is fading as the center of middle-class life, and businesses are scaling down hiring, though not yet as much as during the 2008-2009 crisis. Putin wants Russia to feel like a besieged fortress, and, yielding to his whip and his entreaties, the country is pupating. That process usually ends with a butterfly breaking out of the cocoon. But that would take a bigger shock than any of Putin's enemies, including the current Western leaders, are capable of delivering. Barring a miracle, 2015 will be the year the cocoon hardens — a gloomy home to those inside and an impenetrable, unpredictable object to the outside world. — Bloomberg *This is the personal opinion of the columnist. |
| Gold holds biggest decline as strong dollar restricts demand Posted: 29 Dec 2014 04:46 PM PST
Bullion for immediate delivery dropped as much as 0.2 per cent to US$1,181.05 (RM4,136.35) and was at US$1,182.72 an ounce at 8.21am in Singapore, according to Bloomberg generic pricing. The metal fell 1.1 per cent yesterday, the most since December 22. It's 2.1 per cent lower since the end of September. The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index traded near the highest in more than five years today on expectations the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates next year. Against the euro, the US currency was near a two-year high amid concern that early elections in Greece risk severing the European country's bailout agreement. Holdings in SPDR Gold Trust, the largest exchange traded product backed by bullion, held at a six-year low. "The strong dollar will persist" and that will weigh on gold, said Mark To, head of research at Wing Fung Financial Group, a trader and refiner in Hong Kong. "Gold could fall further next year because of the lack of investment demand." Gold for February delivery was little changed at US$1,182.20 an ounce on the Comex in New York from US$1,181.90 yesterday, when prices lost 1.1 per cent. The trading volume for futures was 76 per cent below the 100-day average for this time of day. Silver for immediate delivery lost as much as 0.3 per cent to US$15.7598 an ounce and traded at US$15.7914. The metal dropped 1.6 per cent yesterday, the most in a week, and is headed for a second quarterly decline. Spot platinum rose 0.3 per cent to US$1,204.25 an ounce, rebounding from yesterday's 1.3 per cent fall. Palladium traded at US$809.95 an ounce from US$810.25 yesterday and is on course for the third quarterly advance this year. ― Bloomberg |
| Asian stocks fall as Japan’s shares slip on final trading day of 2014 Posted: 29 Dec 2014 04:45 PM PST
The MSCI Asia Pacific Index slid 0.1 per cent to 138.25 as of 9.01am in Tokyo, before markets opened in Hong Kong and China. Materials and energy shares led declines after oil sank yesterday to the lowest in more than five years. Japan's Topix index lost 0.1 per cent, paring its 2014 advance to 9.3 per cent. Global equities are headed for their third straight annual rally, with US shares driving gains the past two weeks after the Federal Reserve said it will exercise patience in raising interest rates. The MSCI World Index of global developed-market shares has increased 4.2 per cent this year, leaving it trading at 16.7 times estimated earnings, the highest since 2009. "The market seems fully valued," said Matthew Coffina, a Chicago-based equity analyst at Morningstar Inc. "The valuation of the overall market still leaves little margin for error." Chinese shares have led gains in Asia in 2014, with the Shanghai Composite Index soaring 50 per cent. Commodity companies posted the largest drag on the regional benchmark, which is on course to slip 2.2 per cent on the year. It's priced in US dollars, meaning a strengthening greenback weighs on the measure. The dollar has gained against all 12 Asian currencies tracked by Bloomberg in 2014. Japan's Topix yesterday reversed gains following a report that a man was being tested for Ebola in Tokyo. He tested negative for the illness, the Health Ministry said after markets closed. The yen traded at 120.64 a dollar after two days of losses. New Zealand Australia's S&P/ASX 200 Index fell 0.2 per cent and New Zealand's NZX 50 Index added 0.1 per cent. The New Zealand gauge has advanced 18 per cent in 2014, the best performance after Denmark among 24 developed markets tracked by Bloomberg. South Korea's Kospi index gained 0.4 per cent today. Futures on the Standard & Poor's 500 Index rose 0.1 per cent. The measure yesterday climbed to a record high. ― Bloomberg |
| EPL: West Brom manager Irvine gets the sack after 7 defeats Posted: 29 Dec 2014 04:44 PM PST
"Irvine leaves the club with immediate effect and has been placed on gardening leave," said a statement on the club's official website. It explained that the decision had been taken with "regret but necessity" and that they expect to name Irvine's replacement by the weekend. The club lie 16th in the league, just one point above the bottom three. Assistant head coach Rob Kelly will take charge of the team for their New Year's Day game at West Ham. Albion's technical director Terry Burton said: "We appointed Alan in the summer convinced that we had taken on one of the foremost coaches in the UK and nothing that has happened since then has altered our view. "The individual progress of our players such as Craig Dawson and Saido Berahino are testament to that. "Securing a sixth season in the Premier League is the over-riding target and sometimes unpleasant decisions have to be taken to serve that imperative. "Alan has impressed everyone with his manner, dedication and diligence but he knows that results have simply not been good enough," he added. — AFP |
| Shark attack! California surfer survives great white assault Posted: 29 Dec 2014 04:37 PM PST
Kevin Swanson was in the water at Montana de Oro State Park near Morro Bay Sunday morning when a juvenile great white shark measuring 8 to 10 feet in length swam up from under him and took a bite out of his surfboard, chomping into his right leg and thigh. "It was really radical," fellow surfer Andrew Walsh, who was with Swanson in the water, told the San Luis Obispo Tribune. Walsh said he was about 10 feet away from Swanson and that all was calm before the shark suddenly appeared. It "came straight up out of the depths and got him and took him under the water," Walsh recalled. "That was the amazing part. This big giant side of the shark just curving up out of the water." Swanson disappeared beneath the surface for several seconds, then surfaced with his board and was able to paddle to shore, where he fastened his leash cord as a tourniquet around his own bloodied leg, Walsh told the newspaper. An ambulance took Swanson to Sierra Vista Regional Medical Center in nearby San Luis Obispo. "We've upgraded his condition to good condition," hospital spokesman Ron Yukelson said yesterday, adding that privacy laws prohibited him from further comment. The beach was not closed but notices were posted telling visitors of the attack, state park ranger supervisor Robert Colligan said. It was the latest in a string of shark encounters at California beaches in recent months. In October, a surfer was attacked by an 8- to 10-foot shark, suffering non-lethal injures, about 30 miles north of Santa Barbara. Later that month, a woman was attacked by a 6-foot shark in her outrigger canoe near Santa Barbara but managed to escape unharmed and paddled safely back to shore. Despite intense media attention generated by shark attacks on humans, such incidents are fairly rare along the US Pacific Coast, with 154 unprovoked attacks authenticated off California since 1900, according to the Shark Research Committee. Thirteen fatal shark attacks on people have been documented in California during the past 60 years. The two most recent occurred at Vandenberg's Surf Beach in October 2010 and October 2012, the group said. — Reuters |
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