FIjI SUN IS NOW ON FACEBOOK FOR ALL

FIRST FIjI DIWALI FESTIvAL 2013 IN BAY AREA

Happy Diwali & Eid Mubarak

PhotoS by FAIzAl AlI (SEE INSIDE PAGE)

2ND US FIjI GIRMIT FESTIvAL SUCCESSFUL

l Issue-10 l www.fijisun-usa.coml November-2013l Vol-22

USA

l 510-677-4488

Read Zahid Buksh (ChP investigatoR) aBout the event and futuRe Plan foR Continued tRiBute to ouRfoRefatheRs who shed Blood and sweat in Building and modeRniZing fiji islands undeR seveRe haRdshiP.

TISI SANGAM DIWALI CELEBRATION 2013 UNIFYING SANGAM GROUPS

President AkleshPrAsAd sPeAking toFiJi sUn tV rePortersAboUt the stAr cAst.

Ramlila, the enactment ofthe story of Lord Rama isbelieved to have been start-ed by great Saint Tulsidas.The Ramcharitmanas, onpaper by him till today formsthe basis of Ramlila perform-ances. In some places,Ramlila is related withVijayadashmi celebrations inlate September and earlyOctober and also with RamaNavami, the birthday of LordRama. Ramlila is a stagedfolk re-enactment of the tenday fight between Lord Ramand Ravan, as explain in theHindu religious epic, theRamayan. A belief that origi-nates from the Indian sub-continent, the play is fre-quently staged over ten ormore successive nights,timed to finish in the festivalof Dussehra that celebratethe victory of Lord Ram.Ramlila, basically an enact-ment of a myth, is presentedas a cycle-play with the storyvarying from 7 to 31 days.The Ramlila performanceevokes a festive atmosphereand enables observance ofreligious rites.

It is also rich in perform-ance of crafts such as cos-tume jewelry, masks, head-gear, make-up and decora-tion. The four main Ramlilastyles are the pantomimicstyle with a predominanceofjhankis - tableaux pag-eants; the dialogue - basedstyle with multi-local staging;the operative style whichdraws its musical elementsfrom the folk operas of theregion and the stage -Ramlila of the professionaltroupes called `Mandalis'.Ayodhya is well-liked formandali Ramlila. The showis dialogue - based and pre-sented on a platform stage.High standard of presenta-tion is complemented bysongs andkathak dancesand eye-catching decoration.

FIJISUN2 EDItORIAl November-2013 www.fijisun-usa.com

Robbie Michaelson Contributing writer

FIJI SUNEDITORIAL

STAFF

H. Koya (PhD)Editor-Publisher

PO BOX 54691 Hayward, CA 94544

1-800-757-6619 www.fijisun.org

Email: fijisun@gmail.com

Ram Lila and Diwali Celebrationby Shiv Bhawan Mandir, Modesto

Gulmarg cold-est place inJ&K with minus4.2 degree C

SRINAGAR: Gulmargwas the coldest placein Jammu andKashmir with the mer-cury plummetingbelow the freezingpoint to settle at a lowof minus 4.2 degreesCelsius. The famousski-resort of Gulmargwas the coldestrecorded place in thestate, a MeTDepartment officialsaid. Srinagar, thesummer capital ofJammu and Kashmir,recorded a drop of twonotches in the nighttemperature, as thecold wave conditionshave set in earlierthan expected thisyear. The minimumtemperature recordedin Srinagar onSaturday was 2.8degrees Celsius, ascompared to yester-day's 4.8 degreesCelsius, he said. Thesouth Kashmir touristresort of Pahalgamalso saw a drop intemperature from theprevious night's 1.8degrees Celsius, tosettle slightly abovethe freezing point at0.8 degrees Celsius,the official said.

FIJISUN 3October-2013www.fijisun-usa.com

FIJISUN4 October-2013 www.fijisun-usa.com

by ZAHid buksH

Let me introduce myself.My name is Zahid AliBuksh. I am a United

States citizen and a Gulf Warveteran. I am a member of theAmerican Legion, JamesMcDermott post 172 and of theVFW (Veterans of ForeignWars) Tracy, California. Imigrated to the United States in1989 because I wanted to livein this great country of opportu-nities. I joined the UnitedStates Army two months aftermigrating here not because ofbenefits, because I wanted toserve my country the best Icould and I thought that therecould be no greater sacrificethan serving in the military. Itwas what I thought to be theAmerican dream. I wentthrough basic training andAdvanced Individual Training atFort Dix, New Jersey. After thatI was stationed at Fort Hood,Texas with the Second ArmoredDivision and then the FirstCavalry. From there I wasdeployed to Kuwait/Iraq toserve in Operation DesertStorm/Desert Shield in 1990and 1991. After an Honorabledischarge from the Army Iworked in Construction and atAgnews Developmental Centerrespectively. From there Ijoined the California HighwayPatrol and am proud to say thatI am still with the CHP as a

Motor Carrier Specialist I andthe United States Departmentof Transportation/Federal MotorCarrier Safety Alliance as aSafety Auditor/Investigator.

The reason that I am writingthis article is to ask for yourhelp with a matter close to myheart. Recently I attended aGirmit Program organized byUS Fiji Sun’s Brother DR HanifKoya. The program was atWeekes Library in Hayward CaOn Saturday October 05th,2013 at 13:00 hours and RadioZindagi, sister Jagruti Shah andSister SamaHanif had Fiji Niteand celebrated FijiIndependence Day on October18th , 2013 at Mehran restau-rant in Newark, CA. The FijiNite / Fiji Independence Daystarted with the USA National

Anthom followed by FijiNational Anthom. It was such athoughtful gesture by RadioZindagi and Sister SamaHanifsince I’am a Veteran of War.

I was shocked to see howmany Indo Fijians supportthese two individuals. We arehere in this country and havethe freedom because of thesacrifice so called Girmityasgave. Then I read the letter ToEditor in the US Fiji TimesOctober 2013 vol. 112 issue byMohammed Shaan. So called,the famous Fiji Ghazal andQawali singer “Shaan“ . In thesame issue of the The US FijiTimes below MohammedShaans letter a letter from UncleNityaNanad Maiku to The USFiji Times. Please also readFijisun vol-2 issue -9 October2013 page 5. “MohammedKahn “Shaan” To sing at the 2ndGirmit festival”. WhateverShaanhad wrote to the Letter to Editorof the US Fiji Times Publisher /CEO Rocky Ali Buksh it did nothappen the way he has stated. Iwas there with BrotherMohammed Khan fromTracy,CA. US Fiji Times CEORocky Buksh should get thefacts before publishing this kindof letters to the Editer. NewsPapers should be about newsnot for personal gain. If to pub-lish something get the factsstraight. My grateful thanks DJSunny for bringing his soundsystem all the way fromPittsburgh that we were unableto use as the Library changed

their stand in contrast to lastyear when were able to use thesystem and feature certain per-formance. DJ Sunny did notthink “It was just a waste of time“as Mohammed Shaan had stat-ed in The US Fiji Times Letter tothe Editor. We strive for accept-ance from others yet some ofour own stab us in the backwhich is a sad part of our historythat we as a community mustrecognize. One has to lookatwhat happened to theAgricultural Land Tenure Act in1976, the Coalition Governmentin 1987 and to the People'sCoalition Government in 2000,where thespoilers in all thesecases were the self-serving inthe Indo- Fijian community. Atthe time of each coup, thesepeople from within our ownranks were behind-the-sceneinstigators, the financiers of thecoup and the destabilizationcampaigns. The history of theIndo-Fijian people in Fiji has nodull moment. If we are notoppressed by others, we fightamong ourselves which keepsthe story line moving and theexcitement and tension remainvibrant throughout. Even today,we are denied our political rightsin the land of our birth, we arestill fighting against raciallymotivated statutory discrimina-tion in all aspects of life despitea very liberal constitution thatguarantees us equal citizenshiprights and equal opportunities.Our people have been subject-ed to three racially instigatedcoups that have deprived themof their legitimate constitutionalrights to participate in the for-mation of a government and tohelp formulate national policies.

FijisUN 5local News November-2013www.fijisun-usa.com

Fiji GirMityas

It was very thought of FijiAmerican community’ssoccer leader Lalla

Rupen and his wife Sunitato come and grace the veryhumble occasion. In hisbrief speech Lallaexpressed deep regrets forthe lack of attendance. Hereminded everyone that ourorigin is rooted in the Girmitthat “our forefathers suf-fered in and we cannot runaway from that truth. Weneed connect our childrenthat important history,” LallaRupen said.

Lalla’s sentiments wereechoed by Fiji Community’sfamous singer and co-hostNityanand Maiku and land-lord Chopra (inserted byedited) I need not remindyou of the suffering of ourforefathers by the colonists,capitalists and the elite of

the day. It would be sufficeto say that the sacrificeswere made by our forefa-thers in

developing the sugarindustry.

Imported as indenturedlaborers, which is really anice way of saying you arenow a slave of the ColonialSugar Refinery Company,the girmityas faced monu-mental challenges whichthey overcame with dignityand is now evident in therelative prosperity of today'sgeneration. They haveshown that in the face ofdespair and slavery, mencan move mountains andmove mountains they havedone. Youths should drawinspiration from the way gir-mityas overcame the strug-gles they encountered whenthey first arrived in Fiji.

Thoughtful of Lalla Rupento grace the occasion

Major attributesgirmits' sacrificeSpeaking at the youth night tomark the 125th anniversary ofthe arrival of Indians in Fiji, NadiMayor BalramKistaiya said allthe suffering, humiliation andexploitation that the girmityasexperienced was endured sothat their future generationwould enjoy a better and pros-perous life.MrKistaiya said gir-mityas were responsible for thedevelopment and maintenanceof the sugar industry, whichstarted the economic engine ofthe colony which laterbecameIndependent Fiji's economicbackbone.MrKistaiya said thepresent generation shouldgrasp the lessons of the gir-mityas and use it as a drivingforce toward achieving goals.Hechallenged youths to emulatethe significant progressachieved by thegirmityas.MrKistaiya encour-aged youths to follow the princi-ples and vision of nation-build-ing of Ratu Sir KamiseseMara.He said everyone had torecognise the challenges of liv-ing in a multicultural society andensure that all goals were inclu-sive and collective MrKistaiyasaid the nation should show thequalities of hard work, sacrificeand resilience shown by gir-mityas and rise to the chal-lenges affecting the country.Prime Minister, LaiseniaQaraseunveiled a plaque commemorat-ing the arrival of girmits in 1879at the Lautoka Girmit Centre.

1833 Britain abolishes slavery

1834 Indenture system, an alternate source of labour for British Empire, first started with thelabourers being sent to work in Mauritius, Uganda and Nigeria for an initial 5 year period.This system became widely known as "Girmit" - a mispronunciation of the word "agreement"by the non English speaking Indian labourers.

1874 Fiji's Deed of Cession to Britain

1874 Fiji's Deed of Cession to Britain

1875 Fiji first Governor Arthur Gordon arrives. He has already served as Governor in Mauritiusand Trinindad and has encountered indentured labourers. His preference for indenturedlabour as opposed to native labour stems from his unwillingness to employ native labour onthe grounds that it will disrupt village life.

1879 First indentured labourers arrive in Fiji aboard the Leonidas. The ship set sail in Calcutta onMarch 03 and arrived in Fiji on May 14, with 373 male and 149 female labourers. Cholera,dysentery and smallpox were also onboard - 17 labourers had already succumbed to thesediseases.

1882 Colonial Sugar Refining (CSR) company of Australia sets up its first sugar mill in Nausori.

Second emigrant Ship arriveS in Fiji

Fiji'S capital moved From levuka to Suva

1884 The fifth emigrant ship to Fiji, Syria was wrecked on the Nasilai reef, off Nausori on May 11killing fifty six immigrants and three lascars (Indian sailors).

FirSt lot oF labourerS complete their Five year contract. Sixty percent chooSe to remain in Fiji.

1908 Sizes of "Lines" in which the labourers are housed is changed from 10 feet by 7 feet to10feet by 12 feet.

1912 Legislation passed requiring employers of indentured labourers to provide school buildings.

1917 Government grant assistance extended to vernacular schools

1916 Indenture system is officially abolished by Britain.

the laSt Shipload oF labourerS arrive in november aboard theSutlej v. thiS iS the 87th Ship that brought labourerS to Fiji. Some 60,

553 labourerS came to Fiji between 1879 and 1916

1920 All indenture in Fiji is cancelled

1921 Census show 84,475 Fijians and 60,634 Indians and a balance of 12,117 made up ofEuropeans, Chinese, Rotumans and others.

GirMiT AT A GlAnce

Girmit - A centenary Anthology 1879 - 1979,Suva, Fiji: Girmit Centenary Celebrations National Committee, 1979.Girmit: Its Significance in FijiAli, Ahmed, Kumar Printers PVT Limited New Delhi, India, 1979.Crossing the Kala Pani: A Documentary History of Indian Indenture in FijiLal, Brij V, Australian National University and Fiji Museum, Suva, 1998Fiji Times, Special Girmit liftout,Suva, Fiji, May 12, 1979 pp 05 -36.s

ou

rc

es

it was our error inreporting Mr. Zahidbuksh as a cHPofficer. our heart-feltapologies to him forthe mistake. (editor)

To be conTinued nexT issue

FIJISUN6 INDIA NEWSNovember-2013 www.fijisun-usa.com

Gujarat chief minister speaks with the Prime Ministerduring the inauguration of the renovated memorial of

Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel in Ahmedabad.

NEW DELHI: Gujarat chiefminister Narendra Modisaid on Thursday that"Sardar Patel was secularand we want the samesecularism that Sardarsaheb believed in". Takinga swipe at PM ManmohanSingh, Modi said thatSardar Patel was secular

but that that didn't stop himfrom building a temple.Sardar Patel's secularismwas not for vote bank poli-tics, Modi said. TheGujarat CM also said that itwas wrong to associateSardar Patel with any sin-gle party. "Leaders don'tbelong to any party, they

belong to the country,"Modi said.Narendra Modiwas speaking at a functionto lay the foundation stoneof the 'Statue of Unity' ofSardar VallabhbhaiPatel."We want the worldto see the 'Statue of Unity'as a symbol of India's gloryand rise,

AHMEDABAD: In a vieledattack on Congress in frontof Prime MinisterManmohan Singh, Gujaratchief minister NarendraModi on Tuesday said thecountry's destiny wouldhave been different ifSardar Patel had becomethe first PrimeMinister.Sharing dais withPrime Minister ManmohanSingh here for the openingceremony of Shri SardarVallabhbhai SmrutiSmarak, he credited Patel,the first home minister,with uniting the countryand said the same unityand integrity was underthreat from terrorism andMaoism at present. "EveryIndian still regrets that he(Patel) did not become thefirst Prime Minister. Had hebeen the first PrimeMinister, the country's des-tiny would have been dif-ferent," he said in com-

ments that may be seen asan attack on Nehru. TheBJP's prime ministerialcandidate was speaking ata function to inaugurate amuseum dedicated toSardar Patel, who wasborn in Gujarat.InvokingPatel, Modi said the firsthome minister was instru-mental in uniting the coun-try afterIndependence."That unityand integrity of the countrytoday is under threat fromall fronts, be it terrorism orMaoism," he said, addingSingh himself had said thatmaoism is a great threat tothe country. Referring tothose who have resorted toterrorism and Maoism,Modi said they were caus-ing the biggest harm totheir own communities andappealed to the "misguid-ed" youth to shun violenceand return to the main-stream for the country's

development. Citing theexample of Punjab, heasserted that those resort-ing to violence would notsucceed in the country ofMahatma Gandhi andPatel."I want to tell the mis-guided youth who resort tobombs and guns that theycannot succeed in the landof Gandhi and Sardar(Patel). They cause harmto the country. But thebiggest harm is caused totheir own communities," hesaid. Reading from a pre-pared speech, PrimeMinister Manmohan Singhsaid, "Sardar Patel was asecular leader and I repre-sent the same party thathe belonged to." PMseems to question Modi'sclaim on Patel PrimeMinister Manmohan Singhon Tuesday appeared toquestion Narendra Modi'sclaim on Sardar Patel'slegacy as he said the late

leader was secular and lib-eral, having respect forthose having a differentideology. Singh, whilesharing dais with theGujarat chief minister here,underlined that Patel was aCongressman and he wasproud to be a member ofthe same political party hewas associated with."Sardar Patel was secularto the core. He had a deepfaith in the integrity ofIndia. He believed that thewhole country was a vil-lage and people of all com-munities here were his rel-atives and friends," he saidat a function to inauguratea museum on the firsthome minister. The PrimeMinister said it wasresponsibility of everyoneto appropriately makeaware the people of thecountry, particularly theyouth, about Patel's contri-butions.

GANDHINAGAR: Chiefminister Narendra Modiand BJP stalwart andmember of parliamentfrom Gandhinagar L KAdvani will lay the founda-tion stone of the 'Statue ofUnity' of SardarVallabhbhai Patel onOctober 31, 2013. The

ceremony will be heldnear Sadhubet at Kevadiacolony close to the mainSardar Sarvoar dam.Advani,

a former deputyprime minister, will be thechief guest at the function.During the foundation lay-ing ceremony, Advani will

launch the book, 'Hind keSardar',

and also a ringtonefor the title. Besides Modiand Advani, the Speakerof Gujarat AssemblyVajubahi Vala and othersenior leaders will alsoattend the function. Thestatue, when finished,

he Jabbar Travels’ air-con-ditioned Volvo bus beganits journey at 11pm onTuesday fromKalasipalyam area inBengaluru to Hyderabadand picked up 50 passen-gers along the way.

There were 52 people,including the driver and thecleaner, on board.“Charredbodies of 45 persons havebeen retrieved from thebus,” said deputy inspectorgeneral (Hyderabad range)V Naveen Chand. Theaccident occurred around5.10am on NationalHighway-44 near Palemvillage in Mahabubnagar,around 140km fromHyderabad, policesaid.Bus owner ShakeelAhmed said seven people,including driver FerozeKhan and cleaner Ayyaz,escaped through a windowbut suffered burns. Theinjured are undergoingtreatment at various hospi-tals, police said.The otherpassengers were appar-ently asleep when thediesel tank exploded andwere trapped inside thebus.“Most of the passen-gers could not escape asthe flames caught the plas-tic and cloth materials,especially the seats, andwere charred to death,”

Ahmed said.The passen-gers in the bus were burntbeyond recognition, saidWanaparthy deputy super-intendent of police SrinivasReddy. “It appears that thebus was travelling at a highspeed when its fuel tank hitthe roadside culvert andcaught fire. The entire bushas been gutted,” hesaid.Initial reports saidthere were some softwareengineers among thedeceased.“The identifica-tion of the deceased will bedone after conducting DNAtests and collecting bloodsamples of the relatives,”said Mahabubnagar districtcollector GirijaShankar.“The mortalremains will be handedover the kin of thedeceased after the DNAtests.”A team of doctorsfrom Gandhi Hospital andOsmania General Hospitaland forensic experts fromHyderabad rushed to thespot to conduct post-mortem of thebodies.Andhra Pradeshtransport minister BotsaSatyanarayana toldreporters in Hyderabadthat the bus was over-crowded.“The total capaci-ty of the bus was 45 butthere were 50 passengerson board.

Four people died in twoseparate incidents of firingin Uttar Pradesh'sMuzaffarnagar districtwhere at least 60 peoplehad been killed and morethan 40,000 displaced inan orgy of communal vio-lence in August thisyear.Three people diedwhen unidentified armedmen fired at a group offarmers in Mohammadpurvillage of the district. Thefourth critically injured

farmer has been rushedto Muzaffarnagar districthospital, the police said.

It was not yet clearwhether the killing wastriggered by communaltensions or enmity overland.Police rushed rein-forcements to the spotkeeping in view how laxpolicing had allowed theviolence to spiral out ofcontrol.In another inci-dent in nearby Phuganavillage,

Infosys to pay $34million in US

visa caseInfosys Ltd, India's sec-ond-largest IT servicesexporter, has agreed topay $34 million in a civilsettlement with USauthorities investigatingits use of visas in theUnited States, the compa-ny said on Wednesday.US authorities have beeninvestigating Infosys' useof visas since 2011."There were no criminalcharges or court rulingsagainst the company.Furthermore, there are nolimitations on the compa-ny's eligibility for federalcontracts or access to USvisa programs as a resultof the settlement,"Bangalore-based Infosyssaid in a statement."Asreflected in the settle-ment, Infosys denies anddisputes any claims ofsystemic visa fraud, mis-use of visas for competi-tive advantage, or immi-gration abuse. Thoseclaims are untrue and areassertions that remainunproven," it said.Earlierin October, Infosys said ithad set aside a reserve of$35 million as it workedtowards a resolution forthe US government'sinvestigation.

Air marshalArup Raha to be

next IAF chiefAir marshal Arup Raha willtake over as the next chiefof the Indian Air Force,replacing Air ChiefMarshal NAK Browne,who retires on December31.Raha, who is currentlythe IAF's vice chief, willhave a tenure of threeyears in the top job at atime when the air force isexpected to make somecritical acquisitions, includ-ing finalising a $20-billiondeal to buy 126 modernfighter planes.

Sardar Patel should have been India'sfirst PM, Narendra Modi says

Narendra Modi, L K Advani to lay SardarPatel statue foundation stone today

Narendra Modi takes swipe at PM ManmohanSingh, says we want Sardar Patel's secularism

45 charred to death in AP bus fire, DNAtests to be conducted for identity

Rain wreaks havoc in Andhra, Odisha Flood-affected Hinjili block and Ganjam block, Odisha.

4 killed in fresh firing inci-dents in Muzaffarnagar

FIJISUN 7INDIA NEWS November-2013www.fijisun-usa.com

Attacking Congressover the issue of corrup-tion, BJP's prime ministeri-al nominee Narendra Moditoday said he wished tobecome a 'chowkidaar'(watchman) of the peopleso that "no claws canreach the country's treas-ury."

Modi said BJP project-ed him as its prime minis-terial candidate despite hishumble origin as one whohad once sold tea in trains.

He told a party rallyhere that people shouldnot make him the primeminister but only a watch-man.

"I will sit like a chowki-daar in Delhi and promisethat no claws can reachIndian treasury", he said. "Iwant to serve as yourchowkidaar, you havegiven them 60 years, giveus 60 months", he said.

He claimed Congressleaders have not answeredthe concerns of the peopleas they considered them-selves to be rulers.

"It is the time for LokSabha elections. Shouldthey (Congress) not speakabout what they have tosay on corruption? Whyare you not answering?Inflation, crimes againstwomen, should you notanswer? Should not thiselected government

answer to the people? Butthey consider themselvesto be kings and princesand are not willing toanswer," Modi said.

The Gujarat chief minis-ter also attacked UPA'soutside supporters SP andBSP accuising them oflooting the people.

Alleging that povertywas a subject of mockeryfor Congress, Modi saidthe Planning commissionhad come out with statis-tics which suggested thatRs. 26 in rural areas andRs. 32 in urban areas wassufficient to sustain a fami-ly for a day.

The Gujarat CM said hewas experimenting with aproject under which youthfrom UP and Bihar, whowork in Gujarat, would bepaid on an hourly basis fortheir work in factories.

He said the attempt wasto allow them to work moreeach day so that they canget more leave to return totheir homes during agricu-tural season.

Blasts hit Modi's Patna rally

Smoke rises after a blast at the venue of Narendra Modi's Hunkar rally in Patna.

Make me chowkidaar in Delhi, I promise no clawswill reach Indian treasury, says Modi

No change instand on visa toModi: US officialThe US consular generalPeter Haas on visit to Indiahas said there was no changein his country’s policy regard-ing granting of the visa toBJP’s prime ministerial candi-date Narendra Modi. Modi’sUS visa issue had bouncedinto a political controversy inJuly, 2013 when MPs belong-ing to 12 political parties hadurged the White Housethrough a letter "to maintainthe current policy of denyingModi a visa to the UnitedStates.” One such letter wassigned by 25 Rajya Sabhamembers and the other by 40Lok Sabha MPs written onNovember 26 and ecember 5,2012 respectively and re-faxedto the White House in July.In2005, the US had denied Modia diplomatic visa and revokedhis existing tourist/businessvisa under the Immigration.

Former skipper DilipVengsarkar today made astartling revelation aboutunderworld don DawoodIbrahim entering the Indianteam dressing room andoffering the players cars ifthey beat Pakistan in thefinal of the Sharjah tourna-ment in 1986. Vengsarkarclaimed that Dawood hadwalked into the team'sdressing room a daybefore the match andoffered each player aToyota car if they beatPakistan and won theAustral-Asia Cup inSharjah.Vengsarkar saidthe fugitive gangster wasintroduced by the famous

actor Mehmood as a busi-nessman. However,Dawood was asked by thethen India's captain KapilDev to walk out of thedressing room."ActorMehmood was in ourdressing room. Kapil Devwas not in the dressingroom at that time becausehe had gone out toaddress the press confer-

ence. Dawood was intro-duced by actor Mehmood,"Vengsarkar said at a func-tion in Jalgaon."No onerecognised him but I hadseen his photographs.Mehmood introduced himto us as a big businessmanfrom here. Mehmood saidhe wants to announce aprize for us. He said 'If youbeat Pakistan tomorrow,everyone will get a car'.Jayawant Lele was ourmanager then," he added.The match will be bestremembered for the last-ball six hit by JavedMiandad off ChetanSharma that helpedPakistan win the trophy.

Pak army violatesceasefire, fires on for-

ward areasThe Pakistani army onTuesday violated theceasefire once again byfiring on forward areasalong the Line of Control(LoC) in Jammu andKashmir's Poonch dis-trict.Pakistani troopsopened fire with automat-ic weapons and smallarms on forward areasalong LoC in Gambhirarea in Bhimbher Galisub-sectors from 5.10am,defence spokesman ColRK Palta said inJammu.This fresh viola-tion forced Indian troopsguarding the borderline toretaliate with equal calibreweapons, triggeringexchanges which endedat around 7am,

Punjab: inmatesassault prisoner,

upload video on FBThe Modern Jail inKapurthala has landed in acontroversy after an inmatewas mercilessly beaten byanother inmate who thenuploaded the gruesome acton his Facebook page usinghis personal smartphone.The accused Sukhvir Singhalias Sukha Kahlwan, who islodged in the jail on chargesof killing BJP leaderSudershan Dhillon, alongwith 15 to 16 acomplicesreportedly thrashed anotherprisoner to settle an old rival-ry.Sukhvir, an alleged sharpshooter, had created his pageon the social networking siteFacebook on October 1 andhad been updating it regularlyfrom the jail premises.

Defence minister AKAntony on Wednesdayvoiced concern overincreasing ceasefire viola-tions and infiltra-tion attempts fromacross the borderand said they can-not take placewithout the "tacitsupport" of thePakistan Army.

"We are watch-ing all these newd e v e l o p m e n t s .Instead of preventing infil-tration or trying to minimisethe infiltration attempts,still there attempts aregoing on increasing. Thatmeans, these are going onwith the support of ele-ments across the border.

But I am sure nothing hashappened without the sup-port and knowledge andtacit support of Pakistan

Army. It is a mat-ter of concern tous," he saidaddressing apress confer-ence.

The defenceminister won-dered how suchattempts cantake place with-

out the support or knowl-edge of the armed forcesof Pakistan when the inter-national border is guardedon one side by Indian Armyand BSF and PakistanArmy and Rangers on the other.

Two persons were killedand seven others got seri-ously injured when a pow-erful bomb, allegedly plant-ed by militants, explodedat Yaiskul area in ImphalWest district of Manipur onWednesday morning,police said.The bomb(improvised explosivedevice), planted near theroadside at Yaiskul busstand in Imphal to attackthe security personnel,went off at 6.20am killingone person on the spotand injuring eight others,they said.While one of theinjured died in a hospital,the condition of seven oth-ers who are now in theemergency department of

the Regional Institute ofMedical Science andHospital was reported tobe 'serious', sources said.

The spot is about onekilometre south of the offi-cial residence of chief min-ister Okram Ibobi Singhand Manipur police head-quarters which is adjacentto Singh's office-cum-resi-dence, sourcessaid.Immediately after theincident, senior police offi-cials rushed to the spotand blocked the exit pointsto launch a search but noarrest could be made,sources said, adding thatthe bomb might have beenplanted late last night witha timer.

NEW DELHI: BJP primeministerial candidateNarendra Modi's "out-reach" to Muslims at hisPatna rally is not likely tobe a one-off reference asthe leader is expected toelaborate on the themethat minorities need to bepart of the mainstream.After outlining poverty asthe common enemy ofpoor Hindus and Muslimsin Patna, Modi utilized hisaddress at the SardarPatel memorial function atAhmedabad on Tuesdayto argue that extremistshave caused great harm totheir communities. In aless noticed part of hisspeech in Ahmedabad,Modi said that thoseresorting to terrorism andMaoism were causing themost harm to their own

communities. He appealedto 'misguided' youths toreturn to the mainstream.Modi's pitch to Muslimsseems audacious as he isseen by many as culpablefor the post-Godhra 2002riots where the Gujaratgovernment has beenaccused of being complicitin violence against theminority community. Thereference in Patna wasimmediately noticed as itwas fairly detailed andModi lent it particularemphasis, signaling ashift in his poll strategythat has often projectedhis "tough" image in thecontext of attackingCongress over allegedappeasement politics.BJP leaders do see hiscomments as jettisoningof his Hindutva persona,

Ceasefire violations matterof concern: Antony

Vengsarkar: Dawood hadcome in our dressing room

Two killed, seven injuredin Manipur bomb blast

Narendra Modi modify-ing his image?

FIJISUN8 fiJi NewsNovember-2013 www.fijisun-usa.com

A preparatory meetingorganised by the Ministryof Finance and the Ministryof Foreign Affairs andInternational Cooperationwas held last week to coor-dinate all inputs from vari-ous Government sectorsand highlight the potentialsectors in which theEuropean Union (EU) canprovide assistance on.Themeeting was also intendedto prepare Fiji’s position inregards to the program-ming meeting with theDeputy Director General ofEuropeAid, the EuropeanCommission DirectorateGeneral for Developmentand Cooperation Mr.Marcus Cornaro which willbe held tomorrow. That

meeting will see the partic-ipation of an EU delegationand representatives fromthe Fijian Government.TheEuropean Union is nowlooking to re-engage withgovernment in terms ofdevelopment cooperationand tomorrow’s meeting isexpected to cover the 11thEDF ProgrammingDiscussions and the areasof assistance for Fiji’sNational IndicativeProgramme which is tocover a seven year periodfrom 2014 to 2020.ThePreparatory Meetingincluded representativesfrom the Reserve Bank ofFiji, Ministry of Finance,Ministry of StrategicPlanning, Ministry of

Sugar, Ministry of Industryand Trade, Department ofAgriculture, Office of thePrime Minister,Department of Energy andDepartment ofEnvironment. The meetingwas chaired by thePermanent Secretary fromthe Ministry of ForeignAffairs and InternationalCooperation, Mr. AmenaYauvoli. The forum includ-ed discussions highlightingFiji’s development strate-gy, Fiji’s economic update,sectoral challenges todevelopment, develop-ment assistance and coop-eration and also highlight-ed Fiji’s trade, sugar, agri-culture, energy and wastemanagement needs.

The InternationalCommunity has beenurged to assist Fiji in itstransition to return to par-liamentarydemocracy.The call wasmade by an importantplayer in the African,Caribbean and Pacific(ACP) region during the13th ACP SugarMinisterial Meeting inSigatoka. Hon. SatyaFaugoo, the AttorneyGeneral of the Republicof Mauritius and theMinister for Food andAgriculture said it wasimportant that interna-tional partners do not shyaway from assisting Fijiin the transition. “With

Fiji’s Roadmap and thenew Constitution, We(ACP) see every reasonfor the international com-munity to accompany,engage and assist theFijian Government andthe Fijian people as theyprepare to undertakeimportant changes suchas the elections in 2014,”he said.Hon Faugoo alsopaid tribute to Fiji’s con-tribution to internationalforums in recent yearssuch as the Group of 77(G77, the InternationalSugar Organisation(ISO), the MelanesianSpearhead Group (MSG)and other internationalgatherings.

A regional training, aimedat providing capacitybuilding for health profes-sionals in administratingvaccinations, opened inSuva today. With the sup-port of the JapanInternational CooperationAgency (JICA), the WorldHealth Organisation, theUN Children’s (UNICEF)and AusAID, the training

includes methods of stor-age, distribution andmaintenance of vaccines.A total of 20 regional par-ticipations will undergotraining on the manage-ment of vaccine stock,monitoring of storage pro-cedures, cold-chain main-tenance and equipmentrequirements till the endof this week. Fiji’s Health

Minister, Dr Neil Sharmasaid that the trainingwould address commonchallenges faced byhealth professionals in theregion. “Our challenges inthe maritime transporta-tion, ambient temperaturemaintenance and reduc-ing our vaccine wastageby expiry needs attention,”Dr Sharma said. With

over 90 percent successrate, he said that Fijianchildren are protectedfrom more than 13 dis-ease entities through vac-cination. “The Pacificregion has benefited fromthe support of theJapanese people andtheir government andJICA in this wide area ofexpanded program on

immunization and vaccinemanagement”, Dr Sharmasaid. He also highlightedthe need to have betteraccess to vaccination andprotection against com-municable diseases in thePacific. The Minister saidanother aim of the trainingis to strengthen leadershipin the region and provideeasier access to vaccine.

Park Jin Young leaving forhis honeymoon was seen.In Y-STAR "Live StarNews" aired today, the newgroom Park Jin Youngleaving for his honeymoonwas shown. He got mar-ried on October 10 to anon-celebrity 9 yearsyounger than him in a pri-vate wedding and it hadbeen publicly announcedthat he'll be leaving for hishoneymoon on the nextday (October 11), but heappeared at the airport onOctober 12.

Park Jin Youngappeared at the airportwith extra security protec-tion in his blonde hair anda stylish outfit, making ithard to believe that he is in

his 40s. When others rec-ognized him at the airport,he thanked them and said,"I'll be back after a quiet trip."

Pedestrian road

deaths concern

authoritiesAuthorities are concernedwith the high number ofpedestrians who’ve died onour roads so far thisyear.Official stats showthat out of the thirty onedeaths recorded so far thisyear, nineteen were pedes-trians.Fiji Police ForceDirector Traffic SSPMahesh Mishra told FBCNews, the number indicatethat communities aren’tdoing enough to preventdeaths on our roads.“Unfortunately these nine-teen deaths that occur, ifyou see the classificationof these deaths as far aspedestrians are con-cerned,

Nabalebale villagers of ViwaIsland in Yasawa have wel-comed the new Constitutionadding that its translationinto the iTaukei language willnow allow them to find outabout their individual rights.Sakaraia Batiuvi,Nabalebale, the village’sheadman commendedGovernment’s effort in trans-lating the new constitutioninto three different languagesand distributing it. “This is thefirst time for us to be givencopies of constitution andgiven the opportunity to readit and understand it,” MrBatiuvi said.“The iTaukei ver-sion will really assist the eld-erly in the village since most

prefer the translated one. Hesaid this will enable people inrural areas to know theirrights. More than 150 peoplefrom the village were pre-sented sized copies by theMinister for Works, Transportand Public Utilities, ColonelTimoci Natuva.MinisterNatuva said this was part ofGovernment’s initiative toensure that the public arewell informed about the newConstitution. “Copies of theConstitution in English, Hindiand iTaukei languages aredistributed to ensure that allthe Fijians are well informedabout their rights andresponsibilities under the2013 Constitution,”

Detectives

stuDy

FORTY investigators havecompleted a five-week LevelII investigators' course.Investigators from thepolice, prisons department,FICAC and the militaryspent the past five weeks inan upskilling course at theFiji Police Academy. ActingPolice Commissioner RaviNarayan said expectationsby the executive manage-ment of the respectiveorganisations would be highfollowing the course.

Day for the

poor

INTERNATIONAL Day forEradication of Poverty willbe marked at Natewa inCakaudrove. The three-dayevent from October 16-18will carry the theme —Working together towards aworld without discrimination.People in the area are beingencouraged to be part of theevent. They'll be helped withinformation from bank per-sonnel, tertiary institutionsand government depart-ments.

NZ scholar-

ships

TEN postgraduate studypositions in New Zealandwill be available next yearfor Fijians under the PacificScholarships awards. "TheNew Zealand Pacific schol-arships not only recogniseand support leadershippotential, they build countryto country links betweenNew Zealand and Fiji," saidNZ acting head of missionMark Ramsden. Applicationswill be received untilNovember 1.

New health uNit

THE Social Welfare Ministryplans to establish aReproductive HealthServices Unit next year asthe ministry looks to pro-mote healthy reproductivedevelopment among youthand women. Minister Dr JikoLuveni said the good newswas that the UN PopulationFund had approved a pro-posal that the ministry sub-mitted for assistance toestablish such a unit withinthe ministry next year.

BRIEF NEWS

Under the Ministry ofAgriculture’s Rural andOuter Island (ROI) pro-gram a total of fourteen(14) projects have beenapproved for the farmersin the province ofLomaiviti with a total fund-ing of about $93,973.43from the year 2007 to2013.The Ministry’sSenior Agricultural Officerin Lomaiviti NimiloteWaqabaca said majorcrops funded under thisprogram and cultivated bythe farmers in the

province are dalo,yaqona, banana, cassa-va, coconut and otherassorted vegetables.

“Production of dalo andcassava has increasedfrom 2012 to 2013 withfarmers earning an esti-mated $3.07 million fordalo and $12,350,000.00for cassava.” MrWaqabaca included this ina recent brief to theMinister for Agriculture,Inia Seruiratu during hisvisit to Ovalau last weekand added that this would

impact a province consist-ing of eight (8) islandswith the total population ofa close to 21,000 distrib-uted among the 76 vil-lages within these islands.

“Since many people’slivelihoods are fullydependent on farming, yetmajority farmers are stillcultivating on a subsis-tence level.” MrWaqabaca said that theGovernment continues toassist some of thesefarmers under the Ruraland Outer Island (ROI)

Program.Farmers werealso assisted under theCoconut RevitalisationProgram where a total ofsixteen (16) copra drierswere given to people ofKoro, Gau, Nairai andBatiki which brought anincrease of income ofabout $663,790.00 withina year. Coconut replantingprogram is currently con-tinuing on some of theislands as the demand forthe high value productssuch as Virgin CoconutOil continues to grow. The

Minister had also visitedsome of the successfulagricultural projects onthe island which includedthe visit to LigavataYaqona Project andGreen Valley YaqonaProject. Mr Waqabacasaid that the inconsistentshipping services to thedifferent islands in theprovince often hindereddevelopments and thetransportation of produceto the market. MeanwhileMinister Seruiratuassured the Heads of

Department serving in theprovince that the Ministryof Rural and MaritimeDevelopment is lookinginto the matter and wouldsoon address the issuesfaced by the people in theprovince.He said thatthere are opportunities formore developments in theEastern Division and heinstructed governmentofficials serving in theProvince to work closelywith people and assistthem in attaining successin whatever they do.

AGRICULTURAL DEVELOPMENTS IN THE PROVINCE OF LOMAIVITI

FIJIAN GOVERNMENT PREVIEWS

MEETING WITH EU

Park Jin Young, Seen At FijiIslands For Honeymoon

4 ACP CALLS FOR ENGAGEMENT WITHFIJI TOWARDS ELECTIONS PHASE

YASAWA WELCOMESNEW CONSTITUTION

HEALTH MINISTRY SPEARHEADS REGIONAL VACCINATION TRAINING

FIJISUN 9FIJI NEWS November-2013www.fijisun-usa.com

Donors are entitled for Income tax exemption order as per rules under section 80 G (5) (VI) of the Income Tax 1961

WORK AREA- ALL INDIA

Established- 6 years back on 24th Jan. 2006.

Registered

by Registrar of Societies, Govt. of NCT of Delhi Under the Societies Registration Act XXI of 1860, vide Registration no. 54738 of 2006 and Approved by Ministry Home Affairs,

Govt. of India under Foreign Contribution Act

Bank details for donation Donors are entitled for Income tax exemption order as per rules under section 80 G (5) (VI) of the Income Tax 1961

Axis Bank Ltd., Greater Kailash II, Delhi (DL), S-266, Greater Kailash II, New Delhi-110048.

Aditya Vocational & Health Care Society Account Label- FCRA, Customer ID no. 835343160

And Account no. 910010023784119, IFS Code- UTIB0000268,

Swift Code: AXISSINBB268

We serve people (particularly patients) below poverty line on

Preventive & Curative front of Health Care such as

HIV/AIDS, CANCER & Cataract We also impart Vocational Training to make them self dependent.

We also help them financially as well as through medicines and cloths etc.

Free of cost We have team of dedicated Doctors, Specialists, Psychologist, Surgeons, Gynecologists,

Radiologists and Social workers on the panel of our NGO to serve the needy free of cost. We organize medical camps for the diagnosis/warning of Cancer, AIDS/HIV & Eye check up. We also

organize specially designed lectures for students as preventive measure against HIV/AIDS, Cancer & Cataract

CoNTACT: 650-303-3468

Fiji’s largest commercial televi-sion is to shed its majority shares inPapua New Guinea’s number onetelevision company EMTV, as PrimeMinister Peter O’Neill’s governmentmoves to introduce new media own-ership legislation. Waigani has yetto formally announce the new lawbut Fiji Television Limited (Fiji TV) ismoving ahead in anticipation of theimminent move by the PNGGovernment. In one of his firstmedia interviews as Chief ExecutiveOfficer of Fiji TV, Tevita Gonelevutold ISLANDS BUSINESS that itsPNG subsidiary EMTV has been“privately informed” of the PNGGovernment’s intentions. He saidthe plans were communicated to thecompany through a number of sen-ior government ministers and offi-cials in Waigani. He said PNG’sTrade and Commerce MinisterRichard Maru had also made men-tion of these intentions in parlia-ment. “EMTV is the number one tel-evision provider in PNG,” explainsGonelevu. “From the PNG govern-ment side, there have been indica-tions that they would want changesin the ownership of the company.“They would be enacting a law,something like the Fiji MediaDecree, where ownership would bemajority owned by locals. “Theboard of Fiji TV is aware of this factand in the next few months, wewould be working closely withstakeholders in PNG to find the rightpath. “We don’t want to exit fromPNG. We think we have much morevalue to bring into the PNG mediamarket and we will work closely withour new partners to deliver.”

Protecting investmentAsked by ISLANDS BUSINESS

whether Fiji TV had attempted toseek the help of the Fijian PrimeMinister in protecting its investmentin PNG, Gonelevu said Fiji TV hadnot done so. “The FijianGovernment has got similar legisla-tion on media ownership and thestance of Fiji Television has beenwe would comply with all legislationon the media in whatever countrywe operate in.” Research byISLANDS BUSINESS reveals thatthe Melanesian Spearhead Group’sTrade Agreement covers trade ingoods only for now, and thereforethe proposed PNG media owner-ship law does not contravene theMSGTA. Even when the MSGTA iswidened to include trading in servic-es and labour mobility, MSG mem-ber countries can still protect certainindustries from foreign competitionby putting these industries in their‘negative list.’ Peni Sikivou, deputyDirector General of the MSGSecretariat in Port Vila, said: “I canconfirm that the MSGTA is a goodsonly agreement and excludes serv-ices. “However, leaders haveagreed for members to negotiate aroadmap on the possible inclusionof investment, trade in services andlabour mobility in a new economiccooperation architecture whichwould further deepen the level ofintegration between the MSG mem-bership. “A meeting of MSG’s Tradeand Economic Officials will be heldin November to discuss the draftroadmap. The new architectureonce completed, will be tabled atthe 20th Leader’s Summit in

Honiara in 2015.” In Papua NewGuinea, it is unclear whether therest of the media companies operat-ing in PNG are aware of the PNGgovernment’s plans, and whethersome have begun moves to complylike EMTV. In an AustralianAssociated Press (AAP) dispatchdated 17 November 2003, thenDeputy Prime Minister AndrewBaing created controversy when heannounced moves to change mediaownership laws in PNG. He wasdeputy to Sir Michael Somare at thetime. “The statement sent shock-waves through the audience of busi-ness and media chiefs, whichincluded representatives of RupertMurdoch’s News Corporation andKerry Packer’s Publishing andBroadcasting Ltd,” said the AAPreport. AAP had said then thatBaing’s proposals would have seri-ous implications for investors inPNG, at a time when the country isdesperate to attract foreign moneyand promote stability. Then, EMTVwas wholly-owned by Kerry Packer,while the Post-Courier newspaper ismajority-owned by Rupert Murdoch.Malaysian logging giant RimbunanHijau owns The National newspa-per, whilst a Fijian radio firm ownstwo of PNG’s major radio networks.

AggressiveFiji TV did not buy EMTV until

January 2005 when it purchased itfor A$2.1 million, according to theFiji Times. Despite this obvious set-back in its investment portfolio over-seas, Gonelevu who until his Fiji TVappointment was General ManagerInvestment for Fijian Holdings

Limited, which bought the control-ling shares of Fiji TV from anotherFijian investment company, YasanaHoldings early this year. The newTV boss said the Fijian TV companyis still pursuing investment opportu-nities in Solomon Islands, Samoaand Kiribati. He described the com-pany’s expansion plan into thePacific as “very aggressive” and thatit should be announcing its invest-ment in Solomon Islands soon.Similar talks with a local partner arebeing pursued in Samoa while FijiTV is looking into managingKiribati’s sole television service.Gonelevu has appointed the manhe succeeded to lead FijiTelevision’s foray into the widerPacific and grow its investments asthe Pacific’s largest media conglom-erate. Tarun Patel is the company’snew Chief Strategy Officer. He hasbeen CEO of Fiji TV since 1 January2009. The company’s aggressiveplan will be pursued in its homemarket in Fiji too.

November 1 is the launch dateof the new-look Fiji TV, according toGonelevu. “Viewers should expect afresh-look and sound fromNovember 1. Expect changes in ourcontent, including our premier newsservice at 6pm every day. Even ourlocal signal too, especially in someparts of the Suva-Nausori corridorshould improve.”

Sky Pacific will also increase itspaid channels from the current 17channels to 25. Admitting that com-petition in Fiji’s small TV market isintense, the Fiji TV head adds that“competition is good. It keeps us onour toes.”

The African, Caribbeanand Pacific (ACP) Groupof States, stands by Fiji asit charts its future under anew Constitution and elec-tions next year says theACP Sugar MinisterialGroup chairman Hon SatyaFaugoo.He made the com-ments during a traditionalceremony accorded tomembers of the ACP regionwho have gathered atShangri – La’s Fijian Resortin Sigatoka for the 13thACP Sugar MinisterialMeeting.“We (ACP) wish totake this opportunity tocommend the bold and sus-tained efforts made by theFijian Government, underthe leadership of Prime

Minister Voreqe ainimaramato chart an ambitious andan all inclusive economicand political agenda forFiji,” he said.“Let me assureyou Hon. Prime Minister ofthe unifying support andsolidarity of the ACP sugarfamily in Fiji’s coursetowards a betterfuture.”Hon. Faugoo who isa lawyer by profession andthe Attorney General ofMauritius welcomed theprinciples that have beenincorporated in the 2013Constitution.“The adoptionof a new Constitution on 6eptember 2013 whichenshrines fundamental prin-ciples such as an independ-ent judiciary.

PSC AWARDSPSC permanent secretaryParmesh Chand says theService Excellence Awardscontinue to improveprocesses and create effi-ciency within governmentagencies. "Every year thePSC invests in the ServiceExcellence Awards — wehave seen a definite impactof results from the awards,"he said. "We have trainedmore than 500 evaluatorsusing the Australian modelof business excellence."

TEACHERS PRAISEDTEACHERS serving in ruraland remote schools havebeen praised for their workdespite the adversities theyface. Fiji Teachers Unionpresident MuniappaGoundar said rural teachersshould be honoured for thework they do. "I am awareof the fact that many of theteachers have spent theirentire working life in theremote areas, sacrificing theso-called luxuries of townsand cities."

RESEARCH NEEDTHERE is a need for capac-ity-building of forestry offi-cers in sustainable forestmanagement practiceresearch. Professor BimanPrasad says Fiji has goodresearch and extensiontraining programs but in thelast 20-25 years this has notbeen so. "Part of the reasonwe see failure in agriculturepolicies, forestry policiesand livestock policies isbecause we don't havecapacity for research train-ing," he said.

PM OPENS TALKSTHE Prime Minister willopen the 13th African,Caribbean and PacificSugar Ministerial meeting inSigatoka today. Ministersand officials from the ACPkeen on maintaining prefer-ential access to the EU andan extension of the EU'spresent quota system willattend. The talks will be ledby the most senior EU offi-cial to visit Fiji for sevenyears, Deputy DirectorGeneral Marcus Cornaro.

BRIEF NEWS

SUVA, Fiji --- The Governmenthas advised foreign diplomats inPapua New Guinea not to inter-fere in its internal affairs. In astatement Monday, Attorney-General and Justice MinisterKerenga Kua, said diplomatsshould not “implicitly threaten andintimidate this country in the wayit should be designing its socialdevelopment agenda.”He wasresponding to a newspaperadvertisement last Thursdayreleased by ambassadors MartinDihm and Pascal Maubert of theEuropean Union and France, andUnited Kingdom HighCommissioner Jackie Barson.They had said the most disturbingsuggestion discussed frequentlyin their respective countries as ameasure to curb crime in PNG

was the proposal to resume theimplementation of the deathpenalty.They argued the interna-tional trend to abolish the deathpenalty was based on a numberof sound reasons.Their jointstatement read in part: “Thedeath penalty is widely seen asan inhuman and archaic way ofpunishment. “More and morecountries believe that abolitioncontributes to the enhancementof human dignity and the progres-sive development of humanrights; and many faith-basedorganisations see capital punish-ment as violating fundamentalprinciples.“Death is irreversible.Even the best judge or court inthe world can and does commiterrors. Once executed, no worldlypower can ever reverse the sen-

tence when new evidenceappears. “This has been high-lighted with the introduction ofDNA testing and in a significantnumber of cases elsewhere, pre-viously convicted murderers werefound to be innocent.”Kua, who isacting Foreign Affairs andImmigration Minister, said he wassurprised that foreign diplomats inPNG were making comments thatsuggested that the country and itsleadership and the governmentshould break their own laws.“I amextremely surprised that foreigndiplomats in this country shouldbe making comments of thatnature, especially when I haveexplained to them personally thatthe death penalty is legislated byParliament and it is a valid law inthis country,”

Fiji TV to shed PNG shares

Keep out of our affairs: PNG Attorney General

ACP STANDS BY FIJI: CHAIR

For the last ten days, a Pakistani cou-ple, Zulfikar and Fatima Shah havebeen camped outside the Press Club

of India in Delhi, demanding asylum inIndia. The lonely vigil, accompanied by lit-tle homemade posters claiming “Pakistanwants to kill us,” has drawn little attention.Zulfikar and Fatima, however, have quitean incredible story to tell. The Shahs claimto be human rights activists in trouble withthe Pakistan authorities who are trying toassassinate them. They also say that theISI poisoned them when they were living inasylum in Nepal – and that the PakistanHigh Commission has been threateningand harassing them in India. The coupleran a think-tank in Pakistan called theInstitute of Social Movements which theywere forced to shut down in 2012. Zulfikar,who also describes himself as a freelancejournalist, has written extensively againsthuman rights violations, kidnapping andforced conversions of Hindu girls, Federalrights etc, which angered the ISI. He also

has a book called Beyond Federalism pub-lished by German publishers on the sub-ject of Sindhi nationalism. But in “In 2012,the ISI told us join us or leave the nation. Ifyou don’t leave, you’ll be killed,” saysFatima. Image: Shruti Dhapola The couplethen moved to Nepal where, according toFatima, they faced several health issues.In Nepal, the couple had applied for helpwith the UNHRC and were even given asy-lum. Doctors later revealed to them thatthere were slowly being poisoned. Fatimasays the level of poisoning was so severethat her husband had started losing hismemory and faced breathing problems.With no proper medical help, they thencontacted their relatives back in Pakistanwho asked them to return. The argumentwas that if they died in Pakistan, at leastthe finger of blame would point at the gov-ernment. On their return to their country,Zulfikar held a press conference to high-light his story. Due to pressure from inter-national media, the couple was allowed to

go to India for treatment in February 2013,but their troubles did not end. “The doctorat Moolchand refused to believe we werebeing poisoned. When we went to AIIMSafter that, we found that the doctor hadgiven us depression tablets. Later, the doc-tor at AIIMS told us to not to come back. Itwas only the doctors at Apollo whobelieved us and started treated without anyfear from Pak pressure,” says Fatima. Heand his wife are currently in India on amedical visa which expires on 27 October.

Zulfikar is confident that “logically speakingmy visa should be extended.” The couplehave been in India for nine months butmoney has now become a concern. Theywere initially staying at a guesthouse nearJNU but had to leave after they wereunable to pay rent. “SBI was ready to openan account for us but needed residenceproof from the guest house. Initially theperson was ready to help us but the nextday he asked us to leave,” adds Fatima.For now, the Shahs are hoping that theywill be allowed to open a bank account SOas to allow them to continue with theirtreatment for poisoning which will continuefor another 3-4 months. As far as Shah’snewspaper writings in Pakistan dailies likeDawn, etc are concerned, it is hard to findany working links for articles he has writ-ten. It’s also hard to pinpoint what exactlythe Shahs wrote or did that so angered thePakistan establishment to prompt a cross-border vendetta. Marvi Sirmed, a promi-nent Pakistani journalist told us, “It is a bit

problematic to believe the story. Don’tknow him personally, but have been read-ing his stuff. He has written some researchpapers for international think tanks and fornewspapers as well. But I don’t see any-thing outrageously against Pakistan’s intel-ligence community on which they wouldreact violently.” She adds, while she toofears for her life in Pakistan due to whatshe has written, “but its not like I takerefuge in another country or things likethat. Some people make use of foreignmedia, especially Indian media, to seekinternational attention by repeating rheto-ric, without having done much damage tothe policies of military establishment here.”But the Shahs themselves are steadfast intheir demand for a safe haven. “I haveapplied for asylum in other countries, but Ican’t reveal which due to security con-cerns. However I want to be granted asy-lum in India since the culture here and inPakistan is similar, I can adjust easily,”says Zulfikar.

FIJISUN10 PAKISTAN NEWSNovember-2013 www.fijisun-usa.com

Pakistan has said 67 civil-ians died in US dronesstrikes in the country since2008, a figure much lowerthan estimates by inde-pendent organisations.

It said 317 US dronestrikes killed 2,160 mili-tants in Pakistan in thesame period.ThePakistani DefenceMinistry provided the fig-ure on Wednesday in awritten response to theSenate.It claimed no civil-ian had died in a dronestrike since the beginningof last year.The US hasdefended its drone strikesby insisting that it takes"extraordinary care" toensure they comply withinternational law.

Call for explanationThelatest figures released byPakistan differ dramatical-ly from previous esti-mates, but no explanationwas given for the apparentd iscrepancy.London'sBureau of Investigation,which researchesPakistan drone strikes,told the BBC it estimatedbased on reports thatbetween 308 and 789civilians had died since 1January 2008 (of between2,371 and 3,433 totaldeaths).A recent UN

investigator said thismonth that Pakistan hadtold him that US dronestrikes had killed at least400 civilians in Pakistansince they began in 2004.Source: Pakistan defenceministry"If the true figuresfor civilian deaths are sig-nificantly lower, then it isimportant that this shouldnow be made clear, andthe apparent discrepancyexplained," UN specialrapporteur BenEmmerson said in anemail sent to TheAssociated Press newagency.He has previously

accused the US of chal-lenging international legalnorms by advocating theuse of lethal force outsidewar zones.Pakistan'sPrime Minister NawazSharif on a recent visit tothe US called for an end todrone attacks in his coun-try, saying the attacks vio-lated Pakistan's sover-eignty.Drone warfare hasbecome common in theUS pursuit of al-Qaedaand the Taliban.Fewdetails are known aboutthese covert operations,which are directedremotely from control

rooms often on other con-tinents.A controversialaspect of the US policy isthat drone attacks are car-ried out not by the militarybut by the CentralIntelligence Agency.USDefence Secretary LeonPanetta has argued infavour of the policy, sayingthat the US will continue todefend itself.PresidentBarack Obama has insist-ed the strategy was "kepton a very tight leash" andthat without the drones,the US would have had toresort to "more intrusivemilitary action".

Pakistan says drones killed 67 civilians since 2008

Pakistan civilian

drone death figures

n 2008 21n 2009 ninen 2010 twon 2011 35n 2012 zeron 2013 zero so far

Press club dharna: Pakistani couple seek asylum in Delhi

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan hastold the US that Shakil Afridi,the jailed doctor who helped theCIA track al-Qaida chief Osamabin Laden, is not a hero and hisfate will be decided by thecourts. Foreign secretary JalilAbbas Jilani said Pakistan hadtold the US that Afridi wasinvolved in "criminal activities"that violated the laws of theland.

Addressing a news briefingin Washington on PrimeMinister Nawaz Sharif's ongo-ing visit to the US, Jilani saidthe doctor was "not a hero andwas facing cases in courts".Pakistan also told the US thatthe Lashkar-e-Taiba had been

banned and action could betaken against its founder, HafizMohammad Saeed, if substan-tial evidence is made available,he said. Responding to ques-tions after the US house com-mittee on foreign affairsdemanded the release of Afridi,Jilani said that the Pakistanicourts would decide his fate.The demand for Afridi's releasewas raised during a meetingbetween the US house commit-tee and a Pakistani delegation

that includedfinance ministerIshaq Dar, Jilani and SartajAziz, the premier's adviser onforeign affairs and nationalsecurity.The two sides dis-cussed matters related to thewar on terror, militant groupslike the LeT, civil nuclear pro-gramme, drone strikes, energycrisis, educational reforms,regional stability and trade,Dawn newspaper reported.Afridi was arrested shortly afterthe May 2, 2011 raid by UScommandos that killed binLaden. He was subsequentlyconvicted by a court in the tribalbelt on a charge of treason foralleged ties to the Lashkar-e-Islam militant group.

Pakistan militaryblames India fortruce violations

ISLAMABAD : Faced with India'scharges of continued ceasefire vio-lations, Pak military blamed Indiantroops of targeting its forwardposts in the past two days."Indiantroops have intensified violationsand carried out unprovoked firingin Pukhlian, Chaprar, Harpal andCharwah Sectors near Sialkot, andtargeted civilian areas," militaryspokesperson, Asim SaleemBajwa, said in a statement. Itcomes a day after a BSF headconstable was killed and sevenpersonnel injured in heavy firing byPakistani troops, prompting Indianhome minister Sushilkumar Shindeto call for a befitting reply.

WASHINGTON: PakistaniPrime MinisterNawaz Sharif onWednesday urged USPresidentBarack Obama to enddrone strikes in Pakistan,touching on a sore subject justas relations between the twocountries improve after years ofsuspicion over Afghanistan andthe US counterterrorism fight."I... brought up the issue ofdrones in our meeting, empha-sizing the need for an end tosuch strikes," Sharif toldreporters after meeting withObama in the OvalOffice.Relations were badlystrained following the 2011Navy SEAL raid that killed al-Qaida chiefOsama bin Ladendeep inside Pakistan where hewas in hiding. But they appearto be on the mend as the UnitedStates prepares to pull forcesout of Afghanistan in 2014.TheUnited States has quietlyrestarted security assistance toPakistan after freezing aid dur-ing the period of soured rela-tions, when Washington fre-quently voiced complaintsabout the ties of the Pakistani

intelligence service to militantgroups active in Afghanistan.Aseries of major setbacks inrecent years included a 2011Nato air strike that mistakenlykilled Pakistani border guardsand another incident that yearin which a CIA contractor killedtwo men on the streets ofLahore.Obama acknowledgedtensions and "misunderstand-ings" between the two coun-tries. He said he and Sharif hadpledged to work together onsecurity issues in ways that"respect Pakistan's sovereign-ty.""We committed to workingtogether and making sure thatrather than this being a sourceof tension between our twocountries, this can be a sourceof strength for us workingtogether," Obama said.Sharifwas elected prime minister inJune in a historic election thatmarked Pakistan's first civiliantransfer of power after the com-pletion of a full term by a demo-cratically elected government.He is the first Pakistani leaderto visit the White House in fiveyears."

Nawaz Sharif urges Obamato end drone strikes

Doctor who helped track Osama'not a hero': Pak

LAHORE: A teenage girl wasburied alive after being rapedin Pakistan's Punjab province,prompting a court to order aprobe into the brutal attack.Siddique Mughal, a residentof a village in Toba Tek Singhdistrict, located 225km fromLahore, told police that his 13-year-old daughter wasabducted by two unidentifiedmen while she was going to aseminary for Quranlessons.The men took the girlto a deserted place and rapedher. They believed she haddied during the assault and

buried her by the roadside.Mughal said. However, the girlregained consciousness anddug her way out of the mudcovering her. She raised analarm and caught the atten-tion of a passerby, who tookher to a nearby rural healthcentre.As police were notcooperating with the girl'sfamily, the Lahore high courtchief justice's Complaint Celltook notice of the incident onSaturday and directed the dis-trict and sessions judge ofToba Tek Singh to probe thematter.

Girl buried alive afterrape in Pakistan, survives

fiJiSun 11PAKISTAN NEWS November-2013www.fijisun-usa.com

ISLAMABAD : Militantsoverrun a Pakistani policeacademy and kill 100 offi-cers. An Indian spy and heraccomplice waltz in a glitzyflat in Islamabad to cele-brate the success of theirmission.This is a scenefrom Waar (" Strike"),Pakistan's first big-budgetmovie which opened thismonth to enthusiastic audi-ences in the nuclear-armedSouth Asian country of 180million.Filmed with the sup-port of the all-powerful mili-tary, the movie depictsevery volatile aspect ofPakistan's rocky relation-ship with India.Even inPakistan itself, Waar isdenounced by some liberalswary of what they see as

fiery nationalistic rhetoricand scenes demonisingIndia. The narrative is sim-ple and packed with action.Indian villains team up withIslamist militants to plotspectacularattacks acrossPakistan. Pakistani securityforces jump in and save theday."Like any other actionfilm, we wanted to show thetriumph of good over evil,"said director Bilal Lashari,31. "And we wanted to do itwith a great amount of spec-tacle and scale."Politicsaside, Waar is fun to watch.Helicopter gunships whizzover mountains and com-mandos lay siege to militantsanctuaries in Pakistan'spicturesque, lawless tribalregions."The army was

great in that they gave us alot of logistical support,"Lashari said. "All the sceneswith the helicopters and themountains - they couldn'thave been done without thearmy."Though yet to bescreened in India, the filmserves as a reminder of ten-sions between the neigh-bouring states, which havefought three wars sinceindependence from theBritish in 1947.India andPakistan trade accusationsof staging cross-borderattacks and supporting mili-tants in Jammu andKashmir, where violencehas seen a resurgence inrecent months.The moviehas proved hugely success-ful. On a recent viewing in a

packed cinema in the capi-tal, attendees leapt to theirfeet to applaud patrioticscenes.In one suchmoment, a retired officertakes on an Indian contrac-tor on the roof of a buildingwhile a female Pakistaniofficer rushes to defuse achemical bomb planted onthe balcony.Many cheered as the officerreduced the Indian man'sface to a pulp. A womanturned to a group of gigglingboys and scolded them for"laughing during such aserious movie"."Of courseIndia supports terrorism inPakistan," said Sheila Raza,23, as she left the cinema. "Ithink Waar is an accurateportrayal."

new movie shows why Pakistan loves to hate indiarecord box office receiptsPresented almost entirely in English, Waar took more than threeyears to make and officially cost around $2.2 million in a countrywhere the average film is made on less than $25,000. Its distrib-utors say Waar grossed more than $900,000 during the firstweek - a record for Pakistani cinema.But some in Pakistan havemocked Waar as a propaganda movie. Cultural critic NadeemParacha said: "This film is basically the Pakistani state's fan-tasies being played out on a big screen." India's film industryproduces highly successful anti-Pakistan films of itsown.Bollywood film "Ek Tha Tiger", one of the Hindi film indus-try's biggest box-office successes in 2012, but banned inPakistan, depicted a Pakistani intelligence agent choosing herlove for an Indian agent over her country.This year, a film basedon an Indian operation to capture a fictional mafia don givenasylum in Pakistan riled Pakistan's censor board. The villain in"D-Day" was loosely based on real-life gangster DawoodIbrahim, who India says is harboured by Pakistan.

Musharraf's coup was pre-planned,says former Pakistani army generalISLAMABAD : The1999 coup inPakistan that sawthe ouster of PrimeMinister NawazSharif was pre-planned by the thenarmy chief GeneralPervez Musharraf to pre-empt his own removal bythe government, accord-ing to a new book by aformer general. In hisbook 'Yeh KhamoshiKahan Tak', Lt GeneralShahid Aziz, the then DGMilitary Operations andclose aide of Musharraf,

revealed that eventhe army units of thenotorious 111Brigade were issueddirections in writingbefore October 12,1999 to prepare for

the operation. The booksays several meetingswere held at the ArmyHouse to strike at theright time and removeSharif's government, TheNews daily reported.Those involved in thepreparation of the plotincluded the then CGS LtGeneral Aziz Khan,

obama fell prey to indian propaganda: SaeedISLAMABAD: Lashkar-e-Taiba(LeT) founder and26/11 Mumbaiterror attack mastermind HafizSaeed has said that USPresident Barack Obama fellprey to Indian propaganda andissued a statement against theJamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD), anavowedly religious front head-ed by Saeed.In an interview toGeo News here, Saeed onThursday said it was regretfulthat Obama, without makingany investigation into theIndian propaganda, wentahead and "issued a statementagainst us", reported the NewsInternational. Stating thatPakistan's Supreme Court hadearlier ruled that no chargeswere proved against JuD,Saeed said: "India too had

failed to hand over any evi-dence to Pakistan on Mumbaiattacks in the past fiveyears."He added that insteadof levelling allegations againsthis outfit, evidence should bepresented before the court.He

also said that Obama has side-lined the issue of drone attacksand brought up the matter ofJuD during his meeting withPakistan Prime Minister NawazSharif at the White House onWednesday.

Close aide of hafiz Saeed killed in accidentLAHORE : Hafiz Saifullah Mansoor, one of the closeaides of Jamaat-ud-Dawa chief Hafiz Saeedand afounding member of the group, has been killed in aroad accident here.Mansoor was coming to Lahorefrom Islamabad on his car when it skidded off theroad and overturned near Faizpur, a JuD statementsaid on Thursday. He died on the spot, while his gun-man and driver suffered serious injuries. They wereshifted to a hospital in Lahore.

ISLAMABAD: PakistanPrime Minister Nawaz willhold a crucial meeting inLondon this weekwith his British coun-terpart DavidCameron andPresident HamidKarzai to boost theAfghan reconciliationprocess. Sharif willhold the meeting on thesidelines of theWorld IslamicEconomic Forum in theBritish capital. The premierleft for London on Mondayafternoon. The UK's trilater-al peace initiative, the fourthsince the summer of 2012, isaimed at strengthening

c o o p e r a t i o nbetweenAfghanistan andPakistan and to encourage

an Afghan-led peacedeal. The last trilateralmeet was held inFebruary. Nawaz andKarzai last met onAugust 26 when theAfghan leader visitedPakistan to seek full

support and greater cooper-ation in the peace and rec-onciliation process. This isthe World Islamic EconomicForum's first annual event inEurope following meetingsin Malaysia, Kazakhstan,Indonesia, Kuwait andPakistan.

KARACHI: At least 11 peoplehave been killed in gunbattlesbetween rival criminal gangsand law enforcement agenciesin the last 24 hours inPakistan's largest city.Additional IG police, ShahidHayat said that four criminalsdied in exchange of fire withparamilitary rangers and policeyesterday in the crime-infestedarea of Lyari."The rest of thosekilled have died as a result ofgunfire between rival criminalgangs in different parts ofLyari," he said. Hayat said awoman was also killed inSangho area in a handgrenade attack late night. The

clashes between the gangs ofnotorious criminals, UzairBaloch and Baba Ladla erupt-ed after the killing of ZafarBaloch, a local leader of thePeoples Party. The govern-ment has declared a bounty forboth criminals who have alsobeen declared as abscondersby the courts. Sources saidpolice and the rangers werepreparing for a joint operationin the affected parts of Lyari.Lyari, one of the oldest areasof Karachi, has in recent yearsbeen hit hard by violence andis virtually ruled by criminal gangs who have affiliationswith political parties.

11 killed in Karachi violence

ISLAMABAD : Pakistan PrimeMinister Nawaz Sharif had a toughtime at a recent meetingwithAmerican lawmakers duringwhich he was questioned aboutIslamabad's role innurturingJamaat-ud-Dawa andallowing Hafiz aeed to operatefreely to launch attacks in India.The Dawn newspaper cited FoxNews and reported the lawmakersmade a barrage of critical com-

ments and asked harsh, unfriendlyquestions much to the surprise ofthe Pakistani delegation as Sharifended his speech to HouseCommittee on Foreign Affairsmembers on October 22. The law-makers criticized Pakistan's failureto try the Mumbai terror suspectsand urged Sharif to restart the trialsoon. "The attack was so severeand was delivered with so muchferocity that it surprised the prime

minister and he often had to behelped by his aides," said a wit-ness. Some lawmakers blamedPakistan for killing Baluch civiliansand suppressing Baluch andSindhi languages and cultures.Sharif assured them he wouldreconsider the case of ShakilAfridi, jailed for helping the CIA totrack down al Qaeda chief Osamabin Laden. The assurance cameafter US House of Representatives

member Ed Royce and Free AfridiCampaign's Robert Lorsch "heavi-ly pressured" the Pakistani leader-ship over releasing the doctor. Inhis briefing, Sharif had echoed hisUS Institute of Peace speech earli-er and reiterated his appeal to USlawmakers to reengage withPakistan. "Perhaps to appease thelawmakers, the Prime Ministeromitted the appeal he made at theinstitute to end the drone strikes.

The omission, however, had littleimpact on the lawmakers who hadnot come to the meeting tohumour the Pakistani prime minis-ter," the report said. A Los Angelesentrepreneur, who attended themeeting, told Fox News it was "acarefully stage-managed" privatemeeting between Sharif and seniorUS lawmakers in Washington andthat they brought so much pres-sure on him that he pledged a

legal review of the Afridi case. Thetight-knit gathering, which includedPakistan's national security adviserSartaj Aziz andFinance MinisterIshaq Dar, had not been previouslyannounced to the somewhat sur-prised Pakistani delegation, thereport said. The meeting lastedaround 25 minutes in a side-roomprior to the dinner HouseCommittee on Foreign Affairs host-ed for Sharif, it said.

ShArif ASked tough queStionS over SAeed, JAmAAt-ud-dAwA

Sharif to attend crucial meet-ing on Afghanistan in London

Three killed,15 injured inPakistan blastISLAMABAD: At least threepeople were killed and 15 oth-ers injured when a blast hitQuetta, the capital city ofBalochistan province insouthwest Pakistan,Wednesday evening, saidrescue workers. Rescueworkers told a Xinhua corre-spondent on the spot that theblast could have been causedby a bomb planted inside acar, but the nature is yet to bedetermined by the bomb dis-posal squad. At least eightvehicles were destroyed inthe blast, which took place atabout 5.10 p.m. near a gov-ernment office on the DoubleRoad in the city.

FIJISUN12 BANGLADESH NEWSNovember-2013 www.fijisun-usa.com

Two passengers werekilled and at least 40 oth-ers injured as a compart-ment of Chittagong-boundmail train from Dhaka over-turned at Akhaura RailwayJunction in Brahmanbariayesterday. The deceasedwere identified asMostakim, 20, ofMymensingh, and NurulAmin, 35, ofNetrakona.The accidentoccurred as a compart-ment of the Chittagong-bound train overturnedafter being derailed around3:00am, just before enter-ing Akhaura station, saidMd Saidul Islam, officer-in-charge of GovernmentRailway Police (GRP) atAkhaura Railway Junction.

Passengers inside thecompartment were heavilyjolted when four wheels ofthe coach slipped off thetrack.Mostakim and Amindied on the spot as theywere on the roof of thetrain, the OC said, addingthat at least 40 more pas-sengers had sustainedinjuries. The injured weretaken to different local hos-pitals and clinics for treat-ment.The cause of the

derailment could not beascertained immediately,said Abdul Motalib, stationsuperintendent of the junc-tion.A three-member com-mittee headed byDivisional Transport Officer(DTO) of Railway EasternZone Md Nazmul Hossainwas formed to investigatethe cause of the derailmentby three days, headded.The rail communi-cations of Dhaka withChittagong, Sylhet,Noakhali, and Chandpurremained suspended formore than five hours asseven trains remained

stranded at different sta-tions after theincident.Communications,however, resumed around8:30am when a salvagetrain removed the coachfrom the track.Chittagong-bound Turna NishithaExpress got stuck inBrahmanbaria RailwayStation while Sylhet-boundSylhet Mail at Talshar sta-tion, situated in betweenAkhaura andBrahmanbaria; Sylhet-bound another train SurmaMail at Brahmanbaria, andAkhaura-bound Titas atPaghachang.

The wreckage of a train after it derailed early yesterday in Akhaura whilegoing to Chittagong from Dhaka. The accident left two people dead.

GAZIPUR, OCT 31: PrimeMinister Sheikh Hasina onThursday urged the opposi-tion leader not to enforceany agitation programmethat harms the academic lifeof students. “I’ll request hernot to enforce such agitationprogrammes that harm theacademic life of innocentstudents,” she said referringto the opposition’s next pos-sible hartal that might beginon Monday. Sheikh Hasinasaid the junior school certifi-cate examination will starton Monday when the oppo-sition is going to enforcetheir further agitation pro-gramme. The PrimeMinister was addressing amammoth rally organisedby Gazipur Awami Leagueat Bhawal Badre AlamUniversity College with itspresident AKM MozammelHaque, MP in thechair.About the last 60-hourhartal, Sheikh Hasina said,“Had she (Khaleda)responded to my requestand sat with me then 20people wouldn’t have losttheir lives. So, she’s respon-

sible for these killings.”Hasina, also the Presidentof the ruling Awami League,said the opposition leaderhas gone crazy to save her‘intimate companions’ ofwar criminals who had killedinnocent unarmed people,raped women, made arsonattacks and collaboratedwith the Pakistan occupa-tion forces during theLiberation War.LambastingKhaleda Zia for frequentlyenforcing hartals, the PrimeMinister said the oppositionleader is shattering theeconomy with her destruc-tive agitation programmes.“She (Khaleda) had lootedthe country when she was inpower and is now destroy-ing the country by enforcinghartals and affecting theacademic life of students,”she told the rally.

Death annivy of MoksedurRahman observed

DHAKA: The fourthdeath anniversary ofeminent educationistand former teacher ofTeachers' TrainingCollege ProfessorMoksedur Rahmanwas observed onThursday. He was ateacher of DhakaGovernmentLaboratory School till1973 since its incep-tion. Later, he servedin Barisal ResidentialCollege, ComillaTeachers' TrainingCollege and FeniTeachers' TrainingCollege. Rahman,father-in-law of jour-nalist Omar Faruque,president of DhakaUnion of Journalists(DUJ), was also ateacher of AhsaniaMission Teachers'Training College.Moksedur Rahmanwas born in Solna vil-lage in Sadar upazilaof Barisal district.

BHOLA, OCT 31: The drivelaunched against catching ofhilsha fish during the bannedperiod has become successfulin Bhola. About 211 fishermenwere arrested, 95 of them weresentenced to one month to oneyear imprisonment each by themagistrate of mobile court forcatching hilsha fish defying theban on catching hilsha during11 days in seven upazilas ofBhola district. At a press confer-ence held at the coastguardzonal headquarters (SouthZone) of Bhola it was disclosedthat during the drive conducted

by coastguard, police and localadministration fishing trawlers,banned fishing nets and hilshafishes worth about Taka 128crore were seized.The coast-guard authority stated that atthe 11 days long drive 211 fish-ermen were arrested, 92.92 lakhmeters of current nets, onecrore and seven lakhs meters ofother banned nets, 8,972 kilo-grams hilsha fish and 93 fishingboats and trawlers were seized.During the drive local police andcivil administration and the offi-cials of Fisheries Departmentwere present. District Fisheries

Officer of Bhola, Pritish Kumar,thanked the journalists and themagistrates who cooperatedwith them for successfully com-pleting the drives. He also saidthat they hoped that the drivewill contribute to good produc-tion of hilsha in the next sea-son.District Fisheries Officeralso said that most of the fisher-men were supporting the gov-ernment’s decision of banningnetting of hilsha fishes fromOctober 13 to 23 for safe breed-ing of hilsha in the current sea-son. Coastguard Bhola ZonalCommander thanked the local

journalists for cooperating withthem during the drives. Anotherreport adds: Bangladesh IslamiBank Bhola and Borhanuuddinbranches distributed reliefgoods among 2,500 destitutefamilies on October 26.Sourcessaid that the bank distributedthe relief goods among the floodaffected families who were livingin a miserable condition for thelast four months due to the tidalwater.The distribution functionwas held at the Bhola branchauditorium and was presidedover by Eanur Rahman, execu-tive vice president of Islami

Bank Barisal zone. WhileMostafizur Rahman, DeputyCommissioner of Bhola, attend-ed as chief guest at the func-tion. About five hundred familiesof Bhola sadar and two thou-sand families of Borhan Uddinupazila were provided with foodand cash money asrelief.Among others, the distri-bution function was attended byJasim Uddin Haider, upazilaChairman of Borhan Uddin,Jangir Hossain, Upazila NirbahiOfficer of Borhan Uddin, andZillur Rahman Al-Mahamud,Manager of Bhola branch.

IshwardiAirport reopensafter 17 yrsPABNA: Ishwardi Airportwas reopened by Ministerfor Civil Aviation, FarukKhan, on Wednesday after17 years of closure. UnitedAirways, a private airlines,initially will operate twoweekly flights on Saturdayand Monday with a 37-seated DASH- 100 aircraft.The one way fare on theroute has been fixed at Tk4,000 including all taxesaccording to the CivilAviation AuthorityBangladesh (CAAB).Earlier, the ministerreached Ishwardi Airportboarding on the aircraft ofUnited Airways at about11.40 am onthe day. State minister for

Home, Advocate SamsulHaque Tuku, was present,among others, on the occa-sion. Ishwardi Airport wasset up on 412 acres of landin 1960 and was destroyedduring the Liberation War in1971.

56 jailed formurder inNetrakonaNETRAKONA, OCT 31: Atotal of 56 persons were sen-tenced to varying terms ofimprisonment for killing aperson in Netrakona.Additional District andSessions Judge Court ofNetrakona, in a judgment,delivered on October 30,convicted and sentenced sixpersons to suffer rigorouslife-term imprisonment with afine of Tk 20,000 each, indefault, to suffer two yearsmore rigorous imprisonmentand 50 others to suffer threeyears rigorous imprisonmentwith a fine of Tk 5,000 each,in default, to suffer six monthsmore rigorous imprisonmenton the charge of killiing AbulKashem. a day-labourer byprofession. According to courtsources, the life-term convict-ed persons are MojiborRahman, Ratan Mia, SaifulIslam, Shajahan Mia, NoorMia and Jahangir all of villageSowair in Mohanganj upazilaof the district.

Around 700 convictedcriminals bailed in sixmonths Law enforcers areoccupied with the activitiesof political parties and arepaying less attention toother crimes. This has cre-ated an opportunity forcriminals to engage incrimes like murder, robbery,snatching andmugging.Even the mostsecure areas like the MPs’hostels opposite the parlia-ment have been robbed.Specialists are concernedthat if such activities contin-ue than the city dwellerswould face security prob-lems and the investigationof ongoing criminal caseswill lose their credibility.Contacted, Dr S AhsanHabib, a professor of soci-ology department in DhakaUniversity and a criminalspecialist, told the DhakaTribune that such problemshave happened underevery government. If thegovernment cannot takenecessary steps it would

create a serious problem,he added. Quoting aTransparency International,Bangladesh (TIB) report,the professor said usuallyonly 18.4% of police workhours are spent after crimi-nal investigation, while40.6% are used to coverpolitical rallies and pro-grammes and 32.7% forVIP security.Inspector gen-eral of Police HassanMahmood Khandker saidthe statistic was wrong andpolice did their activitieskeeping all aspects in theirschedule.“There is noneed to become anxiousabout this. Police’s mainduty is to ensure the secu-

rity of citizens,” heassured.On the otherhand, a statistics of policeintelligence says around700 different terms-basedconvicted criminals got bailfrom jail in the last sixmonths.Police intelligenceis preparing a list of suchcriminals. Most of them arenot attending court for theirscheduled hearings andmost have changed theiraddresses and houses. Asource from the lawenforcement said with thenational polls closing in, themovement of criminals hasincreased. Local criminalsare setting up their densagain and getting in touch

with their favourite politicalleaders to set up the planfor upcoming polls.Intelligence officials areinvestigating at the fieldlevel to find out how thesecriminals are getting bailfrom court and to identifythe political leaders behindthem.

In this list, the intelli-gence officials have so faridentified several lawyers.They also said criminalswere getting bail due topoor forwarding report frominvestigating officials.Shamsul Haque Tuku, thestate minister for home andaffairs, told the DhakaTribune that law enforcerswere alert to check for anykind of criminal activitiesahead of the national polls.

“We have some informa-tion that some noted crimi-nals got bail from jail butthere is nothing to worryabout as instructions havebeen given to make a list ofsuch criminals and arrestthem again,” he said.

2 killed, 40 hurt as train derails Khaleda enforcing hartal todestroy country: PM

Police busy stopping political violence

211 fishermen arrested, fishing trawlers, nets, fish worth Tk 128 crore seized

fijisun 13IslaM toDay November-2013www.fijisun-usa.com

A word of Advice to the fiji MusliM coMMunities in usA

“ Please do not privitize Islamand box it into secterian devides”

By H. Koya (PhD Islamic Metaphics)

While it is my foremost duty to help ourbrothers and sisters of Fiji American Muslimsin promoting their good work, I have a fargreater responsibility to draw the differentshades of distinctions that exist within them.For an outsider it might seem like Sunni,Shiah or Ahmadi devide but the truth of thematter is there are more serious divisionswithin the Sunnatul Jmaat of Fiji than whatmeets the eye.

The Milaadis, Non-Milaadis, Tablighisand the Malayalam Muslimsof Fiji

It is one thing to be at variance with anIslamic group – such as the AhnadiyyaMuslims – but it is a socking matter to be atodds from within. At the outset the main-stream Fiji Muslims boast of being part andparcel of Sunnatul Jmaat but within them theyare devided first as Indian Muslims andMalayalam Muslims the latter being severelycomitted to their Arabic milaad and former foraffinity with Urdu and then dvided as milaadisand nonmilaadis. For decades it was eitherIndian Muslims – a term used for Urdu orient-ed Muslims – and Malayalam Muslims withvery minimal social interactions and mar-raiges being confined within those limits.Then nonmilaadi phenomanon came in anddevided the Inidian Muslims into two camps.

Tablighis (the Wahhabis) under the patron-age of Saudi Arabia was a late comer in thelate 1960s that raised a lot of eyebrows oftheir home-visiting Tabligh programs. It tooksome time for them to establish their foot-ingsand gain support of the nonmilaadis.With the massive migration of Fiji Muslimsabroad particularly to USA, the inherent divi-sions followed them.

Privatized and marginalized practice of Islam

Despite the fact that Islam is for all people

and for all times, there is no credible evidencein any of the Fiji Muslim communities of invit-ing others – especially Americans to Islam.Islam is confined within the four walls of theirhomes.

It is good to reap the worldly benefits ofthe American systems, the social security,unemployment benefits, the Medicare andmedical but to rise to the level stipulated inthe Holy Quran when God commandsMuslims to “ invite them with Hiqma (wisdom)“, is not their cup of tea. In contrast AhmadMuslims are extremely conscious of this highcall and commandment of God. In addition toinviting people of other faiths to their events,Eid and Iftari dinners at their mosques, theyhost hundreds of guests at their annualevents all-expense paid. Most guests areaccommodated at local hotels or universityboarding rooms The result of the conservativeand privatized Islam is that the message ofIslam does not reach out and Islam is keptfrom spreading and prevailing.

Clear understanding a pre-requisite In my interactions with the Fiji Muslim

communities - both at personal level and atthe leadership level - I am baffled to say thatthere is very low percentage that has a clearunderstanding of Islam and its history. Manyso called leaders are stuck in the old school of

thought. They have not read outside theirdomestic literature or tails retold at family andprivate gatherings.

Karen Armstrong and other writers

It requires no elaborate evidence to under-stand that not even 1% has read Karen

Armstrong. I can-not see how beingin US the FijiMuslims can talk toAmericans withoutreading her bookMUHAMMED APROPHET FOROUR TIME

Here’s A syN-oPsIs oF

KAreN’s booK:“ The Man Who

Inspired theWorld's Fastest-

Growing Religion, Muhammad presents a fas-cinating portrait of the founder of a religionthat continues to change the course of worldhistory. Muhammad's story is more relevantthan ever because it offers crucial insight intothe true origins of an increasingly radicalizedIslam. Countering those who dismiss Islam

as fanatical and violent, Armstrong offers aclear, accessible, and balanced portrait of thecentral figure of one of the world's great reli-gions.” I personally met Karen at a book sign-ing event downtown San Francisco and con-veyed her the gratitude of the AHMADIYYAMUSLIM COMMUNITY OF SFO BAY AREAand presented her certificate of appreciationwhich she gracefully accepted.

Fiji Muslims are pitted against the knowl-edge of Bible the mainstay of AmericanChristians and their lifestyle. Let alone read-ing the Bible – which Quran affirms as a Bookto be reckoned and has ordained Muslims torespect the Jews and Christians as “people ofthe book- the Fiji Muslims are poorly read inthe Quran. Very few are well read in Biblical

and Quranic studies and the theologies.

recitals, Milaad and ratib personal and private affair

Abiding by the five pillars of Islam is com-pulsory. Recital of Milaad and Ratib are notmandatory acts in Islam they are not evenoptional. The Holy Quran does not even men-tion them make it obligatory, therefore, it doesnot constitute a sin or a violation if one doesnot observe them.

They want to understand the basics of Islam

When you go out in the open market todistribute Islamic literature to the Americans,you will find majority of them want to know thevery basics of Islam. No one asks you aboutthe Milaad,

Nabiyeen. The Fiji Muslims severely lackin this experience.

Aloofness with ICNA and ISNA There areat least three distinct decision-making bodiesin the mainstream Muslims in USA, the ICNA,ISNA and FIQAH COUNCIL. Having servedon a local body NCIC, I know that FijiMuslims are not part these major organiza-tions. The Fiji Muslim communities chooseoperate in isolation and aloofness with themainstream limiting them from lots of benefitsto them.

Hajji Mohammed Iqbal Khan ofGading mosque

From the little that we know, we under-stand that Hajji Mohammed Iqbal Khan ofGading Mosque in Hayward stands out whenit comes to explaining the message of Islam.He is articulate, concise and convincing.Other Muslim leaders lack in the depth ofknowledge of Islam and spontaneity of pres-entation that come to us by extensive readingand experience.

Invite Americans and share the messageof Islam in huge numbers !

Not aN easy task

It is not easy to spread Islam. Itrequires a planned and aggres-sive effort suited to address theneeds of the American public. Itrequires a socio-psychologicalanalysis to transform the needsinto personal development goalsof Americans caught in manyunfortunates life situations andto provide the comfort of easy,safe and secured living underthe shade of Islam.

WorldWide leAder of THe AHMAdiyyA MusliM CoMMuniTy, presenTing HolyQurAn To THe MAori King

Unforgettable scenesas Hazrat MirzaMasroor Ahmad

given traditional Maori wel-come

On 29 October 2013, theWorld Head of the AhmadiyyaMuslim Community (Jamaat)and Fifth Khalifa, Hazrat MirzaMasroor Ahmad was wel-comed by King Tuheitia at theTurangawaewaeMarae in NewZealand and given a traditionalwelcome by the Maori commu-nity. Upon arrival at 10.30am,three members of the Maoricommunity welcomedHazratMirzaMasroor Ahmadwith a traditional Maori warriorexhibition.

The Maoris began the exhi-bition at a far distance from HisHoliness but advanced step bystep whilst roaring in theirnative tongue, whilst femalemembers of the Maori commu-nity chanted from the side. AsHis Holiness proceededthrough the Marae, dozens ofMaori children and elders alsopartook in the welcome by

chanting in the Maori lan-guage.

During the formal session, anumber of Maori elders wel-comed Hazrat Mirza MasroorAhmad with short speeches.

The elders recognised HisHoliness as “an inspirationaland strong leader who advo-cates for peace.”The highlightof the event was when HazratMirza Masroor Ahmad present-ed King Tuheitia with a copy ofthe Holy Quran, recently trans-lated into the Maori languageby MrShaqeel Ahmad Munir.

During the presentation cer-emony, Hazrat Mirza MasroorAhmad addressed the tribalelders and thanked them fortheir traditional welcome.

Speaking about the Quran,Hazrat Mirza Masroor Ahmadsaid:

The Quran teaches peoplehow to live together in peaceand certainly today we needlove, peace and reconciliationto spread far and wide – that isthe message of the Quran.

Hazrat Mirza MasroorAhmad concluded his addressby expressing his hope that themutual friendship developedbetween the AhmadiyyaMuslim Jamaat and the MaoriCommunity would last forever.

The Quran teachespeople

how to livetogether in peaceand certainlytoday we needlove, peace andreconciliation tospread far andwide – that is themessage of theQuran.

Hazrat MirzaMasroor Ahmad

Muslim Leader Presents Quran to Maori King

FIJISUN14 galleryNovember-2013 www.fijisun-usa.com

FIJI SUN

TV

510-677-4488

www.fijisun.org

happydiwali

YES, CHARLENE WAS THERE

At Abdul’s grandson’s Aqeeqah

FOR PROFESSIONAL

VIDEO AND PHOTOS

CALL: FAIZAL ALI

510-943-8425

FIJISUN 15October-2013www.fijisun-usa.com

17October-2013 October-2013

One Store for

all your Daily Grocery Needs

A storeof quality

Groceries & Products

16 FIJISUN

FIJISUN18 October-2013 www.fijisun-usa.com

FIJISUN 19november-2013www.fijisun-usa.com Art & EntErtAinmEnt

501 S. NORFOlK STREET, SAN mAETO, CA 94401 ATENDRA SINGH

SAN MAETO SERVICESSAN MAETO SERVICESYOUR NEIGHTBORHOOD AUTO SHOP & GAS STATION

GOlD SHIElD GAS STATION! AmERI GAS-PROPANE SOlD HERE!

PHONE : 650-344-7811 CELL : 650-219-7995

Email: atendra45@yahoo.com

By Ras H. siddiquiHe lived amongst the afflu-

ent but also led a life of hard-ship, and this cycle was repeat-ed more than once in his life butin the end Nawab Mirza Khanwould become the last of greatclassical urdu poets of thedelhi school, from an era whichbegan with the grandmaster ofthem all, Mirza asadullah KhanGhalib and his contemporarysheikh Muhammad ibrahimZauq. Mirza Khan’s nom deplume or Takhallus, daaghdehlvi, in its literal sense wouldtranslate to the “stained or taint-ed one from delhi” but since weare in the realm of poetry hereone can take some liberties totranslate this penname fromurdu into English (an often diffi-cult if not impossible task) so hebecomes the Mark of delhi forthis writing.

Born in that city in the year1831, daagh died in Hyderabad(deccan) in 1905 (rumor has itthat he left this world onValentine’s day) leaving behinda rich legacy of ghazals andother writings inclusive of manymahavara’s (proverbs) makingsome of his work even moretreasured.

a unique event was held indaagh dehlvi’s honor at theiCC in Milpitas, California onseptember 8 th under the title ofGulzar-e-daagh organized byone of the san Francisco Bayarea’s leading urdu luminariesMrs Hamida Banu-Chopra and

sponsored by Computers &structures inc. (Csi’s ashrafHabibullah was present in theaudience here). a gulzar (gar-den) of daagh’s work was pre-sented at this venue duringwhich close to 200 enthusiastsof urdu and Hindi inhaled hispoetic fragrance. and for some-one who had left this world overa century ago, he lived onceagain at the iCC for over twohours and even taught us athing or two about life duringthis brief period.

Hamida sahiba started theproceedings with a brief wel-come and invited Khawajaaftab ali to the stage to presideover the event. incidentallyKhawaja sahib happens tobelong to the khandaan ofanother great poet by the nameof Hali so his sadarat of thismehfil was due to both knowl-edge and lineage.

The first person to recitedaagh dehlvi’s work wasamjad Noorani which includedsome matters of the heart and

loss of life’s luggage.anshuman Chandra, a studentof urdu, thanked both the iCCand his “ustad” or teacherHamida for her guidance beforepresenting two of the poet’sghazals which included cou-plets on betraying the self (KiyKiya Fareb dil Ko deye). andhe was followed by Mrs atiyaHai who used her convincingvocals to delve into the hope-lessness of love ever present insome of daagh’s verses.

Mrs.Hamida Banu-Chopranext presented an interestingbiographic window into daaghdehlvi’s life. The poet tragicallylost his father at a very youngage and was fortunate that hismother remarried into the familyof the Mughal rulers giving himan opportunity to spend a fewyears growing up in the Lal qila(Red Fort) in delhi. Things wentwell till the 1857 war of inde-pendence (aka Mutiny) afterwhich Bahadur shah Zafar, thelast Mughal Emperor of india,lost his throne and was exiled.

The Royal family or what wasleft of it struggled and his step-father too soon passed away,forcing Nawab Mirza Khan(daagh) to find refuge like manyothers in Rampur state (whoserulers incidentally did not actagainst the British in 1857).Later in life the poet left toreside in Hyderabad in thesouth where his success as aman of urdu poetry and litera-ture was sealed. His biggestcontribution to urdu was thelegacy he left within thousandsof his students who becameactive all over india (includingpresent day Pakistan).

drawing inspiration fromdaagh poets like JigarMoradabadi and the twoBekhud’s, he inspired anothergreat poet known today asallama iqbal (even though thetwo never met). an interestinganecdote on daagh shared byHamida sahiba here (on alighter side) was his reply toanother poet who complainedto him and asked why his own

poetry just didn’t have theattractive spirit that daagh pos-sessed. “Have you everromanced a courtesan?” wasthe question-answer-hint hereceived in reply from daaghdehlvi. deepti Warrier nextrecited two of the poet’s worksin tarrannum or song-like fash-ion in which she romanticizedabout names and about the onewho taught others how toromance. and not to be left outanil Chopra, whose well-knowncivil engineering skills some-times have to take a back seatto support his wife Hamida’slifelong romance with urdu, pre-sented his own views on thepoet’s work and life! drMuhammad saleem Malik fol-lowed up with a wonderful syn-opsis of daagh dehlvi’s lifeleaving many in the audienceliterally amazed. He was fol-lowed by Ravi who used thepoet's pulling of arrows out ofchests and paths less travelledto entertain everyone. drsalman siddique also present-

ed two ghazals of daagh, asthe sadr of the event Khawajaaftab ali next enlightened usfurther on the poet’s workbefore anupama dazzled uswith her fine voice about mem-ories (yaadain) and amaze-ment.

Hamida sahiba came backto formally close the program.she thanked ashraf Habibullahof Csi for making this programpossible and everyone else fortheir participation.

The Mark of delhi or daaghdehlvi may not be alive todaybut his many contributions tothe urdu language live on. Thatpeople from as far away as thedefense Language institute(dLi) in Monterey andCalifornia’s Capital City ofsacramento came to attend thisprogram in the san FranciscoBay area serves as a testimonyto works of both the enthusiastsof the urdu language likeHamida sahiba and the poeticgenius of daagh dehlvi.

The Mark of Delhi: Daagh Dehlvi

D iwali has alwaysbeen a special festi-

val for DeepikaPadukone. Ever sinceher childhood days, theactor has loved the revel-ry and joyous mood thatthe festival brings with it.Even today, she alwayslooks forward to spend-ing time with her familyduring Diwali. However,with so many projectslined up, Deepikadoesn’t always get thetime to do so. But thistime around, things aregoing to be different forthe actor as she hasmanaged to take a shortleave during the festival.A source close to theactor reveals, “Deepikacarries with her fondmemories of spendingDiwali in Bengaluru, light-ing diyas in the house

along with her mom andsister. She plans to takea break from all hershoots and promotionsand take a couple ofdays off to be with herfamily.” The source tellsus that since it may bedifficult for her to securea long leave, Deepikamight just end up takinga day or two off. Whenwe asked the actor aboutthis, she neither con-firmed nor denied thenews, saying, “Diwalimakes me miss homethe most. It is one of myfavourite festivals.”

FIJISUN20 BOLLYWOODNovember-2013 www.fijisun-usa.com

For a country of over1 billion Hindus andan industry that

absolutely loves to cele-brate Diwali parties withBollywood song anddance. Diwali is the coun-try’s largest national holi-day, lends itself brilliantlyto poetry (festival of lightsimagery, the story of theRamayan, etc.), and ispractically bound to suc-ceed by virtue of havingvery little to compete with.People are practicallyaching for these songs! Yetthey hardly exist, muchless ones worth hearingover and over.

To be sure, plenty ofgreat Diwali bhajans existoutside the realm ofBollywood (look no furtherthan Tulsidas classic ShriRam Chandra), many ofwhich have excellent cov-ers by our favoritep l a y b a c ksingers. But with-in the films? Thepickings are slim.

Let us consid-er the example ofChristmas as weknow it in America.When we think of greatChristmas jingles, thesongs we namepredominantly come fromhit singers or church tradi-tions – with only a fewactually having made it topopular culture from films,despite Hollywood havinghad a long and successfulmusical film movement(Judy Garland’s “HaveYourself a Merry LittleChristmas” comes tomind).

So perhaps Bollywoodis no different. Becausesinging a song aboutDiwali actually requiresDiwali to be a major part ofthe plot, the happy coinci-dence rarely occurred–much less with the goodfortune of also havingbeen a brilliant composi-tion. Furthermore, celebra-tions like Holi for which wecan name at least a hand-ful of terrific Bollywoodsongs, actually lend them-selves much better to anupbeat and colorful partyon-screen–so musical

composi-tion could be a bit morerelaxed. With Diwali,you’re treading on sacredground–and why messwith something that non-filmi bhajans do way betteranyway?

Like many other festi-vals in India, includingHoli, Dahi Handi andGanesh festival, Diwaliused to find space in Hindimovies once in a while, ifnot frequently, in the formof a theme, scene, song ora reference point.

Here’s a look at howBollywood celebratesDiwali – the victory of goodover evil in various ways!

An upbeat song withlots Westernized rhythmand harmony, HappyDiwali in movie HomeDelivery (2005) has acatchy tune that celebratesthe spirit of Diwali. Thesong is picturized on kidsand will instantly connectwith joyous children.

Karan Johar's 2001 hit

movie Kabhi Khushi KabhiGham had a scene onDiwali, which was used toshow how times changedfor the Raichand family.The film opens with ascene, in which, charac-ters played by Amitabhand Jaya Bachchan per-

form a Diwali puja. KabhiKhushi Kabhi Gham hasbeen sung by melodyqueen Lata Mangeshkar. ADiwali song, which hasstrong Indian classical ele-ments, it is picturised onJaya Bachchan, AmitabhBachchan, Shah Rukh

Khan, Rani Mukerji andthe entire star cast of thefilm. Lavish sets, opulentcostume and great musicmakes Kabhi KhushiKabhie Gham all the morespecial.

In Aamdani AtthanniKharcha Rupaiya (2001),Ayee Hai Diwali is a light-hearted number, based onthe playful banter of hus-band and wife. With lots ofcrackers and fireworks, thesong literally lights-up thescreen. In Aditya Chopra'sMohabbetein (2000) Diwalisignified a union of threecharacters played by UdayChopra, Jugal Hansraj andJimmy Shergill with theirbeloved, played byShamita Shetty, KimSharma and PreetiJhangiani respectively Apopular Dilwali songPairon Mein Bandhan Haicelebrates the spirit oflove and harmony onDiwali. Check out the dholbeats, which make it all themore peppy and exciting.A perfect song to celebratethe festival.

In Haqeeqat (1964),Aaye Hai Abke Saal Diwaliopens on a somber note,portraying the plight of sol-diers away from their fami-lies during festive season,safeguarding their nation.The song is not only slowpaced but also has lots of

pathos.In Hariyali Aur Rasta

(1962) the song LakhonTare Aasma Mein Magar,is sung by evergreenMukesh and LataMangeshkar and is pictur-ized on Manoj Kumar andMala Sinha. The song isnot only meaningful butcarries a lot of depth as itfocuses on human suffer-ing juxtaposed with festivalof lights.

Crooned by Mukesh,Ek Wom Bhi Diwali Thi inNazrana (1961) dwellsupon the dark side of thefestive spirit, where noteveryone is happy and incelebratory mode. Thesong offers some soulsearching, instead of burn-ing fire-crackers and shar-ing sweets.

A Mohammad Rafinumber pasteurized onJohny Walker, Kaise DiwaliManaye in Paigham(1959) is a humoroussong, evocating the plightof the poor and impover-ished during the festival oflights, for whom, each fes-tival is alike.

Songs on Diwali hadalso become quite popular.For the 1943 film, Kismat,Amirbai sang Ghar GharMein Diwali Hai..,Shamshad Begum sangAai Re Aai Re Diwali.. forthe 1949 film SeeshMahal. Even though Diwalihas made a slow disap-pearance from Hindimovies over the years, fes-tivities continue to rule thetelevision. On the smallscreen, the festive fervorcontinues to dominate dur-ing such times, as that isthe requirement on televi-sion.

Diwalino longEr cHarms

BollywooDDiwali used to find space in Hindi movies once in a while, if not frequently, in the form ofa theme, scene, song or a reference point. Eventhough Diwali has made a slow disappearancefrom Hindi movies over the years, festivitiescontinue to rule the television.

Diwali break for

DeePiKA

Get ready for KAT PhuljhADi

this Diwali

Diwali is around the corner and sofirework stalls are all over the place.

One thing that you can not fail to noticeis the Bollywood star faces on firecracker boxes.Like last year, this festiveseason also pictures of Bollywoodactors are put on the boxes to woo cus-tomers.Katrina Kaif has grabbed topspot this year. The actress appears onseveral different products.Other popularstars include Kareena Kapoor, PriyankaChopra, Asin, Bipasha Basu andDeepika Padukone. Any actress who isin news because of a hit film or a per-sonal scandal makes it as a face of thecrackers.But don't you think looking atDeepika's success rate, she shouldhave been the favourite this season.Well, we have the answer. The packag-ing for fireworks is done in Decemberand last year Katrina was ruling. So, getready to see Deepika all over the firecracker boxes next Diwali. Among maleactors, Salman Khan, Aamir Khan, SaifAli Khan, Abhishek Bachchan andRiteish Deshmukh are the popular ones.Among the international celebs, MichaelJackson is a favourite.

Katrina Kaif has grabbed top spot this year. The actress appears on several

different products.Other popular starsinclude Kareena Kapoor, Priyanka Chopra,

Asin, Bipasha Basu and Deepika Padukone.

well-equipped with a spec-tacular range of specialeffects, extravagant

action sequences a la Hollywoodand Hrithik Roshan as superhero -Krrish 3promises double bonanzafor the movie buffs when it comesout Friday, two days before Diwali.According to sources, the Rs.100-Rs.150 crore film will see a widerelease and hit about 3,500screens. When asked about thecost, the film's director-producerRakesh Roshan said: "I can'treveal the budget of the movie, butit has been a very costly film." Athird in the franchise that beganwith 2003 hit sci-fi movie Koi... MilGaya, Krrish 3 will take forward thestory of the superhero Krrish,played by Hrithik. The filmtoplines Priyanka Chopra,Kangana Ranaut and VivekOberoi. While Priyanka playsHrithik's love interest, Kanganaand Vivek will be seen in nega-tive roles. Predicting a "thun-derous start" for the film,trade analyst Taran Adarshfeels that eventually thefilm's content will decide itscourse. If Krrish 2 sawKrishna defeating SiddhantArya and save his fatherRohit, Krrish 3 will reportedlysee the superhero fightingwith a dark force, an evilgenius who is spreadingfear. "I am certain that thefilm will see a thunderous

start. But then after thatthe content of the film willdecide how many peoplego and see it," Adarshsaid. Rakesh Roshan isconfident that the filmwill make audiences"proud". "I don't knowhow the opening will befor the film. But the film

has been made well and itwill definitely make audi-ences proud," Roshan toldIANS.

Red Chillies VFX, asubdivision of Shah Rukh'smotion picture productionbanner Red ChilliesEntertainment, worked on thespecial effects worth Rs.26crore for Krrish 3. Aggressivepromotion has become mustin the current scenario as thefirst three days' collectioncan make or break a film.And the Roshans have doneeverything - from tappingdigital space by launchingthe first poster Facebookto merchandising to trav-elling to various cities.Also, a range of spe-cial emoticons werelaunched as a partof the film's pro-motions onsocial net-working siteFacebook.

FIJISUN 21october-2013www.fijisun-usa.com bollywood

"I don't know how the opening will be for the film.But the film has been made well and it will definitelymake audiences proud,"

Actress Vidya Balan, whowill be seen next in 'ShaadiKe Side Effects', says

women should not lose them-selves in marriage.

"There are good as well asbad effects of marriage. I am stillexperiencing it (married life) so Ican't give tips. I feel you shouldbe yourself as women end uplosing themselves in marriage..That should not happen," Vidya,who is playing wife of FarhanAkhtar in the film told reporters inMumbai at its first look launch.Vidya has become a fan of hisco-star Farhan after watching'Bhaag Milkha Bhaag'.On her co-star, she said, "Farhan is anamazing actor. I have seen hisfilms in the past. I am happy thatI saw 'Bhaag Milkha Bhaag' afterdoing this film, otherwise Iwouldn't have been able to per-form with him. He is fabulous,"she said adding he has a goodcomic timing too. The film is asequel to 'Pyaar Ke Side Effects'and is directed by SaketChaudhary and produced byPritish Nandy and Ekta Kapoor.

So last weekwe witnessedsome love

between Bollywood'sfemme fatales whenDeepika Padukonethanked PriyankaChopra for settingthe screen on firewith her item song inRam-leela, but thefilm's leading ladymight be losing outquite some spotlightto the former MissWorld in SanjayLeela Bhansali'snext.Pegged as themost awaited songfrom the film,Priyanka oozesoomph as sheseduces her way intothe 'modern mujra' inRam-leela that hasgenerated 2 millionhits in just a weeksince its release.(Over 2,180,396 hitsin 6 days)Thetremendousresponse to the song

is surely going togenerate somesmoke in campDeepika as the lime-light is bound to shift

from her to Priyanka,who's enticing movesare surely going topull crowds to themovie

theatres.Thoughmovie buffs and fansare still gushing overhow stunningDeepika looks pairedopposite RanveerSingh in the trailerand high on romancesongs, like NagadaSang Dhol, LahuMunh Laga Gaya,IshqyaunDhishqyaun, itseems as thoughBhansali is countingon Priyanka's charmto make his film amuch needed suc-cess.Priyanka'sscorching item songhas also paved wayfor insecurities forDeepika fans whoexpressed their dis-appointment withBhansali for makingthe two actressesshare screenspace.Some evengave thumbs down toBhansali for pitchingthe leading ladiestogether."When youhave Deepika in themovie.....you don'tneed an item songby Priyanka :p,Deepika dances andlooks way better (sic)," wrote JayshreeSalian on youtube.

After Krrish 3, you won't be sure whether to desire or

fear Priyanka : Hrithik

Hrithik Roshan seemed to be in a jovial mood when he visited the nationalcapital recently to promote his upcoming

film Krrish 3. When Priyanka Chopra saidthat her role in Krrish 3 has a duality - with

both positive and negative sides, HrithikRoshan, who was also present chipped

in: "Basically, her true nature willcome out and you won't know

whether to desire her or be afraidof her." Later, when a kid askedif he can find Jaadu (a character

from the Koi Mil Gaya, the firstin series of Krrish films) in

real-life, the actor cutelyreplied, "If you study well, eat

well and become a strong boy,you will becomeJaadu your-

self." After the event came toan end, the actor got a picture

clicked with the kid. Talkingabout his experience workingfor the movie, Hrithik says he

is excited that he got achance to reprise Rohit's

(from Koi Mil Gaya, 2003)role. "I was not sure if I willhave the same tonal sound,

body language as Rohit," (sic)the actor said. Krrish has charac-

ters named and modelled afteranimals. We have Frog-man,

Cheetah girl and Rhino-man, theactors adds. Talking about the graph-

ics in the film, Hrithik informs only Indianartists have weorked for the VFX for Krrish

3. He further said, "I am excited that ourcinema has come to the stage where we

can present such characters in almost onepercent of what Hollywood films use."

Later, when asked about her alleged fightwith Kangana Ranaut, Priyanka Chopra

gets angry and replies, "I don't know whywomen's stature in movies are reduced to

catfights. It's like they do not have anythingbetter to do on the sets.

Krrish 3 Perfect Diwali treat for movie buffs

If Krrish 2 saw Krishna defeating Siddhant Arya and save his father Rohit,Krrish 3 will reportedly see the super-hero fighting with a dark force, an evilgenius who is spreading fear.

Ram-leelaWill Priyanka stealDeepika's thunder?

Women should notlose themselves inmarriage : Vidya

why do we celebrate Diwali? it’s not just the festive mood in the

air that makes you happy, or justthat it's a good time to

enjoy before the advent ofwinter. there are 10 myth-

ical and historical rea-sons why Diwali is a great

time to celebrate. and there aregood reasons not just for Hindus

but also for all others to celebratethis great Festival of Lights.

These Four Days

Each day of Diwali hasits own tale, legend andmyth to tell. The first dayof the festival NarakaChaturdasi marks the van-quishing of the demonNaraka by Lord Krishnaand his wife Satyabhama.Amavasya, the secondday of Deepawali, marksthe worship of Lakshmi,the goddess of wealth inher most benevolentmood, fulfilling the wishesof her devotees.Amavasya also tells thestory of Lord Vishnu, whoin his dwarf incarnationvanquished the tyrant Bali,and banished him to hell.Bali was allowed to returnto earth once a year, tolight millions of lamps todispel the darkness andignorance, and spread theradiance of love and wis-dom. It is on the third dayof Deepawali — KartikaShudda Padyami that Balisteps out of hell and rulesthe earth according to theboon given by LordVishnu. The fourth day isreferred to as YamaDvitiya (also called BhaiDooj) and on this day sis-ters invite their brothers totheir homes.

The Significance ofLights & Firecrackers

All the simple rituals ofDiwali have a significanceand a story to tell. The illu-mination of homes withlights and the skies withfirecrackers is an expres-sion of obeisance to theheavens for the attain-ment of health, wealth,knowledge, peace andprosperity. According toone belief, the sound offire-crackers are an indi-cation of the joy of thepeople living on earth,making the gods aware oftheir plentiful state. Stillanother possible reasonhas a more scientificbasis: the fumes producedby the crackers kill a lot ofinsects and mosquitoes,found in plenty after therains.

The Tradition ofGambling

The tradition of gam-bling on Diwali also has alegend behind it. It isbelieved that on this day,Goddess Parvati playeddice with her husbandLord Shiva, and shedecreed that whosoevergambled on Diwali nightwould prosper throughoutthe ensuing year. Diwali isassociated with wealthand prosperity in manyways, and the festival of'Dhanteras' ('dhan' =wealth; 'teras' = 13th) iscelebrated two daysbefore the festival oflights.

From Darkness Unto Light...

In each legend, mythand story of Deepawalilies the significance of thevictory of good over evil;and it is with eachDeepawali and the lightsthat illuminate our homesand hearts, that this sim-ple truth finds new reasonand hope. From darknessunto light — the light thatempowers us to commitourselves to good deeds,that which brings us closerto divinity. During Diwali,lights illuminate every cor-ner of India and the scentof incense sticks hangs inthe air, mingled with thesounds of fire-crackers,joy, togetherness andhope. Diwali is celebratedaround the globe. OutsideIndia, it is more than aHindu festival, it's a cele-bration of South-Asianidentities. If you are awayfrom the sights andsounds of Diwali, light adiya, sit quietly, shut youreyes, withdraw the sens-es, concentrate on thissupreme light and illumi-nate the soul.

FIJISUN22 hiNduisumNovember-2013 www.fijisun-usa.com

Deepawali or Diwali is

certainly thebiggest and

the brightestof all Hindu

festivals. it'sthe festival

of lights (deep= light and

avali = a rowi.e., a row oflights) that's

marked byfour days ofcelebration,

which literal-ly illuminesthe country

with its bril-liance, anddazzles all

with its joy.each of the

four days inthe festival ofDiwali is sep-

arated by adifferent tra-

dition, butwhat remainstrue and con-

stant is thecelebration oflife, its enjoy-

ment andgoodness.

The Origin of Diwali

Historically, the origin ofDiwali can be traced backto ancient India, when itwas probably an importantharvest festival. However,there are various legendspointing to the origin ofDiwali or 'Deepawali.'Some believe it to be thecelebration of the marriageof Lakshmi with LordVishnu. Whereas inBengal the festival is dedi-cated to the worship ofMother Kali, the dark god-dess of strength. LordGanesha, the elephant-headed God, the symbolof auspiciousness andwisdom, is also worshipedin most Hindu homes onthis day. In Jainism,Deepawali has an addedsignificance to the greatevent of Lord Mahaviraattaining the eternal blissof nirvana. Diwali alsocommemorates the returnof Lord Rama along withSita and Lakshman fromhis fourteen year longexile and vanquishing thedemon-king Ravana. Injoyous celebration of thereturn of their king, thepeople of Ayodhya, theCapital of Rama, illuminat-ed the kingdom with earth-en diyas (oil lamps) andburst crackers.

10 Reasons toCeLebRate

DiwaLi

DiwaliFestival of Lights

1Goddess Lakshmi’s Birthday: The Goddess of wealth,Lakshmi incarnated on the new moon day (amaavasyaa)of the Kartik month during the churning of the ocean

(samudra-manthan), hence the association of Diwali withLakshmi.

2Vishnu Rescued Lakshmi: On this very day (Diwali day),Lord Vishnu in his fifth incarnation as Vaman-avtaararescued Lakshmi from the prison of King Bali and this is

another reason of worshipping Ma Larkshmi on Diwali.

3Krishna Killed Narakaasur: On the day precedingDiwali, Lord Krishna killed the demon king Narakaasurand rescued 16,000 women from his captivity. The cele-

bration of this freedom went on for two days including the Diwaliday as a victory festival.

4The Return of the Pandavas: According to the greatepic ‘Mahabharata’, it was ‘Kartik Amavashya’ when thePandavas appeared from their 12 years of banishment

as a result of their defeat in the hands of the Kauravas at thegame of dice (gambling). The subjects who loved the Pandavascelebrated the day by lighting the earthen lamps.

5The Victory of Rama: According to the epic‘Ramayana’, it was the new moon day of Kartik whenLord Ram, Ma Sita and Lakshman returned to

Ayodhya after vanquishing Ravana and conquering Lanka. Thecitizens of Ayodhya decorated the entire city with the earthenlamps and illuminated it like never before.

6Coronation of Vikramaditya: One of the greatest HinduKing Vikramaditya was coroneted on the Diwali day,hence Diwali became a historical event as well.

7Special Day for the Arya Samaj: It was the new moonday of Kartik (Diwali day) when Maharshi Dayananda,one of the greatest reformers of Hinduism and the

founder of Arya Samaj attained his nirvana.

8Special Day for the Jains: Mahavir Tirthankar, consid-ered to be the founder of modern Jainism also attainedhis nirvana on Diwali day.

9Special Day for the Sikhs: The third Sikh Guru AmarDas institutionalized Diwali as a Red-Letter Day whenall Sikhs would gather to receive the Gurus blessings.

In 1577, the foundation stone of the Golden Temple at Amritsarwas laid on Diwali. In 1619, the sixth Sikh Guru Hargobind, whowas held by the Mughal Emperor Jahengir, was released fromthe Gwalior fort along with 52 kings.

10The Pope’s Diwali Speech: In 1999, Pope JohnPaul II performed a special Eucharist in an Indianchurch where the altar was decorated with Diwali

lamps, the Pope had a ‘tilak’ marked on his forehead and hisspeech was bristled with references to the festival of light.

FijiSUn 23november-2013www.fijisun-usa.com AfghAn news

An Afghan soldier hasbeen killed after openingfire on a foreign trainerfrom Afghanistan'sSandhurst-inspired officeracademy, meant asBritain's main legacy, justdays after its first recruitsenrolled for class.TheAfghan was shot after hav-ing an argument with atrainer from New Zealandand two Australian sol-diers, all three of whomwere also injured in theskirmish.The shootingcasts a shadow over thestart of the first term at theacademy, which has beendescribed as a Sandhurst-inspired complex. An initialclass of 230 recruitsbegan training last week,with journalists invited tosee them put through theirpaces and tour the tentsserving as temporaryclassrooms while work fin-

ishes on the permanentbuildings.Eventually itcould train up to 1,500men and women a year,with 120 UK mentors sup-ported by instructors fromAustralia, New Zealand,Norway and Denmark.The brief gunfight brokeout after the trainer hadvisited a nearby building atthe Afghan NationalDefence University site inthe mountainous westernoutskirts of Kabul. The UK-funded National ArmyOfficers' Academy nestlesby five other collegesincluding a foreign lan-guages centre and a ser-geants' training acade-my.Following an argu-ment, the Afghan soldierfired three rounds beforebeing shot dead by theAustralian soldiers whohad been assigned toguard the trainer.

"The armed Afghan soldierhad an argument with the[foreign] soldiers and aftersome minutes the misun-derstanding escalated andhe opened fire. TheAfghan soldier was killed,"said Daulat Waziri, thedeputy spokesman forAfghanistan's ministry of

defence. "It wasn't insidethe [officer training] acade-my. It was inside one ofthe Afghan National Armymilitary quarters nearby."The injuries to theAustralians and NewZealander were apparent-ly caused by shrapnelwhen a bullet fired at

short-range at one of themdisintegrated, a command-er said"Only one bullet that we'reaware of hit, the secondAustralian returned fireand critically injured andpossibly killed theAfghani," said LieutenantGeneral Rhys Jones, chiefof the New ZealandDefence Force, who iden-tified his injured soldier asan instructor from the offi-cer academy."Some of theshrapnel went into the armof the Australian soldierthat was hit, another partwent into the foot [of theNew Zealand soldier]," hetold a news conference.Aspokesman for the Talibansaid they had not playedany role in the shooting,even though the insurgentgroup has been quick toclaim responsibility forother attacks and has

urged Afghan soldiers andpolice to turn on their for-eign mentors. A steadystream of insider attackson both foreign andAfghan troops, by bothinsurgent sympathisersand angry loners,

has underminedmorale and raised ques-tions about plans for along-term training pro-gramme in the country. Aseries of Nato measuresto protect its troops hascut the toll this year from apeak in 2012, when gun-men from police or armyranks accounted foraround 15% of all foreignmilitary deaths. The pre-cautions include havingarmed "guardian angels",such as the Australianswho ended Saturday'sattack, watch over allmeetings with Afghancounterparts.

Afghan recruits at the National Army Officers' Academy eventuallyit could train up to 1,500 men and women a year.

An experienced RoyalMarine sergeant accusedof murdering a woundeddetainee in Afghanistanhas told investigators heand his troops were underimmense pressure andhad suffered devastatinglosses at the time of theincident.The man, whocan only be identified asMarine A, said he had losttwo close colleagues andothers had been badlyinjured. He said the

encounter with the manwas one of the few occa-sions they had come "faceto face" at close quarterswith an insurgent.MarineA also pointed out that theman was found withgrenades on him two daysafter their base had beensubjected to a sustainedgrenade attack. "Tensionswere high," hesaid.However the marineinsisted that neither henor other troops had killed

the man, rather he haddied of injuries sustainedin an earlier helicopter airstrike. "There was a littlebit of banter about toppinghim but that didn't hap-pen. All joking aside, noone killed him. I don't wantthat on my conscience.He died of his injuries."Marine A and two col-leagues, B and C, areaccused of carrying outthe cold-blooded "execu-tion" of the man.

KABUL - A number ofAfghan MPs onWednesday asked theelection authorities to con-duct a second review ofthe documents of electioncandidates, includingthose who were disquali-fied last week.LastTuesday's announcementof the preliminary list ofcandidates saw 16Presidential and nearly400 Provincial Councilcandidates eliminated. Thedrastic cuts were not well-received by those who did-n't make the list and spec-ulations about mistakes inthe Independent ElectionCommission's vettingprocess and potential polit-ical bias have aboundedever since.The MPs onWednesday told theElectoral ComplaintsCommission (ECC), whichis currently conducting itsreview of complaintsagainst candidates as wellas challenges by thosewho were disqualified last

Tuesday, to be impartialand address the demandsthose cut out of the run-ning."The documents ofthe candidates who wereannounced by the IEC andthose who were removedfrom the preliminary listshould be re-reviewed bythe ECC and the chal-lenges of the removedcandidates should beaddressed ahead of theelections," said MPMunawar ShahBahaderi.ECC officialshave said they wouldreview the challenges bythose candidates whowere eliminated, butadmitted that due to thetime crunch they face.

KABUL- A consortium ofIndian companies led bySteel Authority of India isseeking to renegotiate theterms of an iron ore deal inAfghanistan worth up to$10.8 billion, a senior offi-cial at the Ministry ofMines said onTuesday.The situationarose after India's financeministry refused to helpfinance the consortiumwithout a detailed studyabout the commercial via-bility of the project.Investment inAfghanistan's mining sec-tor is considered one ofthe greatest hopes of thecountry attaining econom-

ic independence and thehalt will add to concernthat it will not be able tosupport itself economicallyas aid flows shrink. "Thenegotiations are suspend-ed for some reason ...(but) they haven't with-drawn from this process,"the official told Reuters,asking for his name to bewithheld because he wasnot authorized to speak tothe media. An Indian offi-cial with knowledge of thematter said the financeministry had told the con-sortium to draw up a freshviability study, adding thatthe studies submitted bythe companies dated back

to the 1950s and 1960s."They are asking for gov-ernment funding. But thatcannot be done withoutfirst evaluating the prof-itability of the project,"said the official, whoasked not to be identified.India's economic slow-down has hit the country'sfinances, forcing the min-istry to consider spendingcuts to prevent a budgetblow-out. However, theofficial said the initial pro-posal was not rejected totrim expenditure and thatthe project would belooked at again once theconsortium improved its pitch.

NATO EndorsesPost-2014 TroopNumbers withScaled Down Plans KABUL - NATO officialsin Brussels haveendorsed a presence of8,000 to 12,000 troopsto remain inAfghanistan after thecombat mission ends inDecember of 2014,reported the New YorkTimes on Monday. Thecoalition was said tohave modified previousplans for post-2014,minimizing its objec-tives.There are current-ly around 100,000 for-eign troops inAfghanistan, out ofwhich around 68,000are Americans. Twothirds of the residualforce endorsed byNATO officials isexpected to be U.S. sol-diers. The figures nowbeing proposed by thecoalition for post-2014are substantially smallerthan those suggested inthe past.

afghan soldier killed after opening fire on nato troops

MPs Urge IEC to TakeSecond Look at Candidates

royal marine faces court martial for murder of afghan detainee

Indian Firms Seek to Renegotiate $10.8 BlnAfghan Iron Ore Deal: Official - See more

(Underscoring the future of Fiji Indians)

Featuring top key speakersentertainers and business leaders is

coming soon that will include a number of segments sponsored in the main by

FIJI SUN USA The Koya Foundation

and American Institute of Management.

Zahid Buksh (a CHP investigator)

is tipped to be the program director.

Negotiations are underway with

CHANDNI RESTAURANT

It will be a gala night awards, recognitions and entertainment.

From Girmit to independence

Grand Fiji niGht

FIJISUN24 US NEWSNovember-2013 www.fijisun-usa.com

TaxSeason is around

the cornerYou needthe most experience,affordableand fast expert!

Call Maria 510-258-6003

The first ever Diwali festival wascelebrated at the US Congresstoday amidst chanting of Vedicmantras by a Hindu priest.

Over two dozen influentiallawmakers along with eminentIndian-Americans gathered at theCapitol Hill to lit the traditional'diyas'. The event -- the first of itskind event at the Capitol Hill --was organised by the two Co-Chairs of the CongressionalCaucus on India and IndianAmericans, Congressmen JoeCrowley and Peter Roskam inrecognition of increasing pres-ence of the Indian-American com-munity.The occasion was alsoused to highlight significance ofIndia-US relationship. "I havecome here to say Happy Diwali,"said Nancy Pelosi, Leader of theDemocratic Party in the House ofRepresentatives."United Statesowes a great debt of gratitude toIndia. Because our civil rightsmovement was built on the non-violent movement in India. MartinLuther King studied there, spokethere. We are blessed not only by

that legacy, but also by the pres-ence of so many Indo-Americansin our country," Pelosi said. "Thisis a truly historic event," Crowleysaid. Roskam said IndianAmericans are an example of anenormous diaspora that is incred-ibly influential."You have the abili-ty to bring together people fromboth sides of the isle in ways thatare powerful and significant," hesaid."When we look at the rela-tionship between the United

States and India moving forwardit is a wonderful relationship thathas a great thing in store," saidRoskam, who along with otherlawmakers were welcomed at thehistoric event with red tilak, jas-mine garland. A Hindu priest pre-sented them a traditional shawlamidst chanting of Vedicmantras.Starting his briefremarks with 'Jai Hind'Congressman Ed Royce,Chairman of the powerful House

Foreign Affairs Committee saidthe relationship between Indiaand the United States is strength-ening."Our goal should be toincrease and deepen this rela-tionship with counter-terrorismco-operation, with more trade andinvestment and trying to makesure that we strengthen our allyIndia. And that is our intentionhere, whether we are Republicanor a Democrat, our goal is todeepen this relationship," he

said.Congresswoman TulsiGabbard, the first Hindu Americanlawmaker, diversity in theCongress is indicative of the spe-cial nature of Diwali itself. "It iscelebration of righteousness," shesaid.Ami Bera, who is the onlyIndian American in the currentCongress, this is an incredibleDiwali celebration. "It is great tobe one Indian American in theCongress, but at our second, fifthDiwali celebration, we want to see

more members of the Diasporaelected to the House ofRepresentatives. We want to seedeepening of this relationship aswe move forward," Bera said.Congresswoman, Carolyn BMaloney, who had recentlylaunched a campaign for issuing aDiwali stamp, rued that the USPostal Service had recentlyturned down the request. As suchshe urged the Indian Americancommunity to work together in thisregard."It is time to have Diwalistamp," she said. "India and theUnited States have so much incommon," said CongressmanElliot Engel, Ranking member ofthe House Foreign AffairsCommittee and appreciated thecontribution of Indian Americansin the country.The outgoing IndianAmbassador to the US, NirupamaRao, also spoke on the occasion,along with other Congressmenincluding Mike Honda, SheilaJackson Lee, David Price,Charles Bernard "Charlie"Rangel, and Steny Hoyer.

New York toraise ciga-rette sale ageNew York City Council hasvoted to raise the minimumage for buying cigarettesfrom 18 to 21.New York willnow become by far themost populous place in theUS to impose such a highage limit, the AssociatedPress reports. The newage limit includes electron-ic vapour cigarettes.Acrossthe US there is a minimumage for smoking of 18.Some states have raisedthe limit to 19 and at leasttwo other towns haveraised it to 21. The bill'ssponsor, City CouncilmanJames Gennaro, said itwould "literally save many,many lives". Mr Gennaro,whose mother and fatherdied from tobacco-relatedillnesses, said: "I've livedwith it, I've seen it... but Ifeel good today." Critics ofthe measure have arguedthat young people may turnto the black market for cig-arettes. New York mayorMichael Bloomberg, whosupported the bill, has 30days to sign it into law. Themeasure would then comeinto effect after 180 days.

WASHINGTON: ADemocratic Party bill, aimedat overhauling the immigra-tion system introduced inHouse of Representativesthis month, has sent alarmbells ringing among IndianIT firms as it includes provi-sions that would be detri-mental to the businesses ofsuch companies. The bill(HR 15) introduced in theHouse by the DemocraticLeader, Nancy Pelosi, andco-sponsored by severalmembers of theCongressional IndiaCaucus, carries the samekiller provisions as the onepassed by the Senate. hekiller provisions are in partic-ular related to the much-sought after H-1B and L-1visas. Given that theDemocrats in the House arein a minority, Congressionalaides said that the chancesof this bill being passed withthe Republican support isunlikely and it was intro-duced by Pelosi early thismonth as part of the largerpolitical game plan to put

pressure on the Republicansto bring a reform bill to thefloor."The time is now topass comprehensive immi-gration reform. This week,two House Republicansjoined 187 members in co-sponsoring HR 15, our immi-gration legislation thatreflects our core bipartisanvalues: protect our borders,protect our workforce,reunite families, and create

an earned pathway to citi-zenship," Pelosi toldreporters.

"We have 187 co-spon-sors; 185 Democrats, twoRepublicans. However, 28Republicans have publiclyexpressed support for a pathto citizenship. If (House)Speaker (John) Boehner canfind the will to schedule avote, we can pass compre-

hensive immigration reformand make it the law of theland," she said. "We supportimmigration reform legisla-tion but this bill needs tostrip out the harmful provi-sions," said Ron Somerspresident of the US IndiaBusiness Council. USIBChas been opposed to theSenate version of the bill aswell as both of them haveprovisions related to the H-1B and L-1 visas which arespecifically targetedtowards Indian IT compa-nies. For instance in orderto prevent H-1B workersfrom undercutting thewages paid to Americanworkers, it requires thatemployers to pay signifi-cantly higher wages for H-1B workers than under thecurrent H-1B program. TheDepartment of Labor will alsodecrease prevailing wage lev-els from four to three levelsand update how each level iscalculated. This would resulthigher costs for employerswho use the H-1B pro-gramme.

WASHINGTON : The USapprehension of a PakistaniTaliban commander lastmonth came during a failedattempt by Afghan officialsto form an alliance with hismilitant group, a Westernofficial said onTuesday, con-firming somedetails in aNew YorkTimes report.The United Statesthis month confirmed thearrest of Latif Mehsud, atrusted deputy to PakistaniTaliban leader HakimullahMehsud, during a militaryoperation that heightenedtensions with the Western-backed government ofAfghan President HamidKarzai. The Times reportedon Tuesday that the UnitedStates staged the operationto seize Mehsud after beingtipped off about the plan byAfghan intelligence officialsto try to work with thePakistani Taliban and lateruse that as leverageagainst Pakistan. It quotedtwo Afghan officials saying

that they had struck a tenta-tive deal with Mehsud:Afghanistan would notharass Pakistani Talibanfighters along the border ifthey did not attack Afghanforces."Publicly, the Afghan

government hasdescribed Mr.Mehsud as an

insurgent peaceemissary. But

according to Afghanofficials, the ulti-mate plan was to

take revenge against thePakistani military," theTimes wrote. The Afghanembassy in Washingtondeclined comment. TheAfghan government and theUnited States accusePakistani intelligence serv-ices of ties to militantgroups fighting across theborder in Afghanistan.Asked about the Timesreport, a Western official,speaking on condition ofanonymity, broadly con-firmed Afghan efforts toform an alliance with thegroup but did not providefurther details.

6 people dead inapparent domestic

dispute in USGREENWOOD, South Carolina:Authorities say an apparent domesticdispute in a South Carolina home hasleft six people dead. Greenwood CountySheriff's Office spokesman John Longtold the Associated Press late Tuesdaythat the dead include four adults and twochildren. He said the bodies were dis-covered by a SWAT team that enteredthe house "after several unsuccessfulattempts to make contact" with someoneinside. Long says officers first went tothe home in the city of Greenwood afterreceiving a call from a man who said hewas thinking about hurting himself.

WASHINGTON: Pakistancontinues to support terroroperations in India evenafter Nawaz Sharif hastaken over as the newPrime Minister, a former topPentagon official and aneminent defence analysthas told the US Congress."They support terror opera-tions in India with terroristorganisations. They supportthe Haqqani network andthe Taliban in conductingoperations against theUnited States and Nato and

Afghanistan. They've gotblood all over their handswith the casualties,"General (Retd) Jack Keanesaid yesterday. Currentlythe chairman of the board oftop US thinktank, Institutefor the Study of War, Keanesaid during a Congressionalhearing that he does notexpect much from the cur-rent regime. "This is aregime that is dominated byits military, who puts its mil-itary self above the state.We've got a weak civilian

government, fundamentallycorrupt. The economy is inthe tank. We've got a raginginsurgency. We've got anescalating nuclear power,"Keane said. Stating thatterrorist safe-havens is abig issue, Keane recom-mended that US forces bepermitted to target Haqqaninetwork inside Pakistan."My recommendation tomitigate that risk is to permittargeting of the Haqqaninetwork in those sanctuar-ies in Pakistan.

US Capitol lights up for first Diwali festival

Democrats' immigration bill ringsalarm bell for Indian firms

Afghans tried to courtPakistani militant seized by US

Pakistan still supports terror opera-tions in India: US expert

exclusiVe interView witH

puBlicity Director Bal s. naiDu

HaywarD –In an exclu-sive interview with Fiji Suneditor Dr. H. Koya, the TISISangam Publicity DirectorMr. Bal S. Naidu gave a clearpicture of the future plansfor growth, unity and expan-sion.

Whether for profit ornon-profit, an organizationneeds money, manpowerand accompanyingresources to succeed.

The 2013 Diwali celebra-tion was one major part ofthe continuing fund-raisingplan to acquire a propertyfor TISI SANGAM.

“We have a lot of work todo. And we are focusing onunifying and strengtheningour base to ensure successwith opportunities foreveryone to work togetherwith special attention to ouryounger generation,“explained Bal S. Naidu.

Asked why a property,Bal S. Naidu said: “We needa base a center to operatefrom for social, cultural andlearning purposes. Without

a center, we have no place.Every time we want to do anevent, we have to hire aplace.”

TISI Sangam needs anover a million dollar loca-tion with temple and park-ing facility in the long run.The short term goal is tobuy two side by side plotswith existing houses one tobe rented to generateincome and one devoted tosocial and religious purpos-es.

Bal S. Naidu – a lifetimemember of both TISISangam and HaywardSangam – said that with over$100,000.00 funds raisedduring the term of the for-mer president GandhiNaidu, this goal can beachieved easily. However,he added that the plan is tocontinue building the fundsthrough more effective pro-grams.

A major focus will bedevoted to intensifying TIVSANGAM (youth – under 40members and Maather(women’s) Sangam the twoimportant wings of theorganization.

The Diwali Celebrationwas led on October 26th,

2013 Guest Speaker : Pt.Bimlesh Sharma, HaywardCAKey Note Speaker :Gyaneshwaran Pillai,Seattle, WA

Pundit:Pt.Ranga SwamiGoundar, Hayward, CA

Event hosted by TISISangam in association withHayward Sangam andPortland Sangam.

FIJISUN 25november-2013www.fijisun-usa.com event

EVENTS & CELEBRATIONStisi sangamin association with Hayward sangam Diwali

celebration 2013, supported by portland sangam

national convention 2014planning is under way to hosta first major national sangam

convention in 2014.

newyear’s eVeparty 2013

HosteD By HaywarD sangam

In conjunction with

TISI SANGAMAt the Buddhist Center

Alvarado Nile Rd, Union City, CA

president BalagounDer

treasurernalraj gounDar

secretarysunita naiDuVice president

parmesHwar nair

Vice presidentgopalgangannaassistant treasurer:

pt ranga s. gounDarassistant secretary:

arVinD ramanpublic relations Director:

Bal s. naiDu

tisi sangam oFFice-Baeres anD committees

cHairman oF BoarD oF Directors:Kandappa Reddy

DirectorsArvind RamanAvinash Naidu

Bal S. NaiduBalaGounder

GopalGangannaKandappa Reddy

Krishna Reddy Nalraj GoundarNeel Naidu

Nalraj Goundar

ParmeshPillayParmeshwar Nair

Parsu Ram MudaliarPt Ranga S. Goundar

Sunita NaiduVijay Prakash

tisi sangam is ourparent BoDy

suBsiDiaries oF tisisangam

tiV sangammaatHar sangam

BoarD oF Directors

missionstatement

our goal is to promote and

sponsor religious and cultur-

al activities for the benefit of

our members. Furthermore, we oper-

ate for educational, religious, cultural

and charitable purposes and our

objective isto raise funds to maintain

a Hindu religious temple and cultural

center that could be benefited by

ourmembers. it’s our community, i.e.

you that have made us achieve suc-

cess this far so we would like to thank

you foryour support.

For more

inFormation

please call:

Bal S. Naidu

510-750-3434Publicity Director

TISI Sangam

FiJisun26 sportsNovember-2013 www.fijisun-usa.com

Sachin Tendulkar, the demi-god of Indiancricket and the world’s most prolific run-scorer, announced on Thursday he willquit Test cricket after playing his 200thmatch against the West Indies nextmonth. "All my life, I have had a dream ofplaying cricket for India. I have been liv-ing this dream every day for the last 24years," the 40-year-old said in a state-ment released by the Board Of ControlFor Cricket In India (BCCI) on Thursday."It's hard for me to imagine a life withoutplaying cricket because it's all I have everdone since I was 11 years old,” he said."I thank the BCCI for everything over theyears and for permitting me to move onwhen my heart feels it's time," he added.Tendulkar has already retired from ODIs.His last test will be against the WestIndies at a yet to be determined venuefrom November 14-18. A legend whoshattered records but remained humbleFormer Australia captain Ricky Pontingonce said that he would probably be bat-ting in a wheelchair if he survived inworld cricket as long as SachinTendulkar. Feared and respected byopponents, Tendulkar changed the defi-nition of Indian batting, shrewdly combin-ing orthodox and unorthodox shots todominate any attack on any surface athome or abroad. Legendary India openerSunil Gavaskar, the first batsman to com-plete 10,000 Test runs, said he was con-vinced the 1.65-metre (5 foot, 5 inches)batsman would achieve greatness whenhe first saw him bat in the nets more thantwo decades ago."It is hard to imagineany player in the history of the game whocombines classical technique with rawaggression like the little champion does.There is not a single shot he cannotplay," he said.Tendulkar shattered battingrecords, earned millions of dollars andwas revered as a demi-god in India andparticularly at home in Mumbai. But inthe eyes of many fans, humility remainshis prime virtue. He's the closest thingcricket has ever seen to the great SirDonald Bradman, the Australian whofamously averaged 99.94 per test inningsin the 1930s and 40s and has no peers inthe game. Tendulkar learned to carry theweight of expectations early on, aftermaking his international debut during atesting tour in 1989 at the age of 16against a Pakistan lineup containing thegreat Wasim Akram and Waqar Younis inits bowling attack. The feat of scoringcenturies on debut in all three of India'stop domestic tournaments - the RanjiTrophy, Duleep Trophy and Irani Cup-could not be repeated in internationalcricket but Tendulkar quickly slipped intothe role of a reliable middle-order bats-man in tests and later as a hard-hittingopener in ODIs. There were early com-parisons with contemporaries such asBrian Lara and Inzamam-ul-Haq. Thenthe ultimate flattery, with Bradman saying

that watching Tendulkar was like watch-ing himself bat. "I asked my wife to havea look at him because ... I never sawmyself play but I feel that this fella is play-ing much the same as I used to play,"Bradman was quoted as saying beforehe died a decade ago. "She had a look atthe television and said 'Yes, there is asimilarity between the two.'" Tendulkarshattered batting records, earned mil-lions of dollars and was revered as ademi-god in the country and particularly

at home in Mumbai. But in the eyes ofmany fans, humility remains his primevirtue. If there was any arrogance, it wasin his batting because he loved to domi-nate bowlers before injuries to his elbow,back and ankle forced him to adapt hisgame in the latter years of his career."The way he conducts himself and han-dles fame and everything that goes withbeing Sachin is a great example for allsportsmen," Australian leg-spin greatShane Warne wrote in his book "Shane

Warne's century". "On the field, he hasnever put himself before theteam."Technically sound, temperamen-tally unflappable, quick to adapt to differ-ent conditions, Tendulkar came veryclose to batting perfection in hispomp.He also became an unrivalledsource of pride in a country with fewinternational sporting heroes, capitalis-ing on his status with commercial dealsto advertise cement, watches, sports-wear and apartments among

others.While little is shared about his pri-vate life, he is known as a fast-car enthu-siast once reported to take his belovedFerrari out in the early hours of the morn-ing to beat the traffic in his nativeMumbai.Under the guidance of his elderbrother and to the bemusement of hislate father, a college professor,Tendulkar spent hours honing his skillsas a boy along with hundreds of otherson a busy park known as the OvalMaidan in central Mumbai.

With thanks from Mail Today

Tributes

I have been an ardent followerand admirer of Sachin Tendulkarfrom the days he came to playBuchi Babu in Chennai. He is with-out doubt the greatest cricketerIndia has produced. In fact oneshould really say he ranks amongthe top of all time great sports per-sons in the world

-- BCCI President NSrinivasan

He had all the shots in theworld. Don't just think about the tal-ent that he had, because he wasborn with that. It is the effort that hehas put in which is for all youngcricketers to emulate. As for his lasttest, I would want him to play his200th test (on home ground) inMumbai

-- Sourav Ganguly

It's a sad day but everyone hasto go one day. He has given happi-ness to millions and millions of peo-ple and has never been controver-sial

-- Kapil Dev

It's the right time for him to retire- after 200 tests. Pressure for himhas always been more than for any-one else because people expectedhim to score a century every timehe went out to bat

-- Muttiah MuralitharanGreatest batsman retires. The

Master brought a lot of happinessglobally

- Former England captainMichael Vaughan

Sachin was born to be'Milestone Sachin Tendulkar'because whatever he did was amilestone. Even now he practisesfor two hours, which makes him abig role model for youngsters --Lalchand Rajput, coach of the 2007Twenty20 World Cup winningIndian team

My heart feels it's time Tendulkar on his reTireMenT

Rohit Sharma's fireworks give India series winBANGALORE: Rohit Sharma

was always reckoned to be aspecial talent, and the rapturousDiwali holiday crowd marvelledat the pristine quality of hisclassy double century onSaturday. The knock virtuallyknocked the stuffing out of aflummoxed Australian team inthe seventh and final ODI at theM Chinnaswamy Stadium.

The 57-run win gave India a3-2 series win though the mas-sive and unexpected resistance

from the Australian ninth wicketpair of James Faulkner (116;73b,11x4, 6x6) and Clint McKay(18) spread panic through theIndian ranks. Their 115-run part-nership in just 89 balls was acredit to the never-say-die spiritof the Australians, whoseresponse to India's mammoth383 was rousing. Local lad VinayKumar (9-0-102-1) was taken tothe cleaners, but Shami Ahmed,Ravichandran Ashwin andRavindra Jadeja struck telling

blows and made the difference.Earlier, man of the match

Rohit Sharma's languid elegancewas captivating and reassuring.He used the cricket bat not like abludgeon, but like an orchestraconductor's baton. And when heis on song, like he was onSaturday, there are few bettersights in the game.

The Australians, who opted tofield first, were bewildered whenRohit suddenly switched to over-drive. Till then they must have

been reasonably satisfied withthe way the decider was going.

They had India pegged backat 250 for four at the start of the43rd over and must have fanciedchasing a target around 300runs. It was at this stage thatRohit Sharma decided to switchto a higher gear. Fours and sixeswere sprayed into the standswith the relentless consistency ofmachine-gun fire as the finaleight overs yielded a mind bog-gling 133 runs. It was an

astounding demonstration ofclassy power-hitting. There wasplenty of finesse and grace in theexecution. Crowd favourite ViratKohli was unfortunately run outwithout troubling the scorerswhile Suresh Raina (28) andYuvraj Singh (12) were uncon-vincing after Rohit and southpawShikhar Dhawan (60; 57b, 9x4)had given the team a head start.Rohit's running between thewickets was not reassuring evenwith Dhawan.

FIJIsUN 27coMMUNity News November-2013www.fijisun-usa.com

CALL US FIRST Dr. H. koya (PhD)

Legal Analyst, professor in criminal justice.

CALL: 510-677-4488email: drhkoya@hotmail.com

NEED TO FILE pApERs IN FIJI COURTs

P o box 56491, HAYWARD, CA 94544

FIJI MUsLIM RELIEF FUND Will be available soon!!

510-677-4488

ISLAMIC

STUDIESGet your degree in

Islamic Studies through:AMERICAN ISLAMIC

ACADEMY

Life Experience, plus presentations and written submissions

accepted! Independently evaluated!

Unless you are living inSan Francisco youmight not have heard

about “Uber” - the “ride-sharing”Company – yet. But wait, Uber isnow operating in the East Bay,primarily the Berkeley andOakland areas, and spreading tothe South Bay (read SiliconValley) as well.

What exactly is UBER? Quitesimply, Uber facilitates con-sumers to arrange a car-for-hirethrough a cutting-edge smartphone app that provides real-time locations for drivers andtheir prospective customers. Thedrivers use late-model cars,limos and suvs, have been prop-erly “vetted” by Uber, and are, inmost cases, already professionaldrivers.

The Uber concept is brilliantin its simplicity. All drivers work-ing with Uber are given a IPHONE by Uber. The I Phonehas the Uber App preloaded.

When a customer presses a callbutton on their smart phone,from a free downloaded appfrom Uber, a map flashes on thedriver's I Phone showing the cus-tomer location and giving thedriver 15 seconds to hit thescreen to accept the call. Upon,arriving at the pickup destination,a beep sounds to alert both thedriver and the customer that theride has arrived. In addition,touching a button on the driver'sI Phone alerts the customer thatthe vehicle, who they havehailed through the Uber app ontheir smart phone, has arrived.Three minutes later, if the pas-senger hasn't hopped in, thedriver can phone him or her on aspecially Uber number. (the cus-tomer has the same ability tocontact the driver their this num-ber – the wonders of technolo-gy). Once the passenger is inthe Uber vehicle, the driver hitsthe screen and the ride starts.

The fare is calculated using aseries of gps-data and sophisti-cated algorithms and once thedrop-off destination has beenreached the driver clicks the appon his smart phone again to endthe ride. Within seconds anotherscreen appears which allows thedriver to see the fare and “ratethe customer” (on a scale of 1 to5). The driver is then free to take

another ride from Uber. Once thedriver has clicked off the ride thedeparting customer receives atext on their smart phone givingthe amount that will be chargedto their credit card on file andallowing them to rate the driver.

The entire process is seam-less and takes the acrimony andstress out of the whole ride forhire experience. There is nomoney to exchange, change tobe made, credit card to beprocessed. The tip is alreadyincluded in the fare. It is simple,it is painless – and the cus-tomers love it.

In addition, a major part of thesuccess of Uber is the fact thatwhen a customer calls for a rideon their smart phone – the Ubervehicle is guaranteed to show up– unlike a San Francisco cabthat often throws a called-inreservation back into the “sys-tem” in order to pick up a “flag”.Uber drivers are not taxis and do

not pick up flags. The Uber sys-tem matches drivers to cus-tomers. In fact the customer cantrack the progress of the Ubervehicle on the Uber gps map thatthey have downloaded on theirsmart phone. The customer alsoknows the name of the Uber driv-er, his or her Uber rating, and themake and color of vehicle com-ing to pick them up. The driverknows that the customer infor-mation is already on file withUber – so this arrangement pro-vides a greater degree of safetythan the normal taxi/customerrelationship.

Uber started operations inSan Francisco and is now oper-ating in some 35 cities globally. Ithas over 300 employees and itsgrowth has been phenomenal. Itis a growth cycle that is likely,with the backing of the PUC, tocontinue to grow as hi-techmeets the entrenched taxi indus-try head-on!

UBER TURNING ThE TAXI INDUsTRY ON ITs hEAD

By Robbie Michaelson

Urdu Academy monthly Mushairah at CHANDNIFREMoNT- Led by Real Estate professional Tashie Zaheer, the Urdu Academy hosts

a monthly Mushairah at the famous CHANDNI RESTAURANT with a growing numberof participants. Last week, the Academy honored a visiting Pakistani poet.

URDU ACADEMY

Tashie.zaheer@gmail.com

Contact

TAshIE ZAhEER

510-759-3297

DEEPAWALIGREETINGSM

aster SaleshChand ofSan Mateo,

CA and NorfolkStrikers-Wisheseveryone a veryHappy Deepawali-Subh Deepawali tofriends and families--wishes Happy, pros-perity n Peace yearand also Welcomeseveryone to comeand enjoy to our mul-ticultural DeepawaliFunction event that we are hosting on Saturday.Sept. 28th at: Cesar Chavez middle school- 27845Whitman st, Hayward, CA 94544: 8.00am - 8:00pm.-Jai Ho. Thanks in advance for all your support andplease feel free to call me with any questions at650-346-1454.

AAAP SAAb kE JAI Ho.

Urdu Institute of California tosupport Urdu Academy– editorSpeaking to several former fans and membersof UIC – Urdu Institute of California, the editor

told them UIC will support Urdu Academy in itsprograms and encourage them to participate in

the monthly Mushaira.

DIWALI CLEBRATION

FIJISUN28 November-2013 www.fijisun-usa.comSTAR AGE

This is a satisfactory month by and large.Not many events are indicated but leisureactivities will be pleasant if not especiallystimulating. Do not try to force the pace.The second and third weeks are good andsuccessful for new beginnings. Get out andabout more than you have been doing inmid month. The second half of the month isbusy and spendthrift. Family members willsupport you in your career matters and pro-vide you with good advice.

aries

March-21to

April-20

This is a sensitive month for many of you.Activity is indicated throughout the month.You will be intent on making a name foryourself or seeking the limelight in someway. Business interests can bloom beyondexpectations, perhaps, though you willalways have a good idea what you areafter and should be able to judge whenopportunity will come. The income from arecent investment may not be as high asyou expected in the end of the month.

taurus

April-21to

May-20

This is a busy and hectic month for you.Love life is also highlighted this month.It is especially true of people whom youwork along side. Just be sure that yourpersonal life does not get too entangledup with career matters. Family mem-bers and close relatives will be monopo-lizing most of your time. During the sec-ond half of the month, over expendituremay cause financial miscalculations.Thought could also be turning to travelcommunications or deep and extensivemental studies for students.

gemiNi

May-21to

June-21

This is a hopeful month especially forunemployed. New opportunitiescome your way in the first half of themonth. Confidence and courage canget you at the desired place. Duringmid month, your ideas will be takingthe constructive shapes. Any of yourinspirations should be seriously con-sidered because you may be able toadapt them to practical everyday lifeand them work for you. Curb the ten-dency of being extravagant.

caNcer

June-22to

July-23

This is an easygoing and casualmonth for many of you. If you arethinking of taking up a new course ofstudy, it might be a good idea to optfor an artistic subject that will bring adeepened sense of beauty into yourlife. The mid-month is favorable forgoing out and about to impress yoursuperiors or influential people. Thelast week of the month is earningextra money to supplement yourincome.

leo

July-24to

August-23

This is a productive month. You will have plentyof energy at your disposal this month. It istherefore important that you channel it in a con-structive and positive way. A more sophisticat-ed and practical approach than usual may wellpay off when you are dealing with influentialpeople especially in second half of the month.Do not talk about your imaginative ideas withothers until you have them fully formulated.During last week of the month influential peoplewill tend to be more cooperative.

virgo

August-24to

September-23

This is a demanding month. All the importantwork should be tackled as early in the monthas possible. If you leave it too late you are like-ly to find you are unable to come to grips withit. By then you will be snowed under with moremundane jobs due to festivals. People withmore influence insist that you should be cre-ative and more original. Family members willbe supportive of your positive attitude and youshould stick to it come what. Listen to theadvice of your loved ones whom you know tohave your best interests at heart.

libra

September-24to

October-22

All in all a fair month for you. Goodideas for making money are likely toemanate from people you team up within the first half of the month. The mid-month is good for joining forces withassociates at you place of work in orderto increase earning s and to cut downon the amount of time that you spendon routine jobs. During the last week doyour best to make your creative workclose to perfect.

scorPio

October-23to

November-22

This month is very busy and changeable foryou. The search of a bit of excitement couldlead you to mix with the wrong company.You should better stick to your work. Itwould be wise to relate to friends or at leastavoid involvement with strangers. The sec-ond week of the month presents opportunityto satisfy your need to get things done.Some work that has been pending for quitesome time should be completed by the thirdweek of this month. Plan some entertain-ment in the second half of the month withfamily and friends.

sagittarius

November-23to

December-22

This is a variable month for many ofyou. Good luck can come to youthrough the activities of people in dis-tant places. During mid-month you willfind it easier to cope with the practicalday-to-day problems of your life.During the second half of the monthsuperiors will tend to be more gener-ous and friendly. Financial mattersneed extra attention, as expenditure islikely to increase more than usual.

caPricoN

December-23to

Januar-20

This is an exciting month for many ofyou. The first half is good for consult-ing professional advisors. Effortsmade at improving yourself as a per-son will be helped by favorable cir-cumstances. The second half of themonth might turn out to be a trulyhappy time for romance. The prepa-ration for festival will consume quitea lot of your spare time.

aquaries

January-21to

February-19

This is a quiet Month for many of you. The first half of the week is forsome quiet reflection. Look back overthe recent past. The second half ofthe week is good for attempts to pindown superiors and for extracting definite promise from them. Peoplewho reappear out of the past can behelpful; reunions will undoubtedly be enjoyable.

Pisces

February-20to

March-20

D iwali is also celebrated out-side of India mainly in

Guyana, Fiji, Malaysia, Nepal,Mauritius, Myanmar, Singapore,Sri Lanka, Trinidad & Tobago,Britain, Indonesia, Japan,Thailand, Africa, Australia andthe US among the Hindus acrossthe world. Diwali celebrations inBritain The Indians are the sec-ond largest ethnic minority inBritain. To get rid of the feeling ofmissing their homeland, especial-ly during festival times, theIndians here celebrate most ofthe festivals. The occasion ismarked by visit to the local tem-ple to worship the shrine ofLakshmi, which they have madefor Diwali. Eating special sweets,burning of incense sticks, lightingthe home and surroundings andthe blowing of the conch shellfollows the prayer session in theLakshmi temple. The festivalhere is celebrated according tothe Hindu solar calendar hence itfalls in the months of October-November, amongst the cold,damp and windy months inBritain. Still the enthusiasm ofthe festival celebration makesthe task of leaving small lampson windowsills or by open door-ways possible ignoring the chill.The lamps and diyas play theirpart in maintaining the atmos-phere of Diwali at home.

Diwali celebrationsin Guyana

Guyana, formerly known asBritish Guiana, is located on thenortheast coast of South

America. Guyana is 82,978square miles in area and has apopulation of about 7,70,000.Hindus constitute 33% ofGuyana's total population. TheCo-operative Republic of Guyanain Southern America celebratesDiwali according to the HinduSolar calendar. The day of thefestival is declared as a nationalholiday in the official calendar ofGuyana. The tradition of cele-

brating the festival is believed tohave been brought to Guyana inthe year 1853 by the first inden-tured people from India. The leg-ends related to the festival aresimilar to that of India. The cele-bration of the festival includes,distribution of sweets, illuminat-ing the inside and outside of thehouse, exchange of greetings,cleaning of houses and wearingof new clothes. The celebrations

hold special significance for thepeople of Guyana. The distribu-tion of sweet signifies the impor-tance of serving and sharingwhereas exchange of greetingcards denotes the goodwill ofeach other. The sweets distrib-uted mainly consist of pera, barfi,and kheer. The tradition of wear-ing new cloth for the people ofGuyana is significant especiallyin this festival.

MADE FOR DIWALI. EATING SPECIAL SWEETS, BURNING

OF INCENSE STICKS, LIGHTING THE HOME AND SUR-

ROUNDINGS AND THE BLOWING OF THE CONCH SHELL

FOLLOWS THE PRAYER SESSION IN THE LAKSHMI TEM-

PLE. THE FESTIVAL HERE IS CELEBRATED ....

Global

Diwali

Diwali celebrations

in IndonesiaThe name Indonesia came fromtwo Greek words: "Indos"meaning Indian and "Nesos"meaning islands. The majorityof population follows Islam.Hindus constituent about 2% ofIndonesia's total population.However, the Indonesian islandof Bali is famous for celebratingthe festival of Diwali, as amajority of the population hereis that of Indians. It is one ofthe most revered festivals of thelocals here. The celebration andrituals of the festival is mostlysimilar to that celebrated bytheir counterparts in India.

Diwali celebrationsin Malaysia

Fascinating in its diversity,Malaysia has many mesmeriz-ing charms and attractions.With a population of about 20million, comprising of a harmo-nious multi-ethnic mix ofMalays, Malaysia promises acolorful potpourri of cultural tra-ditions. Most are based on thevarious religious practices,beliefs and traditions influencingthe costumes, festivals, cere-monies and rituals. The Hinducommunity of Malaysia consti-tutes about 8% of its total popu-lation .The community cele-brates Diwali as a symbol of tri-umph of good over evil. TheMalaysian people call Diwali asHari Diwali.

FIJISUN 29November-2013www.fijisun-usa.com

�

FIJISUNNovember-2013 www.fijisun-usa.comgallery

TISI SANGAM DIWALI 2013

30

FIJISUN 31November-2013www.fijisun-usa.com GALLERY

Glimpses of 2013 Diwali festival HaywarD California

pictures by Faizal ali

FIJISUNNovember-2013 www.fijisun-usa.com32