News Today

News In Brief
Tokyo, New York bourses on track for tie-up dealTOKYO - THE Tokyo and New York stock exchanges are expected to reach an agreement on their tie-up when bourse officials meet in New York at the end of the month, said a... [Read more]

Pigging out on stamps galore
A SPECIAL stamp exhibition launched yesterday promises to give visitors an insight into the origins and traditions of the Chinese New Year. The Spring Flowers and Autumn Moon exhibition, at the Singapore Philatelic Museum in Coleman Street, will continue during the... [Read more]

Bryant shines brightest in NBA All-stars show
LAS VEGAS - NOT surprisingly, the first National Basketball Association All-Star Game in Las Vegas featured plenty of flash, but little substance. There were slam dunks galore and no defence to be found, as the Western All-Stars beat their Eastern counterparts... [Read more]

AFF special committee will probe Thai walkout tomorrow
THE Asean Football Federation (AFF) will convene a special committee to look into Wednesday's Thai walkout.The incident happened during the first leg of the Asean Championship final hosted by Singapore at the National Stadium.The committee will meet in Kuala Lumpur tomorrow.... [Read more]

Frank Hsieh to join Taiwan presidential race
TAIPEI - FORMER premier Frank Hsieh yesterday announced that he will seek the ruling party's nomination for next year's presidential election.His announcement came just days after opposition leader Ma Ying-jeou declared his bid for the island's top office on Tuesday.Mr Hsieh,... [Read more]

Qantas and Orangestar tie-up clears another hurdle
ANOTHER obstacle to a proposed tie-up between Singapore-based Orangestar and Australia's Qantas, has been removed.Singapore's competition watchdog said yesterday it does not object to Qantas and its budget offshoot Jetstar continuing to fix fares and coordinate schedules with Orangestar, which owns... [Read more]

Thais burn effigy of S'pore minister
BANGKOK - SOME 200 Thais yesterday burned an effigy of a Singapore leader outside the Republic's Embassy here in yet another protest following a diplomatic spat between the two countries. The protesters said they belonged to several groups, including Ramkhamhaeng University... [Read more]

Liquid curbs likely on all flights from Singapore
SINGAPORE is seriously considering limiting the amount of liquids, aerosols and gels that passengers can carry aboard aircraft, joining the United States, Canada and European Union states that already have the anti-terror restrictions in place. The move is in line with... [Read more]

Virgin plans to build casino resort in Macau
HONG KONG - SIR Richard Branson's Virgin Group is in advanced talks to secure land in Macau on which it intends to build a US$3 billion (S$4.6 billion) casino resort.Sir Richard, the British entrepreneur who founded the airline-to-mobile-phone empire, is close... [Read more]

More workers' dormitories may get beer permit
A SCHEME to sell beer at selected foreign workers' dormitories since at least 2003 has not led to serious law and order problems, and may be extended. Police, who gave approval for the pilot scheme at four dormitories, are now conducting... [Read more]

Drought-hit Australia gets $12b water plan
CANBERRA - AUSTRALIAN Prime Minister John Howard yesterday unveiled a radical A$10 billion (S$12 billion) plan aimed at protecting dwindling water supplies in the world's driest inhabited continent. The move was also seen as an attempt by the Prime Minister to... [Read more]

TV show in which man kicks dog as punishment sends the wrong message to children

I was watching a local production on Channel 8 titled 'My Dear Kin' on March 7 when I was shocked to see an actor kicking a dog to teach it a lesson for biting a child.

My niece, who was also watching the programme, ran over and asked me if she could similarly kick our pet dog if our dog misbehaved. I believe any right-minded person who owns a dog would have given his dog just a light rap as punishment.

I hope that MediaCorp TV will take the effort to do some research (as in the right way to discipline a dog).

It is important for our young generation to learn that such abusive behaviour is wrong.

Lee Mei Fang (Miss)

Tips from top pro

Some day, Alphonse Tan, 13, hopes to be a professional golfer like England's Lee Westwood.

Yesterday, the St Hilda's Secondary 1 schoolboy, a 20-handicapper, moved a step closer to his dream.

He was among 250 HSBC Youth Golfers who were coached by Ryder Cup star Westwood, as part of the Emirates Youth Golf Development Programme.

The programme gives schoolchildren who cannot afford to take up golf the opportunity to try out the sport.

Shouldn't experts assess buildings after tremors?

SINGAPOREANS felt tremors following earthquakes off Indonesia's coast on Tuesday. High-rise buildings in the Central Business District were the most affected. They swayed slightly for 10 minutes.

Office workers started leaving the buildings even though there was no announcement of an evacuation.

Many groups of office workers were seen just above the Raffles Place MRT station. Later, most of them were seen returning to their offices after the landlord claimed that it was safe to do so. How could this be true when it takes time to physically check the structure of a 50-storey building? Should not surveyors or experts be called in to assess the condition of buildings?

Goh Wee Koon

FROM the picture I saw on the Straits Times Interactive, it appeared that the people who were evacuated from one of the Suntec City towers after the tremors were standing at the foot of the building.

Should they not have been evacuated to an open area, in view of the risk of objects falling and more tremors?

Agnes Sng Hwee Lee (Ms)
Sofia, Bulgaria

Results

BASKETBALL

NBA: Orlando 99 Milwaukee 81, Cleveland 91 Houston 85, Miami 88 Atlanta 81, Golden State 111 Detroit 93, Utah 120 Charlotte 95, San Antonio 88 LA Clippers 74.

CRICKET

World Cup warm-up matches - In Port-Of-Spain: South Africa 192 all out in 50 overs (A. Hall 67 n.o.; Langford-Smith 3-30, Johnston 4-40, Botha 2-24). Ireland 157 all out in 44.2 overs (W. Porterfield 37; Nel 2-38, Hall 3-26, Langeveldt 4-31). -4, Telemachus 6-0-14-1, Kallis 4-0-23-0, Peterson 3-0-11-0. South Africa win by 35 runs.

In Bridgetown, Barbados: Sri Lanka 294-7 in 50 overs (Sangakkara 81, Jayasuriya 77, Tharanga 70). Scotland 122 all out in 22 overs. Sri Lanka win by 172 runs.

In Arnos Vale, St Vincent: England 286-8 in 50 overs (J Dalrymple 76; D Borden 3-71). Bermuda 45 all out, 22.2 overs (J Lewis 3-7, A Flintoff 2-3). England win by 241 runs.

GOLF

Honda Classic in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, final rd; after completion of a darkness-halted play-off (Wilson won with birdie on 3rd play-off hole. USA unless stated): 275 Mark Wilson 72 66 66 71, Camilo Villegas (Col) 70 68 71 66, Jose Coceres (Arg) 69 71 69 66, Boo Weekley 71 68 66 70 276 Tripp Isenhour 71 70 68 67, Robert Allenby (Aus) 67 68 73 68, Steve Stricker 68 69 70 69 277 Brett Wetterich 68 71 71 67, Daniel Chopra (Swe) 70 68 68 71 279 Bernhard Langer (Ger) 66 75 70 68, J.P. Hayes 71 73 67 68, Arron Oberholser 68 73 69 69.

SOCCER

FAS Women's Challenge Cup - Group A: Bishan Arsenal A 9 NTU 0, FAS Young Women 16 NYPGA 0. Gp B: Police 6 FAS U-17 1, UWC 2 Paya Lebar Punggol 0. Gp C: Tiong Bahru 5 Sporting Westlake 0, Arion 4 Bishan Arsenal B 0.

Chief selector in row over Sehwag

MUMBAI - INDIA'S chief selector Dilip Vengsarkar was taken to task by a cricket official on Sunday, after saying out-of-form batsman Virender Sehwag was included in India's World Cup team at skipper Rahul Dravid's insistence.

In an interview with CNN-IBN television news channel, Vengsarkar said if Dravid had not demanded Sehwag's inclusion, he might not have been on the team.

His comments on Saturday could lead to controversy ahead of India's campaign in the World Cup, according to Rajiv Shukla, vice-president of the Board of Control for Cricket in India.

'The team is selected by five selectors in consultation with the captain and the coach. Selection issues should not come out in the open,' he said.

'It creates unnecessary controversy before the World Cup.'

Sehwag, 28, goes to the March 13-April 28 World Cup in the Caribbean following a prolonged slump. He has scored just one 50 in 13 innings since August.

The aggressive batsman from Delhi missed several limited-over internationals after he was dropped from the team because of his dismal performance on the recent tour of South Africa.

ASSOCIATED PRESS, REUTERS

News Today

Catch fireworks at S'pore River Hongbao
LOOK out for fireworks on some evenings at the Esplanade Park. They are a feature in this year's Singapore River Hongbao, from tomorrow to March 4.Motorists who want to watch the display will not be allowed to stop or illegally park... [Read more]

Tonight's Headlines
Joy, then sadness for lone United fanON SUNDAY, private tutor Mervin Tan, 30, went where few Manchester United fans dared to tread - the den of local Arsenal fans. Clad in a black United jersey and red scarf, he joined the... [Read more]

Creamer grabs her first title since 2005
KAHUKU (HAWAII) - PAULA Creamer won the LPGA Tour's season-opening SBS Open on Saturday for her first victory since 2005, handling the whipping wind to hold off Julieta Granada by a stroke.The 20-year-old Creamer closed with a two-under 70 for a... [Read more]

A dry February so far
THE first 12 days of February were drier than normal over most of Singapore.A statement from the weatherman yesterday said two-thirds of the island received less than 5mm of rain - more than 90 per cent below average. Most of the... [Read more]

High alert in Karbala for religious event
IRAQI forces tightened security in and around Karbala yesterday as Shi'ite Muslims flocked to the shrine city to commemorate Ashura, a mourning period. 'Security forces have been ordered to completely block car traffic from neighbouring provinces,' Karbala Governor Akhil al-Khazali said,... [Read more]

US 'may ease ban on N. Korea's accounts'
TOKYO - THE United States is considering easing financial sanctions on North Korea in an effort to kick-start talks on ending the North's nuclear arms drive, a report said yesterday.US and North Korean financial officials are scheduled to resume talks in... [Read more]

India gives Bhutan free rein in foreign policy
NEW DELHI - AFTER 57 years of overseeing Bhutan's foreign policy, India and the tiny Himalayan kingdom have signed an updated treaty that gives Bhutan more elbow room in military purchases and external affairs. With Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh as... [Read more]

Name changes 'could bring disaster'
TAIPEI - FORMER Taiwanese president Lee Teng-hui has warned that the island's drive to remove references of rival China from the names of state-run companies could bring disaster. Under the campaign pushed by the current president, Mr Chen Shui-bian, four state-run... [Read more]

No meeting with defence minister
SECURITY issues are likely to dominate US Vice-President Dick Cheney's trip to Japan but one person he will not meet is the Japanese Defence Minister. Mr Fumio Kyuma recently set off a tempest by calling the US decision to invade Iraq... [Read more]

Blair's top fund-raiser rearrested while on bail
THE top fund-raiser for British Prime Minister Tony Blair's Labour Party was arrested on Tuesday on suspicion of conspiracy to pervert the course of justice, a police source said.Lord Michael Levy was arrested when he returned to a London police station... [Read more]

Malaysia to review curbs on foreign investors
KUALA LUMPUR - MALAYSIA is to review curbs on foreign shareholding in state-linked firms as it gears up for a big push to attract more foreign investment and raise its profile, a minister said yesterday.Second Finance Minister Nor Mohamed Yakcop revealed... [Read more]