S Arabia: 1 killed, 3 injured in clash with forces

 

Activists and witnesses said the casualties came when security forces opened fire on a Shiite demonstration in the Qatif district of the kingdom s Eastern Province.

 

“A security force patrol came under heavy gunfire from masked men while it was carrying out its duties in Al-Shwaika neighbourhood in the Qatif district on Thursday,” SPA reported, quoting a police spokesman in the province.

 

Security forces “responded,” prompting “an exchange of fire that left four of the rioters wounded, one of whom died before reaching hospital,” it added.

 

Activists and witnesses said that security forces opened fire when a Shiite procession marking the birthday of the Prophet Mohammed (PBUH) — a celebration forbidden in ultra-conservative Sunni Muslim Saudi Arabia — turned into a demonstration for reform and the release of Shiite detainees.

 

“Munir al-Medani, 21, was wounded by a live bullet to his chest,” one activist said, requesting anonymity. “He was taken to hospital where he later died of his wounds.”
A number of other protesters were also wounded, the activists and witnesses said.

 

Witnesses said the shooting prompted groups of young protesters to burn tyres and police to set up checkpoints across the district.

 

Medani s death raises to six the number of protesters killed since demonstrations erupted in the Eastern Province last March against Saudi-led military intervention to help crush Shiite-led pro-democracy protests in neighbouring Bahrain.

 

Activists say that Saudi authorities have arrested nearly 500 people since the protests started. Many have been released but dozens remain in custody, among them human rights activist Fadel al-Munasif and writer Nazir al-Majid.

 

In January, Saudi authorities published a list of 23 men wanted on suspicion of involvement in the disturbances.

 

Later the same month, the interior ministry announced that security forces had arrested nine people suspected of involvement in the wounding of three policemen in the Eastern Province.

 

Most of Saudi Arabia s estimated two million Shiites live in the province, where the vast majority of the kingdom s huge oil reserves lie. They complain of marginalisation in the Sunni-dominated kingdom.
 

Jackie Shroff makes cameo appearance for Rajinikanth

On Wednesday, when Jaggu Dadda, aka Jackie Shroff, turned 55 he was in Chennai with the legendary Rajinikanth, to make a cameo appearance in legendary Tamil actor’s daughter Soundarya’s film Kochadaiyyan.

Says Jackie warmly, “Rajini-ji’s daughter Soundarya is directing this film with her Dad in the lead. So sweet! She asked me to make a cameo appearance in the film with her father. I immediately flew down to Chennai.When it comes anything to do with Rajinikanth one doesn’t ask questions. One just does the needful.”

Jackie and Rajini go back a long way.

Speaking from Chennai, Jackie recalled, “He was one of the few people at my wedding with Ayesha when we got married in 1989. Rajiniji and I were shooting for Subhash Ghai’s Uttar Dakshin in which he played my younger brother; my stepbrother. It was so much fun. I was the North Indian; he was my South Indian brother. During the lunch break Ayesha and I decided to get married. Just the two of us and those close to us. There was Rajini-ji, Subhash Ghai, Dimple, Anupam Kher and a few of my other friends, that’s it. So you see, I’ve very fond memories of Rajinikanth and would never say no to anything to do with him or his family.”

Jackie says it’s an interesting cameo which Soundarya insisted only he could play. “I believe the film is in Tamil, Telugu and Hindi. But even if it was in Swahili, I’d run and do it for Rajinikanth.”

Jackie rushed to Chennai after barely a few hours of sleep. “My birthday is generally a very quiet affair. As always my rakhi-sister Anna Singh came home. Then we went to Riteish and Genelia’s Sangeet. That’s where I brought in my birthday. I flew into Chennai for Rajini-ji’s film early next morning. I can’t think of a better way to spend my birthday.”

Says the actor candidly, “Honestly a birthday is no big deal. I am just beginning to understand life. My first 40 years went into growing up. Now I am finally getting to know what this whole business of living is all about.”

Spencer Pratt starts up with Lauren Conrad once again

TrendPK.com: ‘The Hills’ has been over for some time now, but it seems Spencer Pratt wants to get back in touch with Lauren Conrad.

Pratt recently took to Twitter to wish Conrad a happy birthday, and he claims that it was all in good nature as he actually wants to put the past behind them, states UsMagazine.com. “@LaurenConrad Happy Birthday! Thanks for helping me find my miracle wife @heidimontag !” Pratt commented.

He then clarified that there was nothing sarcastic about his wishes: “I wasn’t being sarcastic! I really do wish the best for Lauren Conrad on her birthday! #forgiveandforget.”

Do you think he is trying to hold onto fame?

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Waka Waka girl Shakira’s birthday today

LOS ANGELES: A Colombian singer-songwriter Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll, known professionally as Shakira is celebratingher birthday today (Thursday).

Shakira was born February 2, 1977). Born and raised in Barranquilla, Colombia, Shakira began performing in school, demonstrating her vocal ability with rock and roll, Latin and Arabic influences with her own original twist on belly dancing.

Shakira emerged in the music scene of Colombia and Latin America in the early 1990s. Shakira is a native Spanish speaker and also speaks fluent English and Portuguese as well as some Italian, French, Catalan and Arabic.

After a poor commercial reception with local producers on her first two albums, and being little-known outside Colombia, Shakira decided to produce her own brand of music.

In 1995 she released Pies Descalzos, which brought her great fame in Latin America and Spain, and her 1998 album ‘Dónde Están los Ladrones’ was a critical success selling over 7 million copies worldwide.

In 2001, aided by the worldwide success of her first English single “Whenever, Wherever” that became the best selling single of 2002, she broke through into the English-speaking world with the release of Laundry Service, which sold over 13 million copies worldwide.

Four years later, Shakira released two album projects called Fijación Oral Vol. 1 and Oral Fixation Vol. 2. Both reinforced her success, particularly with the best selling song of the 2000s, “Hips Don’t Lie”.

In 1995, Shakira founded the Pies Descalzos Foundation. It is a Colombian charity with special schools for poor children all around Colombia. During her career, Shakira has performed at a large number of benefit concerts. Among the most famous are the Live 8 benefit concert in July 2005, the Live Earth concert, Hamburg where she headlined the show, as well as the “Clinton Global Initiative” created by former US President Bill Clinton.

She was also invited to the Oval Office by President Barack Obama in February 2010 to discuss early childhood development.

She has won two Grammy Awards, eight Latin Grammy Awards, twelve Billboard Latin Music Awards  and has been Golden Globe-nominated.

She is also the highest-selling Colombian artist of all time, and the second most successful female Latin singer behind Gloria Estefan, having sold over 70 million albums worldwide.

Her U.S. album sales stand at 9.9 million. In the fall of 2009, Shakira released her sixth studio album She Wolf worldwide gaining a lot of critical praise for her eccentricity and writing skills. The album sold roughly 2 million copies around the world.

Shakira’s “Waka Waka (This Time for Africa)”, was chosen as the official song for the 2010 FIFA World Cup. The song has received generally positive critical reception, and has become a worldwide smash hit and the biggest selling World Cup song of all time.

On YouTube, the English version of the music video is the 4th most watched video of all time with over 441 million views. When she released her seventh studio album, the bilingual Sale el Sol in October 2010, she gained back her Latin following, which Shakira described as being the main goal for the album.

The album has sold over 2 million copies worldwide. Since 2009, Shakira’s musical career suffered from a strained relationship with her label Epic Records, which resulted in lack of promotion and investment from Epic Records towards her two latter studio albums; She Wolf (2009) and Sale el Sol (2010). TrendPK

Rehman relishes bowling with Ajmal

 

Pakistan has put England in a spin in their test cricket series.

 

The left-arm spinner Rehman joined offspinner Ajmal in the test bowlers  world top 10 rankings this week after they claimed a combined 12 and 17 wickets respectively from the matches at Dubai and Abu Dhabi.

 

“We support each other so much that we always think that anyone can get a wicket,” Rehman said on Tuesday.

 

England will face both again in the series finale beginning on Friday in Dubai with Pakistan eyeing its first ever whitewash of England.

 

Rehman, who has moved to No. 9 in the rankings with Ajmal at No. 2, was man of the match in Abu Dhabi last week with a career-best 6-25 to help skittle England for 72 in the second innings.

 

Rehman s eight wickets in the test were his most since his test debut in 2007 against South Africa at Karachi. He played once more against the Proteas, then was dropped for three years until Pakistan opted for a two-spinner attack.

 

He reached 50 wickets in his 11th test last month, and offers no sign of slowing down with his 32nd birthday approaching on March 1.

 

The 34-year-old Ajmal has been a regular for Pakistan since his debut in 2009, and he claimed his 100th wicket when he dismissed Matt Prior, the second-to-last wicket of England s brief innings.

 

Ajmal promised before the series to reveal a mystery ball, but he might not require it after seeing England struggle against his doosra which spins away from right-handed batsman.

 

England has been baffled on how to counter the spinners on pitches where the ball has helped slow bowlers from the outset, surprisingly.

 

The likes of Kevin Pietersen, Eoin Morgan and Ian Bell came into the series on the back of some impressive knocks last year that lifted England to the top of the world rankings.

 

But the capitulation of the England batsmen inside three days at Dubai and within four days at Abu Dhabi summed up their deficiencies.

 

“We had no idea the test matches will finish in three or four days,” Rehman said.

 

“The gameplan of the coach and captain was to contain them so that they make mistakes and it s worked. We have done well against the world No. 1 team and if we play like this we can become No. 1.”

 

Rehman said the team has not talked about a clean sweep. ”We want to play the third test in the same manner,” he said.–AP
 

Taylor Armstrong opens up about Russell Armstrong at reunion

TrendPK.com: Taylor Armstrong opened up about her late estranged husband, Russell Armstrong, at the ‘Real Housewives of Beverly Hills’ reunion.

And at the show, she revealed details about their relationship and also about her many complicated feelings about him, states RadarOnline.com. Taylor admitted that she misses Russell and considered him a great love in her life.

“I was suffering a tremendous loss just worried about how this happened. This could potentially have been the love of my life,” Taylor commented about how she felt when she found out he was dead.

However, she also revealed that he definitely abused her in many ways as she revealed his birthday message to her: “Happy Birthday A**hole. F*** you, you psychotic bitch.”

What did you think about the show?

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Demi Lovato returns to Twitter after brief break

TrendPK.com: Demi Lovato recently announced that she would be taking a break from Twitter, but it seems she just couldn’t stay away for too long.

The break only lasted about a week as she may have returned to shoot down rumors that she was returning to rehab that started up when she decided to take a break, states E! News. While telling all her fans to not believe the “hype,” she also commented on some upcoming fun: “SO stoked to head to Chile in a few days!!! Love all my Lovatics… MUAH! xo.”

She also took some time to send birthday wishes to her rumored ex-boyfriend, Wilmer Valderrama: “To the one and only @WilyVille – I hope the world can see what an incredible man you are. Happy Birthday Wilmer, you deserve it.”

What do you think about her short break?

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Her legacy set in stone, ‘Dalit queen’ faces polls

LUCKNOW: By her own standards, Kumari Mayawati’s birthday celebrations were low-key this year. After driving through a red-carpeted tunnel of plaster elephant tusks in an Ambassador, the chief minister of Uttar Pradesh swept past a coterie of her party’s workers, who bowed and touched her feet.

Diamonds adorned the diminutive figure of “the Dalit Queen”, encrusting her necklace, a bracelet, her earrings, a nose-ring and her watch, as she accepted a few bouquets of flowers and marched about briskly in the marigold-draped party headquarters.

But the huge crowds of gaping admirers were missing this year; there was no garland of banknotes, no upper-caste Brahmin on hand to symbolically pop a morsel of birthday cake into the mouth of an “untouchable” who has risen from the bottom of India’s social pile to become one of the most powerful women in the world.

That’s because election campaign rules are now in effect for staggered polls to be held in February and March in Uttar Pradesh.

Mayawati is far from a sure bet to win another term as chief minister of the northern state whose population of 200 million would rank as the fifth-most populous in the world if it were a country.

If she doesn’t, it would be a blow to her undisguised ambition to one day become prime minister of India, a goal that looked reasonable back in 2007 when she won a huge mandate from the state’s voters by appealing to a rainbow of castes, which still define the socio-economic status for many of India’s 1.2 billion people.

Launching the seventh, gilt-edged volume of an autobiography that runs to thousands of pages and is printed in Hindi and English, Mayawati bemoaned Election Commission rules that obliged her to row back on her usual birthday beneficence.

“Normally, my birthday is an occasion to give away thousands of crores in welfare schemes for Dalits and other backward castes, but because of the election code of conduct we could not do that this year,” she said.

Mayawati’s nemesis in the election is Rahul Gandhi, scion of the Nehru-Gandhi dynasty that has ruled the country for most of its six decades of independence. A relative greenhorn in the hurly-burly of Indian politics, Gandhi has staked his future on the performance of the venerable but troubled Congress party in Uttar Pradesh.

A TRADITION OF EXTRAVAGANCE

Although she presides over one of the most poverty-plagued states of India — its per-capita income is just above 50 percent of the national average — Mayawati’s extraordinary personal extravagance preserves a tradition set over the centuries by a succession of rulers in the plains of the river Ganges.

In the five years since she took office, she has blanketed hundreds of acres of prime real estate in Lucknow and elsewhere in pink marble and sandstone monuments.

Statues of marble elephants and icons of the lower castes, including a dozen of herself, occupy memorial parks created on a scale not seen in India since the British built New Delhi in the fading days of their empire.

A government report found that Uttar Pradesh lavished more than $400 million on such projects between 2007 and 2009 alone — and the building continues.

“She’s taken it straight out of the pages of the Mughals and the first British Viceroys who built huge statues. These are abiding icons that the Dalits always hankered after but never had themselves,” said Ajoy Bose, author of a biography of Mayawati.

Like the Nawabs, descendents of Persian courtiers who governed the region in the 18th century, Mayawati likes to flaunt her wealth. On paper, she is India’s richest chief minister, with declared assets of $16 million that include a shopping mall in New Delhi and $169,000 in jewellery. But unlike many of her peers in other states, she is open about her income and pays taxes on it.

A U.S. diplomatic cable released by WikiLeaks last year recounted how she once sent a private jet to fetch a pair of sandals from Mumbai, 1,000 km (620 miles) away. According to the cable, one minister was forced to do sit-ups in front of Mayawati as a punishment for a minor offence; those wanting to become election candidates for her Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) had to pay tens of thousands of dollars for the privilege.

But, unlike her aristocratic Mughal, Nawab and British predecessors, she hails from India’s “Dalit” castes, who were marginalized for centuries on the bottom rungs of Hinduism’s social ladder. Still today, the idea that a Dalit could become prime minister is as outlandish for many Indians as the thought of a black president once was in the United States.

“FIRST-RATE EGOMANIAC”

One of nine children of a poor government clerk, Mayawati grew up in a Delhi slum and became a school teacher before launching into politics. Aides say she’s a news junkie, who obsessively watches the many all-news channels now available in India.

She is often ridiculed by urban middle classes for her monumental personality cult — the U.S. cable described her as a “first-rate egomaniac” — and yet Mayawati still has many supporters in Uttar Pradesh, where economic growth has picked up and law and order have improved on her watch.

Mayawati’s aides point out that she has spent far more on building roads and joining villages to the electrical grid than she has on the icons to herself and the Dalit people.

“Once you get the infrastructure on the ground, Uttar Pradesh will grow on its own,” said a senior official in her inner circle, who asked not to be identified.

Sympathetic analysts even liken her park-building spree to that of the Nawab of Lucknow, Asaf-Ud-Dowlah, who employed 20,000 people to build a shrine during a harsh 1784 famine, a project some historians call an example of pre-Keynesian economics.

That might be a stretch, but electrification and rural welfare projects have undoubtedly contributed to economic growth, which at seven percent annually in her first four years of office, was the state’s fastest-ever rate.

A report by the central government’s economic Planning Commission last year said Mayawati’s pro-Dalit policies had begun to improve the dire nutrition situation in the state, where 42 percent of children under five are underweight.

Even critics admit crime has fallen noticeably since she took over as chief minister in 2007 from Mulayam Singh Yadav, a former wrestler many remember for presiding over a surge in gang violence, with gun-wielding goons threatening shopkeepers.

POLICE ON THEIR SIDE

In the mainly Dalit village of Bhaddi Kheda, an hour’s drive from Lucknow, families have been given grants to build modest new houses to replace mud-walled hovels. New toilets improve sanitation, and muddy lanes have been paved.

Most importantly, said villager Saptruhan Das, Dalits who for generations were terrorised by higher castes now feel protected because the police are on their side.

“Yadav people would come and misbehave with the women,” Das said, referring to former Chief Minister Yadav’s caste. “In some places, they’d give us work but beat us. Now with Mayawati in power, nobody dares.”

According to an opinion poll conducted in Uttar Pradesh for India Today magazine last November, 69 percent said that Mayawati had fulfilled the expectations of Dalits.

But nearly 9 out of 10 voters said competence mattered more than the chief minister’s caste, two-thirds wanted a change of guard, and the poll showed that Yadav was more favoured than Mayawati as the best person to lead the state.

Indeed, Yadav’s Samajwadi Party could well emerge from the election with more seats in the 403-member state assembly than Mayawati, though probably not enough for a majority, forcing him to ally with Gandhi’s Congress for a return to power.

ELEPHANTINE AMBITIONS

It is too soon to write off the wily Mayawati. She has outwitted every opponent who has crossed her path since the 1990s, first forming several short-lived coalition governments and then storming home with a single-party majority in 2007.

She still pulls in crowds of easily 100,000 at election rallies, far more than her opponents, including Gandhi. And she has a knack for turning adversity into advantage.

Take the flap over the life-sized elephant statues Mayawati had erected in a sprawling Lucknow park, which she opened in 2008 and named after the untouchable leader who wrote India’s constitution, Dr. B.R Ambedkar.

The Election Commission this month ordered all statues of Mayawati and of elephants — her party’s electoral symbol — to be covered during the campaign. So now, dozens of hulking elephant statues are clad in yellow plastic sheeting, and plyboard boxes have been built around bronze Mayawati statues.

“I thank the Election Commission for this order,” she said. “It is going to benefit the party and has given us free publicity.”

Despite her bravado, Mayawati is likely to lose the votes of millions who believe that corruption has gone from bad to worse and the fruits of economic growth have been unevenly spread both across the sprawling state and its castes.

Speaking on condition of anonymity, one businessman in the state described a well-organised system of bribe-paying to bureaucrats and constant harassment of companies for pay-offs.

“You have to be really desperate to do business in Uttar Pradesh. You have to pay for virtually everything,” he said. “Since you have to pay out even if you follow the law — why follow the law?”

NO INDUSTRY, NO JOBS

Apart from a couple of companies seen as close to her administration including Jaypee Group, which built the track used for India’s first Formula One race last year, Uttar Pradesh has missed out on India’s industrial growth of the past decade.

Construction, particularly state-funded building of roads, has been the main driver of the state’s economy, along with agriculture. Manufacturing has stagnated, hobbled by regular power cuts, high taxes and corruption.

Dalit villager Chote Lal, 28, says life has improved for his caste under Mayawati, but he still does not have enough food to feed his seven children properly. “There are no jobs, no factories — she should have brought in industry,” he said.

This may be Mayawati’s undoing: not the statues and the personal extravagance, but the sense she has not done enough to lift living standards evenly across so vast a population.

“Overall, her performance is a mixed bag,” said Bose, her biographer. “She has clearly been disappointing. She had a great chance to do more.”

This is especially felt among higher castes and Muslims, whose votes helped propel Mayawati to power with a majority in 2007 but who now feel her pro-Dalit policies have not taken them into account.

“We want a government that works for development, not one that works for one particular caste or religion,” said Mohammed Ahmed Khan, a Muslim farmer in the village of Dharai Mafi. AGENCIES

Kate Hudson’s Ann Taylor ads released

TrendPK.com: Kate Hudson may be busy raising her two young sons, but that doesn’t mean she hasn’t been able to fit in a little time to work.

Hudson is the new face of Ann Taylor’s fashion line, and now the ads are out for the spring collection that has the actress glowing, states People. “I am thrilled to collaborate with Ann Taylor this spring. I love fashion, and their new spring collection is so stylish and hip and colorful!” Hudson said about the gig.

The clothing featured in the ads will reportedly be available starting in February.

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Martin Scorsese receiving a 3D distinction for “Hugo” – AWARDS ALLEY

By Sean O’Connell
TrendPK.com: Martin Scorsese finally took the technological plunge in 2011, shooting his film-preservation fantasy “Hugo” in 3D. For his efforts, the director’s about to rewarded.

The International 3D Society announced that it will present Scorsese with the Harold Lloyd Award for artistic and technical achievement in 3D. The irony being that Scorsese uses a sequence from Lloyd’s “Safety Last!” during a crucial moment in “Hugo,” so the award couldn’t be more appropriate.

“Marty Scorsese has embodied Harold Lloyd’s vision and passion for captivating movie fans around the world for his entire career,” said Suzanne Lloyd, Lloyd’s granddaughter and chairman of Harold Lloyd Entertainment, who will make the presentation. “With ‘Hugo,’ he has shared his love of filmmaking and filmmakers, in 3D, which would also have thrilled Harold.”

The award will be presented at the Society’s Creative Arts Awards ceremony, Feb. 1 at the Beverly Hills Hotel.

Awards Alley brings you the best Oscar coverage. Click below to read our exclusive interviews with:
– Harvey Weinstein
– The cast of “The Artist.”
– Kenneth Branagh for “My Week With Marilyn.”
– Bennett Miller talks “Moneyball.”
– Sir Ben Kingsley and Chloe Grace Moretz for “Hugo.”
– Tilda Swinton for “We Need to Talk About Kevin.”
– David Fincher, Daniel Craig and Rooney Mara on “The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo.”
– Viola Davis and Octavia Spencer for “The Help.”
– Tate Taylor for “The Help.”
– Woody Harrelson for “Rampart.”
– Gavin O’Connor for “Warrior.”
– Gary Oldman and Colin Firth for “Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy.”
– Charlize Theron, Patton Oswalt, Jason Reitman and Diablo Cody for “Young Adult.”
– Steve McQueen for “Shame.”
– Glenn Close for “Albert Nobbs.”
– Seth Rogen and Will Reiser for “50/50.”

For complete Oscar and Film Festival coverage, visit our Awards Alley for the latest news items, reviews and interviews all season long.

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