Madeira News Blog

(28th August). Today’s main news story and photo, with about two thirds of the front page : ‘In The Elite Of Europe – With a deceive draw yesterday in St. Petersburg (1-1), Nacional eliminated the millionaires of Zenit and move on now to the must sought after group phase. A historic deed that launches the Madeiran club into another galaxy of European football. The draw of the league is today’. ‘Here are the new ‘Czars’ of Madeira’. In football, Nacional went to play the second leg of the Europa League qualifying match in Moscow yesterday evening, and thanks to a very very late equaliser by Ruben Micael (the only Madeiran in the game), go forward to the next group stage at the expense of Zenit St. Petersburg, who were huge favourites for the win. I thought I was enthusiastic at the fantastic result, but I didn’t even consider using words ‘elite’ and ‘galaxy’. Once again it was and still is impossible to see even the slightest snippet of the game due to TV rights, but we had nearly full coverage on the radio. The draw for the group phase is at 12.30 am today I think, and Nacional are in there with Benfica and Sporting. Not much room left on the front page for anything else.

UPDATE : You won’t see it on TV, but after extensive research the last minute Nacional goal (and the OTT celebrations) is available to blog readers HERE along with a match report in English. In the draw for the group phase made this afternoon, Nacional will play in Group L with Werder Bremen (Germany), Austria de Vienna, and Atletico de Bilbau (Spain). The first games will be on 17th September.

‘CMF ‘Occupies’ Old Buildings’. Funchal Municipal Council is to take administrative possession of 4 old run-down buildings, to use for social housing. The buildings are in an advanced state of degradation in the old city. CMF will take possession of the buildings, which are protected in legal terms, for turning them into housing. There are at least four of these buildings, whose expropriation process determines a substantial investment, not only to pay the owners, but also to pay for the restoration work. One house in Rua de Santa Maria will cost €53,000 to buy, and another €102,000 to restore. There are many such houses in the area, and the process of expropriation (compulsory purchase) is there to allow CMF to take on the restoration, to keep Funchal looking in good shape, when the owners fail to do so with their property. The process has four stages, and is usually made more difficult because owners cannot be identified or traced, often as a result of complex inheritance issues, as often happens here.

‘(Social) Security Investigates Fraud – The scheme involves false claims for unemployment benefit. Bernadette Vieira alerts citizens to the serious consequences of illegal claims’. An allegedly fraudulent scheme involving false unemployment claims, may be undermining the social security system, and costing many thousands of Euros. The case is now being investigated by the inspection branch of Social Security Madeira (CSSM), following a whistle blower complaint, and as required by law, they immediately suspended unemployment benefits awarded to people under suspicion. In practice, they suspect the existence of companies that, in return for a monetary consideration, have sent false statements to the CSSM in support of claims for unemployment benefits, for workers who in fact never worked there. Research by the Diário revealed that this scheme is suspected of taking place in the north of Madeira, involving an unspecified number of people. In the parish of Boaventura, the number of individuals suspected of improperly receiving the unemployment benefit is around 10. If the bogus claims are confirmed the matter will be turned over to the Justice Police. Bernadette Vieira, president of CSSM, alerts citizens to the seriousness of a situation like this, as well as for the obvious consequences for those involved. The first of which, is the immediate suspension of unemployment benefit. In addition, offenders are obliged to refund the entire amount obtained unlawfully. This, warns the president of CSSM, in the absence of an immediate repayment, will lead to the suspension of all subsidies and other social benefits, that will continue until the amount owed is paid off in full. To further aggravate the situation, the culprits are also subject to a fine of up to one thousand Euros. For companies involved in fraudulent situations like this, the amount of fines can go up to €2,500. In addition to all this, there are criminal consequences for some. In addition, she appeals to the public who are aware of schemes like these, to report the matter. Sounds almost like it is a new phenomenon, but surely it can’t be. A certain small percentage of human beings will always try to rip-off the system, that’s an unfortunate fact of life, but here it’s almost a national sport as far as the financial authorities go, with so many people working and claiming benefits, and working and not paying tax, or businesses earning and siphoning. Normally it doesn’t it seem to bother anyone, let alone the IRS and Social Security, and it almost seems to be socially acceptable. The fines hardly seem much of a deterrent either. I wonder if there is anything we could learn from our politicians about how to behave in this sense?

‘Weekend With The Famous – Dates 4th And 5th – The event ‘Faces’ Divine Experience’ ends with a VIP party at The Vine Hotel’. Fun, elegance and dozens of familiar faces from the world of television. This is what promises to end the weekend special summer that the famous celebrity magazine ‘Faces’ will present in Madeira, on the 4th and 5th of September. The actress and TV presenter, Liliana Aguiar, and Sofia Marques, are named guests, but the final list of celebrities is still being prepared and in the coming days there should be more news. The Vine will be an unforgettable party. For these two days, specifically Friday, after a ‘welcome drink’ at The Vine Hotel (in the hotel’s official event ‘Faces Divine Experience’), there follows a visit to the ‘Madeira Wine Festival 2009′ which will take place at Avenida Arriaga, then the night will finish with a dinner at’ Chega de Saudade’, one of the most popular restaurants in downtown Funchal. On Saturday, there is a boat trip planned along the coast to the Marina Quinta do Lorde, in Caniçal, followed by lunch there. At night, there will be a dinner at the restaurant at The Vine, followed by a media VIP party for about 400 invited guests. Having never heard of the magazine ‘Faces’, or the only two guests named so far, I thought I ought to do some Google research and it seems that ‘Faces’ Magazine is a free magazine about the nightlife, restaurants, fashion, stores, and people of Halifax in England.

‘Law of compulsory education until the age of 18 published yesterday – Students in the next school year to stay until the seventh grade are already covered(?)’. The law which extends compulsory education to the age of 18, and establishes pre-school education from the age of 5, was published in the Diário da República (official Journal). Law No 85/2009 states that "compulsory education implies, for the guardian of the child, the duty to make the registration of the child in public or private schools, in institutions of education, and / or training recognized by authorities, determining for the student the duty of attendance".

‘SATA repudiates the strike of Groundforce – Company accepts no responsibility for the inconvenience that passengers will suffer’. If the TAP strike today and tomorrow isn’t bad enough, the handling company at several airports, Groundforce, has also chosen the same days to strike. This will affect passengers using the airports of Madeira, Porto Santo, Lisbon and Porto. The strike will cause congestion with luggage movements, and problems in check in, embarking and disembarking. Passengers are advised to travel with cabin luggage only, and also to check in by telephone where possible. The SATA customer contact centre number is 707 22 72 82, or information can be obtained on-line.

‘Rockfall Along The Seafront Of Ribeira Brava – Boulders fell on the section prohibited for use’. The old sea road, closed to traffic for several years, that leads to the roundabout at Tabua, suffered another rock fall yesterday. No one was hurt, but the damage was evident both to the pavement and in the outer sea wall which runs alongside the road. The route is correctly identified with warning signs, and also signs prohibiting pedestrian and bicycle traffic, but many ignore them.

In yesterday’s Jornal da Madeira : ‘New measure against social exclusion released – The program was published this week in the Journal of the Region’. The Government has just launched a measure to combat social exclusion. This is the Local Contract Program for Social Development, published this week in the Journal of the Autonomous Region of Madeira (JORAM) whose purpose, is to ‘bridge the current needs of society in the face of persistent poverty and social exclusion’. According to the regional secretary for social affairs, it is a set of opportunities that are created locally for the social development of people who are in situations of social downfall, to give an opportunity that these people can take part in’. He said ‘this is a project of great social importance’, as it will offer them "an opportunity for integration". It involves the the creation of units that develop, train and thus provide new job opportunities for those people in need of support. It will be targeted at critical areas, urban or rural, hard hit with problems. A bit tricky to dig out the exact details, but will this be the PSD ‘election special’, designed to attract those voters suffering the worst hardship, that until now thought the government of Madeira had done little to help them?

UPDATES

‘Study Records Weak Presence Of Mosquitoes – The study was done in July by technicians of hygiene and tropical medicine’. The preliminary study says that there is no great abundance of insects, not in adult or larvae form. That is confirmed by a reduction in people attending the health centres in Funchal and Câmara de Lobos, complaining of bites by the ‘Aedes Aegypti’ mosquito. The news has surprised the experts, with the explanation being given as partly due to the use of a new ‘cutting edge’ insecticide, instead of that recommended by the World health Organisation. A colder Winter may also have helped. Another reason given for the reduction in complaints at health centres, is that people are becoming less sensitive to the bites of this species over time. However people are urged to continue the action they have been taking, particularly avoiding leaving stagnant water around, which provides breeding conditions. The worst months are yet to come, with the heat, humidity and rain of September and October, providing the best conditions for the mosquitoes.

’200 Cases Per Year In The PSP Of Madeira’. The police are the target of complaints relating to misconduct, breaches of discipline, or practices that could be considered illegal. The trade union representing police says that there is protectionism in play for more senior officers, whilst the rank and file police are subject to a quicker and more severe sanctions. The TU officer gives the example of damage to vehicles, with some officers fined and suffering a reduction in salary, whilst more senior officers were not even subject to the same process. The Regional Command of the PSP makes it clear that the process, does not discriminate between rank or function. "The disciplinary regulations of the PSP are applicable to all police officers" he said. The majority of disciplinary proceedings, which are led by an officer of higher rank to the person charged, end up being closed due to lack of evidence.

A 24 year old man has died from his injuries after a car crash in Calheta on 16th August. He had been in a coma since the accident between Prazeres and Maloeira. A 19 year old man in the same accident is still in hospital waiting surgery, but is out of danger. The funeral is tomorrow at 4pm in the church of Raposeira.

‘TAP Guarantees Flights On Day Of Strike – Resort to the company ‘Portway’ is the solution found to not leave passengers on land’. Passengers are catching their flights as normal at Madeira Airport today, despite the strikes by staff represented by 5 different trade unions at TAP airlines. So far no cancellations or delays. A TAP spokesman said that (today?) there will be just isolated small delays. TAP has contracted the handling services of Portway to minimise problems, a move that one trade union leader has said is illegal. TAP assures that the move is within the law.

"Black Stains" Appear Like Mushrooms Leaving Funchal Disfigured – CDU criticises urban growth in the city’. The election candidate of the communists for the câmara municipal of Funchal criticised the various developments that have left the city "violated and disfigured". In a pre-campaign initiative prior to the elections on 11th October, Artur Andrade said that the city had been "marked by interest groups and by speculation in real estate", and that the municipal master plan (PDM) has proved "insufficient to deal with the speculative interests and was twisted and violated". The result of the total permissiveness over the years is for the gain of "a minority whose aim is simply to make as much profit as possible". The examples chosen to illustrate the accusations are Marina Shopping, the expansion of the Hotel CS Madeira, the embargoed building of Mina Gerais, and even the cement wall at the port of Funchal for the construction of a car park. What about the complete development in and around Ajuda? If that wasn’t done for a quick buck and with total disregard for sensible planning, I will eat someone’s hat.

‘Autonomous Regions Forgotten In The Programme Of PSD – Ferreira Leite doesn’t take on any questions involving controversy’. Alberto João Jardim said during the week, that the PS electoral programme presented by prime minister José Sócrates was worth "zero", in respect of Madeira and the Azores. An evaluation (according to the Diário) that he should now extend to the programme (prospectus?) of his own PSD party, presented yesterday by party leader Manuela Ferreira Leite, who said the party did not exaggerate its promises. The autonomous regions had a quarter page and some general references, with none of the issues considered fundamental by the social democrats of Madeira addressed with a clear commitment, including the constitution revision considered as a top priority by president Jardim. It does however promise to patch up the terrible relationship between central government and the regional government of Madeira, if elected. It also promises to ensure ‘healthy market competition’, which will conflict with the government stance here in terms of the newspaper Jornal da Madeira.

(9th August). Today’s main news headline : ‘Madeira Government Puts The Wine Companies To Resolve Surpluses – The secretary Manuel António and the social democrat Jamie Ramos promised that there would not be a a grape left to sell. With the excessive production, the government, in election times imposes on the companies that they buy more than they need’. There is already too much wine in stock, but for "electoral reasons" the government commits the ‘wine houses’ to buy more grapes than they need. Now there are 14 million litres of wines in stock here, but an export market of little more than 3 million litres annually. Over / high production also should result in a drop in grape prices, and it is this problem that scares our leaders. The problem is not just political, but relates to the sustainability of the whole sector. We produce more wine than there is demand, and as a result the companies that produce and export Vinho Madeira are starting to feel economic difficulties in managing very large stocks of wine. Guarantees to growers given by our leaders and politicians did not go unheeded, and as the government cannot buy the excess grapes, and nor can the PSD social democrats, the private sector has been committed. Manuel António Correia, Regional Secretary for the Environment and Natural Resources, is now waving money at the merchants, having secured a line of credit of €3.5 million, especially to ensure that the total grape production of 2009 is brought up. The incentive is that the merchants can borrow the capital necessary, and the government will then pay the loan interest (100% year 1, 90%, 50%, and 50% in the 4th and final year). The situation has arisen in part because the government has wavered in imposing production limits on the farmers, by hectare. Exports registered a sharp fall last year, with the devaluation of the British pound cited as the main reason. Unbelievable.  I am sure there must be some European law which prevents this sort of thing, but as it is not a direct state subsidy perhaps not. Did you know there is a ‘Madeira sem alcool’ (alcohol free Madeira wine)?

‘TV Inspires More Crime Than The Immigrants’. The isolated cases – the death of the businessman of Porto Santo (kidnapped and murdered) may give a different idea, but the police guarantee that Madeira is still safe. The husband that murdered his wife during divorce proceedings (Calheta), or the man who stabbed his neighbour to death over a land dispute. This is still the pattern of homicides on Madeira, but the Judiciary Police still regard this region as the safest in Portugal, both in numbers and the behaviour of the population. The regional coordinator of the PJ says that the environment here is relaxed, and one can move around day and night, on foot or by car with total free will, unlike parts of Porto or Lisbon where one needs to take precautions when travelling, or going to a cashpoint machine. He says that crimes such as the Porto Santo kidnapping, are what the PJ term ‘imported crime’, the roots in this case being Brazilian. The other crimes (mentioned) are the same as always, but now have lost weight and importance, but have not disappeared. The nature of other petty crimes has changed here, with drugs and the internet often at the root. The criminal types that operate here have changed targets, moving from city centre shops, out to residential areas. Crime victims now are often people living alone. Ricardo Silva, the regional coordinator of the PJ, does point out that imported crime comes more often and more harmful via television, than by the immigrants who came to Madeira in the last 10 years. He says that these TV images may encourage those who have criminal tendencies, but never had the courage to carry out what they were thinking, through their frustrations and hates.

‘Raul Solnado Died (1929 – 2009) – The creative comedian that entertained generations, but was also a very fine actor’. He is not Madeiran, but he is obviously very popular judging by the amount of media coverage yesterday and today. He is to be cremated today in Olivais.

Marítimo played Nacional in Machico last night, and the main front page photo today shows the ‘full house’ crowd wearing their ‘Chapeau de Esperança’ hats (Hat of Hope – fundraising for social causes) leading to the headline : ‘Solidarity Wins The Derby Match In Machico – Marítimo beat Nacional 3 – 0′.

This from the Jornal da Madeira : ‘Hot Spring: Cause Of The Jellyfish? In the season for beach outings, life has not been so good for those who like the sea. The jellyfish have tormented, almost daily, those who go to the sunny beaches. Already many people have been stung’. The uneasiness arrived before the beach season began. Almost daily came the creatures with three names (alforrecas, águas-vivas, and medusas), clinging along the coast, particularly along the south of Madeira. Many people have been stung, and some say the beach season has been ruined by the creatures that have stopped holidaymakers enjoying a dip, without any fear, in the Atlantic. The beach and pool complex lifeguards have had a lot of extra work as a result too. At the Lido in Funchal for example, they have to do several underwater exploratory dives a day, to see if there is a jellyfish problem, but even so swimmers are still getting stung. The Jornal spoke with a biologist, who said the species encountered this year is different to the usual less troublesome creatures. It is called ‘Pelagia noctiluca’, and is a species that likes to hang around at the waters surface, and stings more than most species. It is not very dangerous, but is able to sting with contact with any part of its lower body. The biologist who has been here since 1992, says this has been the worst year he has seen here for jellyfish. He said this species also occurs in the Mediterranean, in numbers for maybe several years, and then they just disappear, the cycle there being between 10 to 14 years. It could be different here, and the increased numbers are more likely to be to do with a hot Spring than with sea pollution. A medical doctor says that there are people extremely sensitive to the stings that can burn ‘incredibly’, and children are known to cry a lot and spend the rest of the holiday fed up. One sting to a child can completely ruin a holiday, he said. Some people feel a burning for a few hours, and then it just passes, and the victim stays on the beach. With some the sting mark will remain for months. Home treatment recommendations include applying vinegar or alcohol (externally), and any moisturising cream will help relieve the pain. There are also creams containing corticosteroids that "are excellent" but they should only be used on the recommendation of a doctor or pharmacist. If you don’t have any alcohol or vinegar to hand after being stung, there is another ‘home made’ liquid that most people have available at a moments notice, carried around in ones bathing costume, though quite how you get it from the dispenser to the jellyfish sting will depend on personal preferences. The article definitely says use "your own", just to make sure there is no confusion. Was I hibernating I wonder, as I am sure I missed that ‘hot Spring’.

(8th August). ‘Nobody Takes Responsibility For The ban On Selling Wine On Porto Santo – After the council, now it is the Regional Inspectorate of Economic Activities saying that it is the law that prohibits. The product has its days numbered’. The reactions to the news of the ban on the sale of Vinho Seco wine on Porto Santo, by glass or bottle, on the fruit stalls, continues to cause reactions, this time from IRAE. In a statement on the subject the Regional Inspectorate of Economic Activities rules out responsibility for the ban, behind the cover of "law enforcement". According to a statement from the IRAE on Friday, "in the Summer of 2007, complaints were received that bottled wines and aguardente were being sold, allegedly adulterated, in market stands located on Porto Santo". The IRAE then moved in and seized bottles, under their legal obligation, but the complaints were not verified.  They did not make any ban on the sales, but point out that the law requires tax to be paid and proper labelling of bottles with the seal of assurance, and that there should be hygienic conditions within a licensed authorisation. The council on Porto Santo has already distanced itself from any decision to ban Vinho Seco. That’s every festa on Madeira cancelled forever then, or dry at least. I hate to think what would happen if someone looked into the sale of food at these festas (in terms of hygiene), but for sure it will happen one day.

Petrol (gasolina 95) rises two cêntimos a litre in price tomorrow, to €1.211. Diesel rises by 1c per litre.

From the Jornal da Madeira : ’1,715 Accidents In The First 6 Months Of 2009 – The number has dropped, police commissioner Pimenta says that many people have taken the advice of the police, but there has been an increase of breaking limits, some with fatal consequences and serious injuries as a result’. The overall accident count has been reducing since 2003, when there were 5,950, with last year reporting 3,035 for the whole year. So far this year there have been 10 road accident fatalities, the latest being on 1st August, 70 serious injuries, and 518 light injuries. More than half of all accidents are caused by excess speed.

The number of drivers caught without driving licences by police is escalating. 170 people have already been detained, in just the first 7 months of 2009. The whole of 2008 led to 198 detentions for this crime, with the numbers growing for the last 5 years. It doesn’t say so, but I suspect that more police checks are behind the reasons.

The bridge ‘ponte do Bettencourt’, by the ‘Bazar do Povo’ in Funchal was reopened to traffic on Saturday evening … early! The reinforcing / repairs works were shorter than expected because the north platform was found to have been in better condition than was expected, and with the use of prefabricated girders. The job was supposed to have taken until next month (then add two more months for Madeira). There are still some jobs left to do, but they will be finished this week.