Santa Cruz – after the storm ; Taking advantage of a tragedy ; Drug investigations up 42%
Today’s photo – Many thanks to Pete … Storm damaged swimming pool area behind the Forte de São Tiago.
Cherimoyas. Some consider the cherimoya one of the most delicious fruits available, but its commercial production is limited by a short growing season and shelf life. The cherimoya is native to the valleys of Ecuador, Colombia, and Bolivia, spreading to Chile and Brazil during ancient times. The United States Department of Agriculture imported cherimoya seeds from the Madeira Islands in 1907. ARTICLE Thanks Elaine, looks like a Anona to me, and if so is one of my favourite fruits and just coming into season now I think, and quite cheap too.
German submarine U-68 near sunk near Madeira Island … Pete ARTICLE Thanks Pete
Jon kindly sent in a write up on progress in the clean up and repairs needed in Santa Cruz. Hover over a photo for a brief description, click on a photo for full size. Many thanks Jon …
23 Days After … "Partly in response to the (removed) query about the Vila Gale Hotel in Santa Cruz the other day but mainly as a small follow on to your report, I attach some 
photos of our local area, taken over the weekend and today. All our mains services are fully restored but clean up ongoing. All roads passable but some still without "edge" walls and undermined or with tarmac missing in parts and potholes. The landscape and forest area around and above us is deeply scarred with the water run off channels, trees and rock debris etc. – the face of the land changed forever. All local houses O.K. but I don’t know about those in the higher areas of Gaula and Santa Cruz. Ribeira bridges repaired in Santa Cruz and promenade now fully open but walk with care; damaged walkways, loose rocks and unstable cliff face ….. Hotel Gale seems to be operating normally although the public pebble beach that fronts it is not, somewhat bashed. All cafes/bars and restaurants fully up and running in Santa Cruz (town) itself and some tourists out and about spending money….the daily fruit/veg/fish/flower market is also open as normal and is as quaint as ever!"
Marítimo lost their league game last night at Paços de Ferreira 1 – 0, following on from Sunday night when Nacional were defeated at home by Benfica, again by a single goal.
If anyone should see a summary of the government budget cuts and changes, please let me know. So far over the last few days changes to taxes (increases for high earners), I have heard of restraints in public services, including pay restrictions for public service workers, a cut in unemployment benefit (new ceiling imposed), and also reductions in allowable tax expenses (deductions for 2010) have been announced. It would be useful for many to have a summary. Thanks.
Many thanks to Elaine once again for yesterday’s top news stories :
DIÁRIO 15/03/2010
FRONT PAGE NEWS
Criminal activity in 2009. Last year, Public Ministry investigations were for: 3,875 crimes against property, 1,264 against inheritance, 301 against the state and 80 unpaid cheques. Highlighted in the figures was the 42.5% increase in drug trafficking (285). There were the highest number of cases of domestic violence ever (1,025). Other prosecutions were: 597 for driving without authorization, under the influence of alcohol or other traffic offences, 46 charges of corruption, 33 cases of coercion and resisting arrest, 71 against sexual freedom and empowerment of children, 31 cases of violence against children and 6 cases of violence against the elderly. In the past 8 years, 11 men and 1 woman have been arrested for rape. Half were in their 20s and the two youngest were 17 years of age. More than half of the victims were aged between 40 and 65, and eight of the crimes were committed in the residence of the victim.
Two families tried to take advantage of the storm. Two families from a social housing complex in Santo Amaro in Santo António attempted to take advantage of the bad weather of February 20th to get a better house from IHM. The eight people involved spent one night at RG3 but were detected immediately as false applicants.
MADEIRA
Stopped work obstructs stream. Residents living in the vicinity of the Ribeiro do Moreno in Santa Cruz are worried by debris from the floods of February 20th blocking the water course. The stream runs beneath the airport and is obstructed between the bridge linking Rua de São Sebastião to the placa do aeroporto (?). Flooding closed the Rua de São Sebastião and Rua de Santa Catarina for three days. The cause of the blockage is a seven year old concrete and iron remnant from when a petrol filling station began to be constructed. The construction was stopped when there was a dispute over inheritance of the land. The injunction has not been lifted and the structure still stands in the stream. The case is under review.
‘Clean Portugal’ (‘Limpar Portugal’) has 121 volunteers in Madeira. The volunteers will try to clean the forests in one day – next Saturday. This is a nationwide campaign based on an initial event in Estonia in 2008. The event coincides with the Day of the Forest. So far, they have no offers of help from residents in São Vicente and Porto Moniz. Instead, the movement has volunteers from Funchal to Ribeira Brava and from Machico to Porto Santo. Posters advertising the ‘L’ day have the slogan: ‘We’ll do it. And you? You’ll stay at home’. To adhere: CLICK HERE
Boy injured in explosion. A nine-year old boy was injured on Saturday afternoon after finding a ‘bottle bomb’ while playing at his home in Lombo dos Aguiares in Santo António. This exploded in his hand and he has had minor surgery for hand injuries and facial burns. He will require plastic surgery later on.
Wettest winter since 1865. December – February 2009 / 10 was the wettest season since records began in 1865. The amount of rainfall was three times the normal rate between 1971 – 2000. During February, Funchal was the wettest area and had seven times the average amount of rain. This was also the most since 1865. Porto Santo had the third wettest winter since records began in 1940.
ECONOMY
Porto Santo Line solidarity with victims. Porto Santo Line will donate 50,000 Euros to two charities. The company’s revenue from ticket sales for last weekend’s six trips between Funchal and Port Santo is to be donated to the victims of the storm of February 20th. Previously, the firm had promised to make the donation up to the sum of 50,000 Euros, so they had to add a few thousand Euros. The ferry transported 673 passengers to Porto Santo and 700 to Funchal.
POLITICS
Region wasting funds for poverty reduction. The leader of the Socialist Party, Jacinto Serrão accused the Regional Government of not utilizing funds made available by the Government of the Republic for social intervention. "The social fragility of the region is deliberately hidden by the Madeiran Government." The government has not divulged the serious situation linked to Social Security, growing debts of businesses. Part of this hidden reality is the low rate of allocation of social benefits, much lower than given by the State, contradictory to the regional reality. One of the political consequences of new information the party has gained from the former president of Social Security, is that the Socialist Party request a parliamentary debate on the state of Social Security.
UPDATES
Swan Lake ballet in Funchal on April 1st. The Moscow Tchaikovsky Ballet, accompanied by the OCM, will perform Swan Lake at 21.00 at the Congress Centre of Madeira. This is the first big event in the program celebrating the centenary of the Clube Desportivo Nacional.
Compensation rises to 133 million Euros. The Portuguese Association of Insurers estimates the amount of compensation claimed after the storm of February 20th will reach 150 million Euros. Already, 1,532 claims have been recorded. Originally, they estimated a loss of 60 million Euros. This is the worst event in the history of Portuguese insurance.
Storms cause 40 million Euros losses in agriculture and forestry. The losses have been sustained by bad weather since December. 2,300 farmers have applied for grants for damage and they can claim for 85% of damage. The extraordinary storm of February 20th has led to the Regional Government to ask the EU to increase the support to 95%.
Today’s news headlines from the front page of the Diário de Notícias :
Council accuses company of filling the river with rubbish – Santa Cruz suppresses contract because of the dumping in Camacha. The company boss concerned denies everything.
‘The law of the stoppers’ with opposing interpretations – Prohibiting internal criticisms within the Social Democrat Part [national level] is ‘fascism’ for Filipe Malheiro, and an ‘act of courage’ for Rafaela Fernandes. This has been a main headline in the national media for several days now, when a resolution was passed in the PSD party conference that enables party leaders to expel members who openly criticise the party. Watch out Uncle Bertie, as it seems to be your favourite pastime! Somehow I don’t think any PSD party leader would have the guts to expel him, as it would just make the situation even worse. UB at the conference was treated as a hero by friends and foes at the conference, as he rides a high tide of public opinion due to the sympathy and the following reaction to the disaster of 20th February.
Today’s main news headline : Government raises [constructs] walls on the sandy areas – Gradually the houses on the beach front of Porto Santo have become holiday homes for the more powerful leaders. The Regional Government turned a blind eye, but prohibited new units. Now the fierceness of the ocean has led the government itself to the beach to protect these homes, starting through one of Jardim’s helpers. The sand dunes suffer. Even the Council of Porto Santo protests.
Storm : Santa Cruz quits from the ‘City Of Culture 2010′. The decision was taken by council president José Alberto Gonçalves, who considered it more important to focus on the need to rehome people and recuperate the area after the storm of 20th February.
More than two hundred put to work in zones affected by the storm. The exercise repeats at the month end. Two hundred and forty-two people will be put to work in local institutions and charities in the areas most affected by the storms of 20th February. The program of recruitment of workers was set up by the Government, and is aimed at the unemployed receiving unemployment benefits. The deadline for applications ended on Monday, but at the end of the month the recruitment drive will be reopened for another wave of applications. The placement program for unemployed does not have any cost to local authorities or to social institutions that provide support to victims of the storm. Workers continue to receive unemployment benefits increased by 25% of the regional minimum wages, in addition to allowances for transportation.
Nacional tourists feel the urge to visit Madeira – President of the Executive Commission of Mundovip is convinced that the national market is going to grow this year in the Region. Those responsible for the major tour operators are on Madeira today.
Boost in the promotion of the Flower festival in the internal market. Trinidade and Estudante [national and regional tourism bosses] discuss campaign for the winning and promotion of air routes.
Storms cause €40 million of damage in Madeiran agriculture. The Ministry of Agriculture is available to support proposals in Brussels.
The main sports / football headline today : Bad luck brings defeat and distances Marítimo from the Europa League – Lack of effectiveness and a great goalkeeping performance were the foundation of the defeat (1 – 0) in Paços de Ferreira.
If anyone else can oblige with the translation of any of the ‘blank’ or sparsely filled headlines, or other news stories, here is the link. All contributions much appreciated.
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Return to Alfândega not until after summer. Rent of Tecnopolo prolonged until the next legislative session. The members of the Legislative Assembly of Madeira debunked to Tecnopolo in April for eight months while the Alfândega building was being renovated and redecorated. Now it is known that the return to the old Customs House on the Avenida do Mar will be prolonged until the end of next summer. There was a delay in opening the tender for the works, which only happened in May. The other delay is due to the structure of the building. The annexe to the building, designed by Chorão Ramalho and built in the 1980s, is very degraded and requires significant strengthening. Currently, this annexe is being excavated and damaged material removed, then it will need to be renovated. The pond at the top of the building will be eliminated as it was responsible for many of the detected infiltrations. The works should be completed in the summer and then sound installations, computer equipment and video need to be installed. The rental of the premises at Tecnopolo and parking lots total more than 230,000 Euros per year and this sum could double to meet the new deadlines (a delay of more than 10 months). The initial cost of the renovation was €1.2 million but this will suffer a major increase. 
Madeira Wine and embroidery as Christmas gifts. The Regional Natural Resources launches a promotional campaign in the Farmers’ Market in Funchal. The campaign is launched on Wednesday to trigger Madeirans and tourists to buy these products for Christmas gifts. About seven thousand families depend on the sale of wine and embroidery products, so buying them as Christmas gifts is a great way to contribute to the economy and social life of the region. The campaign aims to promote Madeira Wine by associating it with a Madeiran lifestyle, refined and celebrational, suggesting one offers and increases consumption during the Christmas season and end of year. The campaigns represent an investment of 40,000 Euros. The consumption of Madeira Wine in the regional market is about 531,000 litres and represents around 3.8 million Euros.
Porto Santo is the seventh in purchasing power. Porto Santo citizens have better purchasing power, 39.92% higher than the national average, which puts Porto Santo in seventh place among all cities. The unusual growth in wealth of the island can be attested to the fact that between 2005 and 2007, purchasing power per capita has risen 12% when the mean for the same period fell 1.2%. 48.2% of the workforce are eligible for a 30% increase in salary as compensation for the double insularity, which requires the regional and municipal budgets to inject an extra 2 million to improve the wages of those working in departments, services and other public structures. Residents on Porto Santo are privileged because they have twice the purchasing power of Madeirans living in the eight municipalities, surpassing even those in Funchal who have a purchasing power per capita 35.44% higher than the national average or 3.3% below that of the inhabitants of Porto Santo. The privileged situation is due to the structure of employment, most working in either public service or hotel work, so very few earn the minimum wage. Over the past seven years, Funchalenses saw their purchasing power rise 25.5%. The only other municipality where purchasing power increased was Porto Moniz, so in the other areas of Madeira, people have become poorer. In Portugal there is a positive association between the degree of urbanization and purchasing power.
Thanks again to Elaine for this one : Councils are waiting for €8 million from the Republic of Portugal – The budget has not been paid since January and concerns tax transfers of the state budget. More than 8 million Euros and by the end of the year, will exceed €9 million, the amount that the Government of the Republic should transfer to the eleven Councils in Madeira in relation to IRS from the State Budget. Since January this year, the 5% has not been paid. This is not how the Government of the Republic have interpreted the rules after the approval of the Local Finance Law. The executive of Prime Minister Sócrates believes that since the tax receipts are in the Autonomous Regions (Azores and Madeira), the Regional Governments should support this payment. In the middle of this tug of war are 30 Municipal Councils, (11 in Madeira and 19 in the Azores). The Regional Municipalities say this is discriminatory as their Portuguese counterparts on the continent continue to receive this money directly from the State Budget. This debt has led to various complications in the management of annual budgets of municipalities, especially for the largest municipalities. To the Mayor of Porto Santo, the big problem is that income tax receipts were entered in the budget of the Council, and this value has not been paid. "This is so since January. The problem is that we introduce these funds in the budgets of the Councils and then no money comes. Of course, there are payments in arrears. If we do not receive these funds, we begin to have difficulty paying, for example, wages to our employees." There are also delays in payments to suppliers. "I know some municipalities have paid small suppliers, because these debts are easier to pay off, however we know this money is needed by businesses. We are in the situation where you pull the blanket to the head and uncover the feet." Because they feel discriminated against compared to other municipalities in the country, the Association of Municipalities of both the Azores and Madeira have been working together to solve the problem. The matter has been put to the Prime Minister, Jose Sócrates and they are still waiting for him to resolve the problem, hopefully soon. The hope of the Associations of Municipalities of the Azores and Madeira also turns to the National Assembly, thanks to the majority that the opposition parties have achieved in recent elections and subsequent reduction of power of the socialists. The two municipal associations have sent to the regional delegations of the parties that are represented in Parliament, a document to explain the situation. They will not send the document to the PS because the party in Madeira agreed with this law. The Mayor of Porto Santo says they want to resolve the situation through dialogue but in the extreme case will go to court, entering an injunction against the decision. The Government of Madeira has been in discussion with the Government of the Azores because they also feel discriminated against.
