Tobi found this Madeira online radio station MIRADOURO I had a listen when I was reading through the Diário yesterday, It’s was all pre-recorded music early morning, although there was some talking around 8 am.

Tobi, also said : "A friend of mine Luis Filipe Pessoa e Costa has an exhibition on in the Electricity museum of paintings and some other artwork on the theme of Africa, they are there till the 14th November, and its free to enter, just ask to see the Africa Exhibition.  I have added a link to the photos I have". AFRICA ART

Don has updated his blog with a preview of a Madeira Christmas FUNCHAL’S EVENING DRESS

"Portas do Mar in Ponta Delgada, São Miguel (Azores), has unveiled a New Year’s Eve program set to rival that of Funchal, Madeira". I DON’T THINK SO!

It’s the day of São Martinho tomorrow, a special saint’s day for bacalhau, castanhas, wine and good deeds. The Roman soldier died in 397 AD, and his first and most famous good deed was to cut his cape in half with his sword to help keep a half naked beggar warm.

And talking of good deeds, I’m in a better mood today, particularly cheered up by a kind soul that used the PayPal button (just down there on the right hand side of this page). How he got through the rust I don’t know, but he managed, and it is now loosened and working OK. Anyone else encouraged by this act of kindness, please bear in mind that without volunteers to contribute to this blog there are no guarantees as to how long it will keep going. At the moment it’s just a few regulars, and in particular Elaine, who has been providing the daily news, keeping this going.

The rumours last week were true, with the TVI series set on Madeira, Flor do Mar, coming to an end after nearly 300 episodes. Anyone wants to know who shot Ana-Maria, I’m your man. It finished in an action packed fashion, with yet another murder, and the suicide of the baddy (of the feminine type).  That should save the government here a few Eurobucks in hotel bills.

There were 8 new cases of Gripe A swine flue on Madeira last week, half of the victims  were aged 15 or under. Two cases of the virus were caught here. 27 suspect cases were tested.

Many thanks to Elaine once again for yesterday’s top news stories :

Delays in Santa Cruz Court. People in Santa Cruz are having problems obtaining compensation due to delays in court hearings, now taking three years. Both cases cited were against Vialitoral for damage to cars when hitting loose stones on the motorway at Porto Novo and near the airport. One case was dismissed and another is still awaiting a trial date. One person sent a letter to the President of the Supreme Court of Justice asking him to intervene to make the court enforce the Civil Procedure Code and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, so there would be justice without delay.

"The worst is yet to come." Unemployed immigrants from Eastern Europe are going in increasing numbers to the Presbyterian Church for social assistance to help pay their utility bills. The Church has limited funds. Employment is increasingly scarce whereas in the past, unemployed workers could obtain temporary work in agriculture, e.g. banana cultivation. People can not see a way out of the crisis and often become alcoholics and both men and women turn up drunk when they go to ask for help. The Pastor stated, "The most serious are the middle class in poverty, feeling embarrassment and shame. This has not yet appeared in force, but I believe it will appear. They are hoping the problem is resolved. The worst is yet to come." Many of the other 200 Presbyterian population are also experiencing hardship, pensioners needing help with obtaining medication. At one stage, there were 4,000 Ukrainians resident in Madeira, and now are less than half, but they are having problems getting their permits renewed if they cannot provide evidence they can support themselves and their families. They do not want to return to the Ukraine where the economic situation is worse and they have families here with children in the education system. As well as the Catholic Church, the Presbyterian Church receives Government aid and the Pastor thinks there could be better social assistance by a united effort of all the Christian religions.

Criminal Register Certificates. These are for criminal convictions handed down by Portuguese courts and foreign courts for both Portuguese and foreign residents. The Criminal Register Certificate  can be obtained from judicial offices, Loja do Cidadão and representatives of Foreign Consulates or Embassies and costs 3.5 Euros.  It should take no more than three days to obtain and the content depends on the purpose it is intended for. It can be used for employment, licence, permit or registration of a public nature. It is required to obtain Portuguese nationality, change of name, taxi drivers, children transport services, freight forwarding businesses, public service workers etc. There is also a certificate for public companies, organisations and institutions. Misuse is punishable by either a fine or imprisonment of up to one year.

Diocese of Funchal held vocational meetings for young people. For people interested in entering seminaries for the Priesthood. About 20 boys of year seven or above at school attended the meetings where there was a screening of an American video about the life of a priest, called ‘Fishers of Men’ and is available on YouTube. They also learnt about the three components of seminary life; prayer, relationship and living and study. In the 96 parishes of the Diocese of Funchal, there are 76 priests and 22 are more than 70 years old, and 4 between 50 and 60 years. There has been 10 years with no ordinations and there will be 3 new Priests in Madeira next year. On average, there are 2 ordinations a year.

Socialists call for an inquiry into RAM debt. The "rampant debt" and the "illegal debt" the Madeira Government has been mounting up, could lead to a 100 million Euros penalty in State transfers in 2010. The 150 million Euros in loans which "violated zero indebtedness" under applicable laws could result in a penalty of more than 50% of transfers in 2010. The Socialists justify the initiative as follows: "The need for the commission of inquiry stems from the fact that the Government of the PSD shows a great sense of irresponsibility and makes politics a weapon against the Madeirans since launching  a state siege with the loss of two million per year in the Regional Finance Act (between 2007 and 2009), and calls into question more than 100 million Euros in transfers in 2010, with the bad governance it practices." They also accuse the Government of the "obvious inability to act" with incentives to overcome the crisis that have proved "clearly insufficient". They proposed seven initiatives to help the crisis.

‘Almanaque PEF’ celebrates 150 years of existence. The cover picture is a reproduction by a forgotten artist from Madeira, Jayme de Sa. This yearbook has 200 pages of regional events, religion, agriculture, history and cuisine and in addition to the tributes each month, a chapter on the British participation in the economic, social and cultural Madeira. —– I assume there is not an English translation. It sounds interesting.

‘Delights of Israel’ in Reid’s Palace Hotel. The Embassy of Israel in Funchal is promoting the cultural event to be held on the 7th and 8th December. Specialities in ‘Les Faunes’ restaurant will be provided by the Executive Chef of the Sheraton Plaza Hotel Jerusalem with music provided by the singer Ya’ara Olchik.

Mission Recycle short of expectations. After three days in Funchal and Machico, only 72 used coffee machines deposited, enough to represent the planting of only 18 trees. No one showed up later on at Ribeira Brava after the initial queue at 7.15 am for the offers of 10 coffee machines at 10 Euros. .

PS Rui Caetano warns of illegal container park. He was at the entrance of the food market in São Martinho yesterday morning to highlight the fact that the illegal parking of trucks and containers has occurred for four years. The problem starts when it rains and the mud floods the road and obstructs access for residents and customers of the food market. There is also the issue of unfair competition as there are some companies with the same activity which conform to the payment of taxes. The land is a public space and is not licensed by the Council and taxes are not paid to either the Council or the Government.

Another container site in between Machico and Santa Casa de Misericordia has been complained about to the police and the Council of Machico, as the container has been placed there without prior written permission of the owner since 2006. Manuel Franco Santos told the Diário, "I went to the Council of Machico, where I was told it was illegal and they would notify the owner of the container to remove it within 15 days." So far, nothing has happened. The President of the Council says he will send an inspector to investigate as the situation is illegal and an invasion of private property, so justifies informing the police. In 2007, Manuel Franco Santos filed a complaint with the police but they said they could do nothing as it was private property.

Habitat restoration projects are important. 10th November is the anniversary of the Natural Park of Madeira becoming the second protected area in Madeira in 1982. (Interview with the Director). The objective of the Park is to improve the quality of life of the people of Madeira for the long-term. The Director of the Natural Park said, "The mission is to contribute to the sparing use of our unique natural heritage, preserving our cultural identity and landscape, three elements crucial to creating wealth and employment interests of sustainable tourism." The Natural Park occupies 70% of the island, includes several different habitation areas and some species in danger of extinction. One of the many projects being developed is the recovery of the habitat of the Freira da Madeira (Zino’s Petrel) to help its survival. Another project is to minimize the impact of wood pigeons on agricultural fields. Surveys are looking at the use of natural plants in the everyday life in the rural parishes and in Fajã da Ovelho, and cultural and heritage uses of natural materials. The Marine Reserves are an asset to the island; Garajau, Rocha do Navio, Ilhas Desertas and Selvagens and around Porto Santo.

Almost half of the olive oil consumed in Portugal comes from Spain. Between 40 and 50 thousand tons imported per year but within four years Portugal will be self-sufficient. This is when the recently planted olive groves will be in full production. Spain is the main investor in Portugal in this sector, especially in the regions Alentejo, Beja, Serpa and Ferreira do Alentejo. The price has almost increased 50% worldwide in two months. Portugal exports 32.3% of its olive oil production, mainly to Brazil. This year, Tras-de-Montes predicts a fall in production, Alentejo region estimates a 20% increase in production and Beira Interior promises to be the best harvest in recent years.

SATA and TAP reinforce code-sharing agreement. The Azorean airline increased the agreement it has with TAP to destinations linking Porta Delagada and Funchal to northern Europe and Lisbon-Zurich. —- Details given but I haven’t a clue what code-sharing means. It just means they share the same plane, but from a passenger point of view they are separate flights … until they board that is. Der

Cristiano Ronaldo receives compensation from the Daily Mirror. The British tabloid newspaper accused him of drinking excess alcohol and dancing while recovering from a foot operation in Los Angeles in July 2008. He received an apology and an unspecified amount of damages.

Madeira nurses are better leaving the region in search of better working conditions. The complaint of the President of the Order of Nurses, due to motivation and difficulties in finding employment. Nurses have left due to recent changes made by the Regional Health Service for nurses with more years of service and difficulties for recent graduates in finding work. The President said that the future is black and within six or seven years, Madeira will have to import nurses from less developed countries. For these reasons he calls on the Government to reverse the health policies in the region. He said the health service lacks human resources and the 75 nurses who qualified this year are not enough to make up the shortfall.

Of the six patients in Portugal who had severe problems after eye injections at Santa Maria Hospital, two have just been told they are permanently blind. The hospital later denied that the blindness is irreversible.

Interest rates threaten to double by the end of next year. Opinion of many analysts that the Euribor rate will settle at around 2% in 12 months time, i.e.. late 2010. At present the rates are at a historic low at 1% and there has been a downward trend since October 2008. Last September mortgage rates reached the lowest value at 2.361%.

Holders of firearms unaware of amendments to the law. The Regional Command of the PSP has found irregularities in the supervision of individuals with firearms due to amendments of the act in May 2009. Failure to comply with standards of conduct leads to fines, forfeiture of licences and confiscation of weapons. There is "frequent confusion" between liability insurance policies, and safe storage of firearms to ensure against loss, theft and accidents.

Praça do Município in Funchal illuminated blue. From last night until Sunday the three most  important buildings in the square, the Town Hall, Sacred Art Museum and the Church of the College, are illuminated due to an initiative of the International Diabetes Federation. 10.9% of the population of Madeira suffer from diabetes. 26% of those aged from 60 – 79 years suffer from the illness.

A quick peek at the front page of today’s Diário newspaper :

Today’s main news headline : Alcohol sends 600 a year to hospital. Liver cirrhosis problems account for 95% of the hospitalizations in the Service of  Gastroenterology. The Nucleus of professionals of that sector, who celebrate 25 years, meets Friday and Saturday in Funchal. Too many medical terms in this one to make sense to me, but the 600 alcohol related admissions mentioned in the headline, would be higher, but the unit is limited to just 15 beds.

São Martinho : Bacalhau without music – The celebrations today on Madeira are the initiatives of the  traders. And, with the exception of São Roque in Faial, new wine and cod fish is served without music. Even in São Martinho. There will be less barracas than usual in São Martinho tonight on the eve of it’s patron saints day, but the urge to mark the tradition will be the same as always.

Minister says that Madeira received €10 million more – Office of Portugal’s Finance Minister insists in the advantages of the current Finance Law. The PSD-M social democrats say that the Regional Finance Law loses Madeira €200 million, the PS-M socialists say it amounts to just €6 million, and now the chancellor of the Republic says it benefits Madeira with an extra €10 million. As the Diário correctly points out, analysing the Finance Law is like analysing the election results, with each party having a different angle on the subject. They all agree that Madeira has lost out however, and there seems to be no doubt that the Azores receive more than Madeira from the State Budget. And why shouldn’t they, if the need is greater.

Golf of Ponta do Pargo already awarded – It just lacks the money. The €40 million needed has not yet been secured, even though the consortium of Somaque and Zagope has already been awarded the €16.4 million construction contract for the new golf course. The 100 hectare site has already been acquired at a cost of around €20 million. With an area of around 1 million square meters, the design conceived by Nick Faldo will include an 18 hole course, a 9 hole ‘pitch and putt’, a driving range, and a club house. The work will not start whilst the finances are unresolved, and the banks are tightening their lending criteria, and will not now lend against the original concept of the project to minimise their risk. So big deal … we need another golf course here about as much as we need Uncle Bertie’s debt management skills. I have been living here since before the concept of this new golf course, and despite the picture, I swear that there has never been a report of Nick Faldo ever coming here, so maybe his kids designed the complex with some coloured crayons when they were like 6 years old.

Ronaldo provokes ‘Iberic war’ – Portuguese Football Federation pressures, but Real Madrid won’t back down. Portugal want to call up Ronaldo for the game against Bosnia, but Real Madrid say he is injured and won’t be ready to play. But the Portugal manager reckons that Real are pulling a fast one, and said send him anyway and we will get our own doctors to check him out, and if there is any risk we won’t play him. Ronaldo himself when asked said he just wants to play football, so he is keeping out of the politics.

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The sports headline & main photo today : ‘Victory In Bad Game Feeds The Dream – Portugal won in Hungary 1 – 0. Pepe scored the goal that keeps hope alive of qualification for the World Cup. Ronaldo squandered opportunities’. The mood in town last night, despite the result, was sombre. "A weak performance" I heard said several times. Who cares, with all the toughest games out of the way now, and 6 more points for the taking. The problem is we still needs someone else to slip up.

‘Lack Of Agricultural Water Causes Protest – A 20 year old promise yet to be kept takes the population of Penha D’Águia to deliver a signed petition in Santana’. The residents of ‘Eagle Rock’ in Faial are tired of waiting for the 20 year old promise to be fulfilled. A 65 signature petition was raised and delivered to the council in Santana. Signed by residents, family, friends, and land owners in the area, fed up with irrigation problems and being unable to produce crops as they should. "Many times we were waiting for a little rain, but could not grow anything", said one resident. The problem in the area often also affects drinking water. "Sometimes there is no water to drink there", he said, adding that many are the days when only around midnight they get "a drop of water" to quench their thirsts. The councillor responsible was unable to comment as he was on holiday, but the council said that he had no knowledge of the petition, and that as the promise was made so long ago by another ‘team’, the promise it is not the responsibility of the current council in this current mandate.

‘Businessmen’ Blame Government For 7 Year Old bad Debt’. In an episode referred to as "Brides of September", the government is blamed for a €10 thousand debt, or more specifically those responsible for tourism 7 years ago. The event, which only ran three times, involved the making of 7 wedding dresses by 5 guest designers, and the funding for the 7 dresses was a verbal agreement with the person responsible for tourism and culture at that time. One of the wedding dress designers says she spend €1,100 on materials out of her own pocket. The organisers of the event, the Association of Women Entrepreneurs of Madeira, are now facing insolvency, and a decision is expected next week.

‘Nurses In Protest On The 18th – Madeira’s professionals will have a presence in the protest in Lisbon’. The protest next week, at the Ministry of health, is over changes to career paths.

Customs staff are also threatening to strike (in a national action), probably in the week prior to the national elections, over government proposals involving career regulations for staff.

‘Study For Parking Meters In Lugar de Baixo – The council wants more rotation in car parking in the area of bars and restaurants’. No decision has yet been taken, but the intentions already point in this direction. The parking, at least within the range of the restaurants in Lugar de Baixo, Ponta do Sol, is expected to be regulated through the placement of parking meters. The expected action would be taken during the next mandate of the council, with the primary objective of preventing the parking abuse that proliferates in this area, located near the end of the east tunnel, aiming to serve short term parking and facilitate more rotation of clients for nearby businesses. Currently many drivers park there for long periods. A council spokesman said he wants to hear from local business owners before making a decision.

Police are trying to track down a car and driver that ran down a 33 year old man on Sunday near Lugar de Baixo, and fled the scene. The car was a VW Golf, the colour is silver-grey, and it now lacks part of the front grille and the wing mirror on the passenger side. The victim is still in hospital with 4 fractures and other injuries.

UPDATES / POLITICS :

The last of today’s front page headlines : ‘Zaragata’ Takes Police To A Party Gathering’. Police were called to a meeting in Ponta do Sol, arranged to discuss the manning of voting tables in forthcoming elections. The meeting that started at 7 pm yesterday evening, was still going on at 10.30 pm, with two police officers waiting outside. The Diário said "Due to the lateness of the hour, we were unable to ascertain the reasons that motivated the likely ‘disagreement’ between the delegates, and the consequent call to the police". Hardly front page news then is it.

‘Equality Doesn’t Come At The Top Of The Lists – Teachers make up a third of the head-of-list for local elections’. The political parties have little trust in women to preside in the municipal authorities. The local elections scheduled for 11th October will have just 9 women, from around 60 candidates, at the top of the candidate lists submitted by seven parties. The law of parity is there with the aim of ensuring at least a third of candidates are women, by saying that there cannot be more than 2 consecutive same sex candidates on the lists. With 7 parties jostling for the presidency in Madeira’s 11 councils, just 9 women appear as the number one candidate. The PSD social democrats don’t have any, and have not had any in the top spot for the last 33 years. 

After a few tough days on the receiving end of criticism from all directions, president Jardim made an appeal yesterday for separatism from the central state, saying that if we bother you "you may see yourself free of us", because "we also don’t care". I care, and I am sure many tens of thousands more also care. If Uncle Bertie is implying we can survive as a small island without state support, then he is so so wrong.

‘Kidnappers Threaten – Names on the ‘black list’ of José Martins are receiving threats with demands by mobile phone on Porto Santo’. The police investigate’. Just a tiny headline on the front page. The ‘tombstone’ (photo) of marked men, allegedly placed next to a grave by José Martins, alleged kidnapper and murderer, has already led to threats to some of those named, sent by text message. The messages gives 48 hours to meet the demands within. The four (at least) businessmen named on the tombstone, are accused of a hand in the failure of the company ‘Erucasa’, owned by Martins around a year ago. The four have been to the police, but there may be more victims. The messages were all different, and although each ended with the words "this is a warning", they did not say what the consequences would be if the demands were not met. You would think at first it must be hoax, but the fact that he has their mobile phone numbers gives some credence to the article. I am beginning to think I should write a book about this whole episode, and I reckon it would sell well as a work of fiction. Maybe even worth international news coverage (Tobi, you know what to do, and we will split the proceeds) 

‘Journalist Silenced – The Journal of Madeira took a reporter off its panel called the ‘Media File’. The management of the Journal invoke exclusivity. The decision arises after criticisms of Jardim on a programme of RTP-M’. Jardim asked for the recording of the programme and sent it to the regulator and the National Electoral Commission. Journalist Marsilio Aguiar was prevented from taking further part in the weekly programme on RTP Madeira ‘Media File’, after 3 years in the role. The programme covers the news highlights of the week, with journalists invited to express their personal opinions, not as representatives of the media companies they work for. The JM management came to the conclusion that the presence of the journalist on television is "incompatible" with the role he plays as head of editorial of the Journal, a newspaper almost totally owned by the PSD Government. The fact has not passed by unnoticed in public opinion, and the removal is interpreted as a ‘reorganization’, given the recent protests of the President of the Government to the views expressed by some commentators on the program. There has been speculation that this is a clever way for Jardim to indirectly ‘liquidate’ the program. The Diário contacted the journalist, who refused to comment on the affair (now there’s a surprise!), but the director of RTP Madeira has gone on record as saying that he has not appeared on the last two programmes due to "professional issues". The programme is now going to be suspended until after September due the period of the election campaign. There are no details given of what was actually said in the programme, but it shows that freedom of speech is not alive and well, and criticising government is especially dangerous when you work for a company that is government controlled and funded.

‘Gripe A – Ministry, bosses and trade unions debate who pays for forced absenteeism’. In a national story, a meeting was held yesterday on the subject of who pays the workers in the event that a place of work has to be closed due to a risk or an actual outbreak of H1N1 swine flu. The working laws specify that workers have the right of 75% of their salary, paid by their employer. But bosses have already refused to honour this expense, as it is a matter of public health. It’s an extraordinary situation, with the motive of resolving the situation before it happens, and not penalising employees when it happens. The trade union presence is concerned that some unscrupulous employers may use the situation to create forced lay-offs. The ministry for employment has already expressed the view that the situation requires no new measures.

In a slightly linked story, the Portuguese are the Europeans most pessimistic in a scenario of losing their jobs for fear of not finding another for a long time. Just 16% were optimistic of finding new employment quickly.

The 10 Spanish scouts that were admitted to Funchal hospital were observed / tested, and nearly all have been cleared of infection of Gripe A. Just two are now waiting for test results to come back from Lisbon. A laboratory has now been established on Madeira, and should be functioning this weekend, removing the need to send samples to Lisbon for testing.

Just about keeping the chain going … pet owners may need to be concerned about the Gripe A crisis, not just for themselves, but also for their pets. Cats and dogs will not be affected, but parrots and parakeets are vulnerable. I can’t remember the last time I saw a parakeet out for a walk and sniffing another parakeets private parts, so I would have thought that the only real risk would come from an infected owner.

At an award ceremony yesterday to give 28 newly qualified young nurses their certificates, President Jardim promised them jobs. "If by the 31st November, the opportunity for employment has not opened, you have my authorisation to hold a protest outside my offices" he said. Shrewd wording or poor translation on my part?

‘There Are less Mosquitoes Than Expected’. Initial results of an investigation to count and locate the Aedes Aegypti indicate that there are less insects than expected. The working group that includes entomologists are undertaking searches in various parts of Funchal and Câmara de Lobos. One of the entomologists however alerts us to the danger of the mosquito, and calls to the population to reinforce the fight against them. He explains that the eggs of the mosquito are able to stay active as long as 3 years in completely dry conditions. Unable to find many pests in Câmara de Lobos?, I find that hard to believe.

I gave up reporting extreme UV levels some weeks ago, as it seems to be microwave weather pretty much every day now. The advice is as always keep covered or out of the sun between 11am and 5pm. Did you know that even in the south of Portugal, the general rule is to avoid the hours from midday until 4pm, giving them two more beach hours than us on Madeira. Who said that a great all year round climate was such a great thing?