EDIGAIA Blog

I created a new blog that will be only to show Edigaia Group traject in last 24 years. In February of 2010 we will do 25 years. It is the resulf of profissionalism, dedication and quality.

Thanks for all that helped in the grow up of Edigaia Group.

You can visit the new blog on http://edigaia.blogspot.com

2009 Fifa Beach Soccer World Cup - UAE face Portugal in opener

Joan Cusco (left), member of the FIFA Futsal and Beach Soccer Committee, UAE beach soccer player Bakhit Sa'ad (second from left), Spanish player Ramiro Amarelle (third from left) and former French footballer Christian Karembeu at the draw for the FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup Dubai 2009.

The UAE will take on Portugal in their opening match of the 2009 Fifa Beach Soccer World Cup to be played at the Jumeirah Beach from November 16-22.

 

The draw ceremony, held at the Dubai World Centre late on Thursday, saw the hosts being drawn to face the European runners-up in their opener at 7.30 pm on November 16.

 

The draw was witnessed by Shaikh Mansour Bin Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, and was conducted by Joan Cusco, member of the Fifa Futsal and Beach Soccer Committee, with assistance from the UAE’s Olympic gold medalist Shaikh Ahmad Hasher Al Maktoum; 1998 French World Cup star Christian Karembeu; Spanish star striker and 2008 adidas golden ball winner Ramiro Amarelle and UAE skipper Bakhit Saad.

 

Some of the top dignitaries present were Mattar Al Tayer, Deputy Chairman, Dubai Sports Council (DSC), Mohammad Khalfan Al Rumaithi, President, UAE Football Association, Salah Tahak, Tournament Director and Dr. Ahmad Saad Al Sharif, Secretary General, DSC.

“This is going to be one huge challenge, but one that we are ready and willing to face before our home crowd,” Saad remarked after the draw.

 

Despite being drawn in a tough group, Marcelo Mendes, the UAE’s Brazilian coach was confident of making at least the semifinals of the week-long competition. “I trust my players and I am confident in their abilities to deliver when it matters most. We have been training together for the past two years and the players have gained adequate experience playing in some tough matches and competitions during our build-up to this event,” Mendes noted.

Mohammad Khalfan Al Rumaithi spelt out that the promotion of beach soccer in the UAE is one of the priorities before the UAEFA. “The UAE are the Asian champions and this will be their second time at a World Cup,” Al Rumaithi stated.

Spain’s Ramiro Amarelle, who went on to win the adidas golden ball in Marseille last year, saw the UAE among the prime challengers for a place in the knockout stages of the competition. “It’s a tough group for them [UAE], but the spectators will benefit by seeing some exciting matches,” Amarelle stated.

 

Karembeu, who flew in especially for Thursday’s draw ceremony, hoped to see European champions Spain take on three-time and defending world champions Brazil in the November 22 final. “A final like this will be great for the sport and Dubai,” Karembeu said.

The beach soccer tournament originated from the fabled Copacabana Beach in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil as the Beach Soccer World Championship way back in 1994. However, in 2004, Beach Soccer Worldwide aligned itself with Fifa to create the current competition.

 

After the first three editions held in Brazil, the competition moved for the first time to Marseille, France (2008), where Brazil went on to be crowned world champions for a third straight time. And hosting the 16-team event here will be the first time for an Asian country to organize the Beach Soccer World Cup.

Groups:

 

Group A: UAE, Portugal, Uruguay, Solomon Islands

Group B: Spain, Asia 1, Cote d'Ivoire, El Salvador

Group C: Russia, Costa Rica, Argentina, Italy

Group D: Brazil, Nigeria, Switzerland, Asia 2

Egypt - Fantastic Country, Excelent People

Because my partner and good friend, Mohamed Hassan, is Egyptian, and because I love that country, I would like to post here something about Egypt too.

The government of Egypt consists of a semi-presidential republic, whereby the President of Egypt is the fact both head of state and head of government, and of a system dominated by the National Democratic Party. Executive power is exercised by the government. Legislative power is vested in both the government and the People's Assembly.

Background
Egypt has been a republic since 18 June 1953. Since the declaration of the republic, four Egyptians have served as presidents. The first President to take office was President Mohamed Naguib. The fourth and incumbent president is Mohamed Hosni Mubarak who has been the President of Egypt since October 14, 1981, following the assassination of former President Mohammed Anwar El-Sadat. Mubarak is currently serving his fifth term in office. He is the leader of the ruling National Democratic Party. Prime Minister Ahmed Nazif was sworn in as Prime Minister on 9 July 2004, following the resignation of Atef Ebeid from office.

Legislative branch
Parliament meets for one eighth-month session each year; under special circumstances the President of the Republic can call an additional session. Even though the powers of the Parliament have increased since the 1980 Amendments of the Constitution, the Parliament continues to lack the powers to balance the excessive powers of the President.

The People’s Assembly (Maglis El-Sha’ab)
People’s Assembly is the principal legislative body. Out of the assembly’s 454 deputies, 444 are directly elected while no more than 10 may be appointed by the President (article 87 of the Constitution). The Constitution reserves fifty percent of the assembly seats for ‘workers and peasants’. The assembly sits for a five-year term but can be dissolved earlier by the President. All seats are voted on in each election. Four hundred seats are voted on using proportional representation while the remaining forty-four are elected in local majority votes.

The People’s Assembly may cause the resignation of the executive cabinet by voting a motion of censure. For this reason, the Prime Minister and his cabinet are necessarily from the dominant party or coalition in the assembly. In the case of a president and assembly from opposing parties, this leads to the situation known as cohabitation. While motions of censure are periodically proposed by the opposition following government actions that it deems highly inappropriate, they are purely rhetorical; party discipline ensures that, throughout a parliamentary term, the government is never overthrown by the assembly.

The Consultative Council (Maglis El-Shura)
The Shura Council is the 264-member upper house of Parliament created in 1980. In the Shura Council 176 members are directly elected and 88 members are appointed by the President of the Republic for six-year terms. One half of the Shura Council is renewed every three years.
The Shura Council's legislative powers are limited. On most matters of legislation, the People’s Assembly retains the last word in the event of a disagreement between the two houses.

Parliamentary elections
There currently exist eighteen recognized political parties from across the political spectrum. The formation of political parties based on religion is prohibited by the Constitution. The official opposition and political pressure groups, like the Muslim Brotherhood, are active in Egypt and make their views public. They are represented at various levels in the political system. However, power is concentrated in the hands of the President of the Republic and the National Democratic Party which retains a super-majority in the People's Assembly.

The November 2000 Parliamentary Elections are generally regarded to have been more transparent and better executed than past elections. This is due to the new Law put into force establishing universal judicial monitoring of polling stations. On the other hand, opposition parties continue to lodge credible complaints about electoral manipulation by the government. Moreover, many Egyptians feel their votes are being monitored by poll workers, and could face retribution for their votes. There are significant restrictions on the political process and freedom of expression for non-governmental organizations, including professional syndicates and organizations promoting respect for human rights which have been greatly loosened up in the past five years.

Below the national level, authority is exercised by and through governors and mayors appointed by the central government and by popularly elected local councils.

Political parties and elections
According to the Egyptian Constitution, political parties are allowed to exist. Religious political parties are not allowed as it would not respect the principle of non-interference of religion in politics and that religion has to remain in the private sphere to respect all beliefs. In addition, political parties supporting militia formations or having an agenda that is contradictory to the constitution and its principles, or threatening the country's stability such as national unity between Muslim Egyptians and Christian Egyptians.
Today, there are 18 political parties in Egypt.

Civil society
Egyptians have been living under emergency law since 1967, except for an 18-month break in 1980. Emergency laws have been continuously extended every three years since 1981. These laws sharply circumscribe any non-governmental political activity: street demonstrations, non-approved political organizations, and un-registered financial donations are formally banned. Nonetheless, since 2000, these restrictions have been violated in practice. In 2003, the agenda shifted heavily towards local democratic reforms, opposition to the succession of Gamal Mubarak as president, and rejection of violence by state security forces. Groups involved in the latest wave include PCSPI, the Egyptian Movement for Change (Kefaya), and the Association for Egyptian Mothers.

Substantial peasant activism exists on a variety of issues, especially related to land rights and land reform. A major flash point was the 1997 repeal of Nasser-era land reform policies under pressure for structural adjustment. A pole for this activity is the Land Center for Human Rights.

Political pressure groups and leaders
The Muslim Brotherhood currently constitutes Mubarak's most significant political opposition; Mubarak tolerated limited political activity by the Brotherhood for his first two terms, but has moved more aggressively in the past six years to block its influence (arguably leading to its recent rise in public support). Trade unions and professional associations are officially sanctioned.

Foreign relations
Main article: Foreign relations of Egypt
The permanent headquarters for the League of Arab States (The Arab League) is located in Cairo.The Secretary General of the League has traditionally been an Egyptian. Former Egyptian Foreign Minister Amr Moussa is the present Secretary General of the Arab League. The Arab League briefly moved out of Egypt to Tunis in 1978 as a protest at the peace treaty with Israel, but returned in 1989.

Egypt was the first Arab state to establish diplomatic relations with the state of Israel, after the signing of the Egypt-Israel Peace Treaty at the Camp David Accords. Egypt has a major influence amongst other Arab states, and has historically played an important role as a mediator in resolving disputes between various Arab nations, and in the Israeli-Palestinian dispute. Most Arab nations still give credence to Egypt playing that role, though its effects are often limited.
Former Egyptian Deputy Prime Minister Boutros Boutros-Ghali served as Secretary General of the United Nations from 1991 to 1996.

A territorial dispute with Sudan over an area known as the Hala'ib Triangle, has meant that diplomatic relations between the two remain strained.

President of Egypt
Muhammad Hosni Mubarak: since 14 October 1981
Residence: Abdeen Palace, Cairo, Egypt
Term length: Six years, renewable
Website: www.presidency.gov.eg

Prime Minister: Ahmed Nazif

The President of the Arab Republic of Egypt is the elected Head of State of Egypt. Under the Constitution of Egypt, the President is also the Commander-in-chief of the armed forces and head of the Executive branch of the Egyptian government.

The first President of Egypt was Muhammad Naguib, one of the leaders of the Egyptian Revolution of 1952, who took office on 18 June 1953, the day on which Egypt was declared a republic.

The fourth and current President of Egypt is Hosni Mubarak. His first term began on 14 October 1981 and As of September 2005[update] is serving his fifth term in office. There is no constitutional limit upon the number of terms that any one individual can serve as President.

Presidential powers
Under the system created by the 1980 constitutional amendments, the President is the pre-eminent executive figure, who names the Prime Minister of Egypt. During martial law, the President also anoints deans of faculties and majors, and can also fire or hire people in the private sector. Egypt has been under martial law since 1981. When the President's political party or supporters control the Parliament, the President is in effect the dominant player in executive action, choosing whomever he wishes for government, and having it follow his political agenda. However, should the President's political opponents control Parliament, the President's dominance would be severely limited, as he would have to select a Prime Minister and Cabinet reflecting the majority in Parliament. By convention, the President controls foreign-affairs and defence related issues of the state, while the Prime Minister manages the day-to-day affairs including the economy.

In the late 1970s Egypt had several cohabitation governments which proved to be unstable, due to the struggle arising between the President and the Prime Minister. However, since 1981, the National Democratic Party has maintained a majority in the People’s Assembly and held the Presidency.

Best Time to Travel to Dubai

A vacation trip to Dubai indicates sun, sand, beach and shopping. The best time to go to the scorching hot city is during its cooler months i.e. in between November and April, when the hot sun is at a bit rest and cool winds are blowing in the evenings and night time. Even if you go during the rest of the months, the air-conditioned hotels, malls and other complexes are well-equipped to keep off the heat. Avoid visiting Dubai for a holiday that involves lots of shopping, dinning and fun during the months of Ramadan when the strict rules of Islam are applied against smoking, drinking and eating.

The tourist season boosts up in between November and April when the temperatures are in between 24-35 ºC keeping the evenings warm and nights cool. November, December, January and February observe cool evenings with temperature going down till 13 ºC. Also, you can enjoy the rain if you tend to visit the city somewhere in between December and March. By April, the temperature tends to rise up till 30 ºC indicating the onset of hotter season that is to come in May.

The months in between June and September should be avoided if planned for an enjoying vacation. Though the air-conditioned buildings keep off the heat, you would not be able to glee much of the outdoor activities, except for the nightlife. Desert Safaris, Camping and Camel riding would be a bit difficult to enjoy, whereas sun bathing or playing at the beach can be revered in between April and October with the temperatures going up till 40 ºC.

Ramadan is observed according to Islamic calendar. Muslims fast for a month during this time and the festival is strictly followed all over UAE. Though the rates of almost all the hotels drop down up to 70% during this time, you are requested to follow the rules of the festival by avoiding smoking, drinking and eating in public places during the day time. If you want to eat during the day time then you are requested to eat somewhere indoors or else to close the windows of the restaurants and cafes while having food.

To make your holiday a bit more interesting try catching up the Dubai Camel Racing is also a worth watch and is held every Thursday and Friday somewhere in between October to April at the Nad Al Sheba racetrack and the Dubai Rugby Sevens is hosted in December. If you love to shop then you can plan your vacation somewhere in between January to March to grab on the Dubai Shopping Festival that runs for around 4 weeks.

THE PORTUGUESE IN THE ARABIA PENINSULA AND IN THE PERSIAN GULF

North Wall, Portuguese Fort, Bidyah, United Arab Emirates

The town of Bidyah in the United Arab Emirates, is found midway along the coast between Fujairah and Dibba. According to the Portuguese souces, the Portuguese had in the area a fort called Libidia. A team consisting of Australian and local archaeologists excavated the area in 1999. The site of the fort at al-Bidyah (25°26' N, 56°21' E) consists in a large square enclosure constructed with large boulders at the foundation level and smaller mountain and wadi rocks used for the successive courses. The forts walls are each around 60 metres in lenght. Excavation was concentred on the north western tower and both the northern and western fort walls. During the excavation were located the remnants of the north western and north eastern towers.

The Portuguese forts in the Gulf and in Oman (1500-1650)

The Portuguese, shortly afterwards theirs arrival in the Eastern Seas, decided to prevent the Arab's trade, with the Ormuz conquest. For his strategical position dominating the entrance to the Persic Gulf, Ormuz was one of the two strategical stronghold on the trade routes between the Arab world and Asia (the other being Aden near the strait of Bab el Mandab). The city of Ormuz (Hormuz), was one of the most important trade centers of the whole East, in its market were exchanged Persian horses and pearls. The town was placed on a dry and barren island, near the Persian mainland at the entrance of the Persic Gulf.For nearly 150 years Portugal ruled the Persic Gulf area. Ormuz was regarded by Albuquerque as the third key of the Portuguese Empire in Asia (the others two were Goa and Malacca).

BOOKS ON PORTUGUESE PRESENCE IN THE PERSIC GULF:

- Al-Khalifa, Shaikh Abdullah Bin Khalid and Abahussain, Dr. Ali "Bahrain Through The Ages - Vol.2"

- Al Maamiry, Ahmed Hamoud "Omani - Portuguese history"

- Andrada, Ruy Freyre de "Commentaries of Ruy Freyre de Andrada"

- Barendse, R. J. "The Arabian Seas, 1640-1700"

- Boxer, Ch. R. "Anglo-Portuguese Rivalry in the Persian Gulf, 1615-1635"

- Costa, Paolo M. "Historical interpretation of the territory of Muscat"

- Dias Farinha, Antonio "Os Portugueses no Golfo Persico 1507-1538"

- Dinteman, Walter "Forts of Oman"

- Gonçalves, Julio "Mascate, Albuquerque e os sultanatos do Oman 1507-1659"

- Kervran, Monik (ed.) "Bahrain in the XVI Century. An Impregnable Island"

-Kervran, Monique "Bahrain in the Sixteenth Century. Political and Military Events"

-Moreira, Rafael "Inofre de Carvalho: a Renaissance Architect in the Gulf"

- Kervran, Monik; Negre, Arlette; Michele Pirazzoli "Excavation of Qal'at al -Bahrain 1st Part (1977-1979)"

- Muir, J. "Reminiscencias Portuguesas na Arabia Oriental"

- Ozbaran, Salih "The Ottoman Turks and the Portuguese in the Persian Gulf (1534-1581)"

- Ozbaran, Salih "The Ottoman response to European Expansion. Studies on Ottoman-Portugese relations in the Indian Ocean and Ottoman administration in the Arab lands during the Sixteenth Century"

- Risso, Patricia "Oman and Muscat: an early modern history"

- Serjeant, R. B. "The Portuguese off the South Arabian Coast: Hadrami chronicles. With Yemeni and European accounts of Dutch pirates off Mocha in the seventeenth century"

- Slot, B. J. "The Arabs of the Gulf 1602-1784"

- Vine, Peter; Casey and Vine, Paula (eds.) "Oman in history"

- Ziolkowski, Michele "Al Bidyah excavations, 1999"

Luso-Arab Institute

The Luso-Arab Cooperation Institute was established in 1985, as a result of the will expressed by a group of Portuguese individuals issued from academies, politics and business.

To know more visit http://www.luso-arabe.org/en/index.html .