The Supplement #39

“It is possible to store the mind with a million facts and still be entirely uneducated” Alec Bourne

ISSUE 39

Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Saturday 26 May 2012

CARNIVAL QUEEN PROVES PARIS DRAW ◗Santa Cruz’s Carnival Queen made a surprise appearance in full regalia in Paris this week as part of a Tenerife tourism promotion drive. Accompanied by members of the colourful and noisy Los Joroperos dancing troupe, Carmen Gil paraded and posed for

photos with astonished Parisians and visitors in front of the French capital’s landmark Eiffel Tower on Tuesday, a day after she helped open a Cultural Diversity Festival next to the world-famous Louvre Museum. The French visit came just days after a similar promotion

trip to Milan by the Carnival Queen and the troupe, again as part of a campaign organised in association with the Spanish Tourist Office. Tenerife Tourist Board sources said both trips were a resounding success and generated the desired publicity.

FESTIVAL

Rock Coast ticket refund fears prove unfounded ◗Fears that the collapse of the Rock Coast Festival due to have taken place this week-end would see thousands of music fans out of pocket have not materialised. The organisers have proven to be as good as their word and all the outlets through which tickets for the 3day event were purchased had launched their refund processes by Tuesday. Some sales points, such as the Corte Inglés, offered refunds within hours of the announcement of the cancellation.

MUSIC

Coronation March makes Auditorium appearance ◗A march composed specially for the coronation of Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II in 1953 is the star attraction at Santa Cruz’s Auditorium next Friday. Versatile English conductor Jonathan Webb takes charge of the prestigious Tenerife Symphony Orchestra on the night for a programme that features William Walton’s Orb and Sceptre, which is enjoying a new lease of life as part of the current Diamond Jubilee celebrations.

The presence of the Carnival Queen in Paris raised many eyebrows at the Eiffel Tower this week. / DA

SANTA CRUZ

SOCIETY

BIG TURNOUT FOR FUNERAL OF SANTA CRUZ HISTORIAN

Dozy customer spends night in bar toilet ◗A young customer of a Santa Cruz bar was forced to spend the night on the premises after falling asleep in the toilet. Waiters cleared up and locked the premises, leaving him inside. He was released the following morning after calling for help through a window.

The prestigious historian and notary was given an official funeral. / DA www.diariodeavisos.com/thesupplement

◗The funeral took place this week of one of Santa Cruz’s best-known figures. Historian and notary Marcos Guimerá Peraza, described

by Canarian President Pau-

lino Rivero as ‘one of the region’s most illustrious sons’, died on Monday, aged 93. Hundreds of mourners packed the Church of St Francis for the ceremony.

2 The Supplement

Saturday 26 May 2012

‘CANARIAN LAS VEGAS’ PLANS RULED OUT BY GOVERNMENT Diario de Avisos Santa Cruz de Tenerife

Plans for the Canaries to host a European version of Las Vegas would appear to have been well and truly scuppered by the regional government. The news that US billionaire Sheldon Adelson has been touring Spain to explore potential locations for a giant gambling resort along the lines of Las Vegas has prompted a flurry of expressions of interest from cities such as Madrid and Barcelona, as well as from towns and cities in the Canaries.

In Tenerife, both Santa Cruz and La Laguna have dropped hints that they would be interested in the initiative and have even offered to consider supplying the land needed to build the required casinos and hotels. The reception has been less enthusiastic in the south, where there is concern that a EuroVegas would undermine the current tourism model. Hotels in the resorts say it would be better to relax the current strict rules on the siting of casinos to encourage a small number to set up in the south and attract gambling fans.

As the expressions of interest continue to grow, the Canarian government has stepped in to dampen the enthusiasm and, it seems, to nip the possibility firmly in the bud. Regional finance minister Javier González Ortiz said this week that he doubted the controversial demands imposed

by Adelson could be met not just

Education day of protest falls short of expectations DA Santa Cruz de Tenerife

in the Canaries but anywhere in Spain. ‘The conditions established for EuroVegas effectively mean a mini-state with its own legislation would be created within the country, and that would be extremely difficult to justify’ said González Ortiz, whose opinion clashes with that expressed by other regions, including Madrid, where the govern-

ment has promised to change whatever laws are necessary to satisfy Adelson’s list of demands.

Unconfirmed reports indicate the tycoon is insisting on exemption from immigration and labour laws, as well as from paying social security contributions and taxes during the early years of the project. Although no-one doubts the economic impact of a mini-city

devoted entirely to gambling and luxury accommodation, estimates of the actual benefits vary greatly according to the source consulted. Adelson’s team of consultants reckon that 250,000 direct and indirect jobs would be generated by the massive project, whereas government experts put the figure in the tens, as opposed to the hundreds, of thousands.

Several Spanish cities have expressed interest in the plans to build a European Las Vegas gambling haven. / DA

Tuesday’s day of protest in the education sector drew a much smaller turn-out than the convening unions anticipated, although as usual a war of words developed between the authorities and the organisers over the actual figures. Supposed to be a day of strike action by teachers at all levels from nursery to university education, the call failed to generate much enthusiasm here and the Canaries were one of two regions in the country where support was described as negligible by the Ministry of Education. A protest rally in Santa Cruz on Tuesday evening drew just 3000 people.

The Canarian education authorities put the figure of striking teachers at just 9% and said the low turn-out showed that unions are taking the wrong route to expressing dissatisfaction with the cutbacks in education. Union sources admitted the support had fallen well short of expectations and attributed the lack of backing to a reluctance to lose a day’s pay.

Arona bin firm let off lightly by council DA Santa Cruz de Tenerife

Mixed views on summer tourism prospects

Loan interest rate rise angers town halls

Diario de Avisos Santa Cruz de Tenerife

Diario de Avisos Santa Cruz de Tenerife

The slight dip in Tenerife’s visitor numbers of late is not cause for undue alarm, say the island’s tourism authorities. Although the figures fell during the winter season and summer bookings are slow, confidence is high that Tenerife will perform better than the other Canary islands.

Tourism chiefs Carlos Alonso and Miguel Angel Santos said that the concerns over the collapse of airline Spanair have not materialised, thanks to the decision by other companies to fill the gaps left. Iberia has increased its flights to 150 per month (up from 106), while Vueling now operates just over 100 flights (up from 73).

One of Tenerife’s mainstay markets, the United Kingdom, holds the key to the success of the summer season. Despite the ongoing crisis, the authorities are hopeful that the strong pound will persuade Britons who might be considering staying at home to opt for a holiday here, particularly during the London Olympics, when many will be keen to flee the anticipated chaos in the UK capital.

The Tourist Board attributes the 1% fall in visitors during the winter to the higher than usual figure for the previous winter season, when the political unrest in North Africa as of December 2010 led tour operators to divert holidaymakers to the Canaries, resulting in a 12% increase in foreign arrivals.

Town halls in the Canaries have vowed to act to pressure the Spanish government into cutting the rate of interest payable on the major loans they have been forced to take out to settle bills owed to local suppliers and other service-providers.

In a move widely applauded across the country by debt-crippled firms, the new government ordered corporations, who are notoriously late payers, to submit full details of all outstanding bills and to request loans to pay them off by the summer.

Many councils here are taking out the loans but now find that the interest rate announced by Madrid has increased.

Gumersindo García, mayor of Candelaria, has written to his colleagues in the Federation of Local Councils urging them to join forces to force a change of heart. ‘We have been told the rate is now almost 6%, when it was originally 5%, an increase of one fifth. The banks providing the loans get their money from the European Central Bank at just 1%. It is good business for them but it is not fair and, at the end of the day, it is the people who will pay’ said García.

However, government sources say the corporations are actually saving money through the operation given that the late-payment penalties they face by law are higher than the interest rate on the loans.

Arona’s decision to let its refuse collection firm off lightly over contract breaches has sparked controversy. The council voted to slash the stiff fine due to be imposed on the firm for failing to comply with the conditions of the tender it was awarded a year ago for bin-collection and street cleaning. The breaches include not buying lorries and other equipment it was supposed to purchase. According to the opposition, the firm is six vehicles short and the failings are impacting on the standard of service.

Although the council agreed to act following a detailed recent investigation, a change of heart has seen the 200,000 euro fine reduced by 50%, to the fury of the opposition, which called the decision ‘laughable’. ‘The council is struggling financially so it makes no sense to let them off if they have taken shortcuts’ said a source.

The Supplement

Saturday 26 May 2012

Tenerife climber dies after scaling Mt Everest

Tavío slams ‘inept’ Santa Cruz mayor DA Santa Cruz de Tenerife

Candelaria doctor ‘died of exhaustion’ Diario de Avisos Santa Cruz de Tenerife

A Tenerife climbing enthusiast on a trip of a lifetime to scale Mt Everest has been killed on his way down from the summit.

Rumours of the tragedy circulated on Internet and social networking sites for some time before official sources confirmed on Wednesday that 43-year-old Juan José Polo, a popular doctor at the Candelaria Hospital, had failed to survive the descent.

A sherpa guide who was accompanying him down the formidable north face of the world’s tallest peak informed the authorities that the Spaniard had died from exhaustion at over 8000 metres after being unable to continue the return journey. Local reports said he was in a group with two Canadians and a Mongolian but could not keep up with his colleagues.

According to the Himalayan Guides Agency, Polo reached the top of the mountain but did not have the strength to make the descent. ‘His Sherpa abandoned him only when it was clear he was already dead’ said an agency spokesman on Wednesday.

Nepalese media say the Tenerife doctor was one of a total of five climbers who died last Saturday on one of the deadliest days ever on the mountain.

According to Associated Press, the deaths have raised fresh concerns about overcrowding above the highest camp on the mountain. The area is nicknamed the ‘death zone’ because of the steep icy slope, treacherous conditions and low oxygen level.

Describing a ‘traffic jam’ of climbers on Saturday, Nepali mountaineering official Gyanendra Shrestha said climbers were staying too long at high altitudes and exhausting their

3

The notorious Everest peak has claimed over 200 lives so far. / DA

oxygen supplies because they did not anticipate having to wait.

A windstorm reportedly hit the higher altitudes last Saturday afternoon when Polo was on the mountain. Over 200 people have now met their deaths on Everest, where the climbing season runs from late March to early June.

However, it was delayed this year due to poor conditions and dozens of climbers are waiting at base camps to attempt the ascent. The local authorities expect a similar rush up the peak this week-end as the climbers take advantage of breaks in the weather.

The head of the Popular Party (PP) in Tenerife has launched what appears to be a fresh bid to oust Santa Cruz mayor José Manuel Bermúdez from office after just a year in the job. Bolstered by her endorsement as one of the party’s top figures at the PP regional conference last week-end, Cristina Tavío wasted no time in attacking Bermúdez’s record as mayor and gave more than a strong hint that she is willing to pact with the socialists (PSOE)to form a new municipal government.

Tavío narrowly won the last local elections in May 2011 but was prevented from taking up the mayor’s job by an alliance between Bermúdez’s CC party and the PSOE. ‘The city is being run by someone who not only should not be mayor but also is clearly not up to the job, as the past year has shown’ said Tavío in a press conference earlier this week.

The PP leader in Tenerife added that unemployment in the capital had risen by 10% during the mayor’s term in office and now represented a full quarter of the island total.

4 The Supplement ◗BASKETBALL

Canarias campaign snowballs

SPORT

Tenerife pin hopes on big pitch Players keen to put Badalona nightmare behind them

DA Santa Cruz de Tenerife

Diario de Avisos Santa Cruz de Tenerife

A campaign by basketball side Iberostar Canarias to drum up public support for its bid to compete in the world’s second best league next season has taken off in a way not even the most optimistic officials at the club imagined. Thousands of supporters and well-wishers, not to mention scores of businesses in La Laguna and other parts, have signed up on Facebook, Twitter and the club website to express their desire for the LEB division champions and Cup winners to take up their place in the ACB league alongside teams of the calibre Barcelona and Real Madrid.

Two bank accounts opened to receive donations to help raise the multi-million euro fee required to take part in the exclusive league have already received substantial contributions and the club is more confident than it was last week that the financial hurdles will be cleared before the 14 June deadline set for the two newlypromoted teams to confirm their places.

Tenerife are confident that the bigger home pitch at the Heliodoro Rodríguez stadium will give them the upper hand in the return leg of the first play-off round against Badalona on Sunday (5.30 pm). The players realise that they were very lucky to escape from the first game in Badalona last week with a 1-1 draw, courtesy of a last-gasp diving header by Álvaro Zazo, after being second best throughout the 90 minutes.

The combination of the artificial grass and small dimensions of the pitch proved difficult to cope with for the majority of the players, many of whom became frustrated with their inability to deal with an unexpectedly rampant Badalona. A measure of the frustration can be gauged from the seven bookings picked up by the Tenerife players, mainly for petty incidents. The performance against the unfancied Catalans ranked among the worst of the season and even manager Quique Medina admitted he was at loss to explain the slump in form.

late, Sergio Rodríguez, had performed so well in previous games. Also disappointing was forward Kike López, whose recent poor form is of major concern.

However, everyone at the club is convinced that lightning cannot strike twice and that a repeat of the Badalona fiasco is near-impossible. The wide spaces on the much bigger and better Heliodoro pitch should help alleviate the congestion suffered in the first game and allow the superior pace and skills of the islanders to shine. Álvaro Zazo’s goal has given Tenerife hope. / DA A win by any margin or even a 0-0 draw will ‘The best thing about the game suffice to see Tenerife through to was the result’ said Medina, in a the next round, where they can sentence that summed up the expect an equally tough chadisastrous showing neatly. Seve- llenge. The side still has to negoral decisions by the manager tiate two more play-off rounds to backfired badly, particularly his make sure of a place in Division 2 surprise reinstatement of much- next season. One of the biggest criticised right-back, Cristóbal crowds of the season is expected Juncal, when his replacement of at the Heliodoro tomorrow.

Saturday 26 May 2012

FOOTBALL

Barcelona’s Pedro going nowhere, insists agent ◗The agent of Tenerife-born Barcelona star Pedro Rodríguez has denied speculation that the winger may be on his way to another club. Antonio Sanz said this week that media reports that Rodríguez could move to Valencia as part of a deal to take Jordi Alba to the Nou Camp were unfounded.

‘Pedro’s only concern at present is to make the Spain squad for Euro2012’ he added.

RUGBY

La Laguna mayor gets stuck in for rugby 7s ◗The recent Canarian Rugby 7s championships at the University of La Laguna produced a surprise competitor in the shape of city mayor Fernando Clavijo, who jumped at the opportunity to don his gear after a 15-year absence from pitches. Karate enthusiast Clavijo, who played rubgy in his student days, helped his team to two wins out of four in the week-end competition.