Established 1880
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gazette@eltahrir.net.eg
Thursday 27 april 2006
| Ashraf Abdallah Gazette staff The place is unique not only for its greenery and alabaster statue, but for the variety of its inhabitants. You'd be hard pushed to find so many VIPs gathered in one place at the same time anywhere else, but here you've got the whole shebang, ranging from businessmen and ex-governmental officials to singers and actors. It's Tura Prison, one of whose wings is reserved for the rich and the famous. As a whole, the prison is a piece of wonderful architecture. At its entrance, there stands a fantastic marble statue, resting on a base of granite, surrounded by flowerbeds, lawns and trees. The statue looks like it's saying 'welcome' to visitors or 'maalesh' to those who've just been deprived of their freedom. Standing like a gem in a necklace, Tura Prison is home to prisoners like any other detention facility - but with a difference. It houses a veritable galaxy of former public figures who've gone astray, ending their life behind bars. But the only difference between their life before and their life now is the metal bars. Otherwise, they lead the same cushy existence they were accustomed to before they ended up in clink. Clad in a dressing gown and with an expensive watch on one of his wrists, former Giza Governor Maher el-Guindi strolls through the garden near the statue, patiently fingering his prayer beads. The former Counsellor spends his time going for long walks and imparting the wisdom of his long years in public office to his fellow inmates. Ahmed el-Rayan, the leading player in the pyramid savings scheme scam, still enjoys keeping up with the Stock Exchange in the local newspapers. "If only I had a laptop and a mobile, then I could log onto the Internet and follow the latest Bourse news second by second and keep in touch with all my pals on the outside. I could still be making millions," he says with a sigh. The former investment tycoon, who is regularly visited by his daughters, often has big arguments with his fellow lags about stocks and shares and money matters. To cap it all, he's an inveterate snorer. And, irony of ironies, el-Rayan is now sharing a cell with Counsellor el-Guindi, who was one of the judges who tried el-Rayan and sent him to jail. Meanwhile, a former official at the Radio and Television Union, Mohamed el-Wakil, annoys other inmates by saying: "It was me who launched the hourly news bulletins on Egyptian TV and gave a new look to Good Morning Egypt." El-Wakil was implicated for accepting a bribe from a professional who wanted to appear on the popular morning TV programme. The former media official still has a good go down, being especially fond of fatty dishes. He also likes sharing a joke or two with Hossam Abul Fotouh. The later, a business tycoon jailed for corruption and possessing weapons and on other charges, hasn't lost his broad smile or his passion for fine cigars. He likes sitting in the garden and talking economics with the other prisoners. The Marina Tura wing, as the once-powerful inmates affectionately call it, is always calm and you never get the vicious arguments and punch-ups you normally find in prisons the world over. "All the inmates follow the rules and regulations, to avoid being punished," prison officials said in an interview with the Arabic-language weekly magazine Akher Sa'a. Prince Youssef, as Youssef Abdel-Rahman, a former Undersecretary at the Ministry of Agriculture, is known as, was jailed for introducing carcinogenic pesticides into the country. He actually behaves like a Prince. Abdel-Rahman is neatly dressed, dyes his hair and moustache black. He's also addicted to coffee and the news. Meanwhile, in the women's wing, you find celebrities like Randa el-Shami and Mona el-Shafie. 'Randa Hanem', as the other inmates call her, is popular for her charitable nature and her good heart. Dressed all in white, except for black shoes and sunglasses, she always has time to listen to her fellow inmates' problems. Randa Hanem likes nothing better than a mixed grill, but these days she's nice and slim, following a strict diet and taking lots of exercise. She was jailed for offering sexual favours to Prince Youssef, but she does so much to help the other women in stir, who all love and respect her. As for Mona, who was jailed for fraud, she's been busy dyeing her hair as she wants to keep looking young. She's fond of TV, but she also loves being on her own and reading the Holy Qur'an. Her companions speak of her spending hours on her own deep in thought, perhaps reflecting on her past and why she ended up in prison. Mona was punished once for hiding a mobile in the garden, but now she's very law-abiding. The latest public figures to turn up in Tura are two young singers and a female TV anchor. Tamer Hosni and Haitham Shaker, accused of forging their degree and military service certificates, are still awaiting trial. Tamer, dressed in a white tracksuit and cap, has grown a beard and respects the rules. He doesn't talk much but sometimes you can hear him singing, while lots of beautiful young ladies turn up to see him on prison visiting days. As for TV anchorwoman Amani Abu Kozayyem, she was sent down for receiving bribes and using her position to make ill-gotten gains. Amani has come to terms with her fate, realising that she and others like her have been punished for abusing their jobs and chasing an illusion. |
| Abeer Tayel Gazette staff AFTER a long absence, we're going to witness a bit of culture at local cinemas. This summer, a number of movies based on literary works are going to hit the silver screen. They include The Yacoubian Building, based on the novel of that name by Alaa al-Aswany, as well as Sayad el-Yamam (The Dove Hunter) and Beit el-Yasmin (The House of Jasmine), both based on the literary works of Ibrahim Abdel-Majid. Last year, there was the movie Khareef Adam (The Autumn of Adam), based on the novel "Ibn Mout" (Son of Death) by Mohamed el-Bossati. It looks like the comic movies are going to be up against a bit of competition for a change! "I hope that the near future will mark a return to a close relationship between cinema and literature like in the good old days, back in the fifties and sixties. Literary works are generally very creative and novels often reflect reality, with characters ideal for the silver screen. When it comes to turning novels into movies, it's easy for the scriptwriter, as he's already got everything there," says el-Aswany. Some critics argue that movies based on literary works are not as successful as films. "Of course this isn't true. There've been some great cultural movies in Egypt - a number of them have proved box-office hits across the Arab region and even worldwide," he stresses, pointing out, however, that some writers who are having a book made into a film insist on interfering in the work of the director, which might explain why many directors don't like working on such projects. "If I have agreed for one of my novels to be turned to a movie, it's not my right to interfere with the work of the filmmaker. The novelist is responsible for his novel, the filmmaker for his film. Let me give you an example: Naguib Mahfouz's famous trilogy was not quite so successful when it was turned into three movies, although the novels were very successful. But the lack of success of the movies didn't make the books unsuccessful." Abdel-Majid isn't so optimistic. "I doubt that cinema and literature will ever again enjoy the close relationship they once enjoyed. There are still very few novels turned into movies. Producers and directors prefer the easy type of movie, when dramatists tailor films for the superstars. Producers and directors ignore the fact that the success of the film industry worldwide was originally due to movies based on literature. Nearly all the early American films were adapted from the works of prominent writers. This trend continues today," he notes. Meanwhile, movie director Mohamed Kamel el-Qalioubi says that very few new movies are based on literary works. "Literature is not the only thing that's good for the film industry; although it's certainly one of the main sources for progress and development. The serious nature of many novels certainly enriches Egyptian cinema. It is regrettable that movies based on literary works are never as successful as they were in the past. It could be due to the marketing or the audience or both!" "The cinema industry has become purely commercial, with the investor - the producer - only after making a profit, regardless of any literary or cultural value a film might or might not have," explains veteran movie actor Mahmoud Yassine. |
| Samar Ali Ezzat Gazette staff Lack of professionalism is a major problem in many fields. But it's perhaps most serious in the medical sector, where we're often talking about life or death. There have been numerous cases of fatal medical mistakes and people are now questioning the proficiency of physicians and surgeons, especially those who have recently graduated. But you can't always blame the professionals: often poorly equipped operating theatres and hospitals are to blame. It is no secret that in many cases patients have come to mistrust doctors, while most senior officials prefer to receive treatment overseas. The problem is that there is too much negligence in some government-run and private hospitals. The tragedy of comic actress Souad Nasr is a case in point. She was recently admitted to a private hospital for liposuction and went into a coma from which she has yet to recover. Souad is not the first nor the last to suffer. A middle-aged woman underwent a minor abdominal operation at the new Al-Qasr Al-Aini Hospital, but she then suffered a gastric ulcer that burst, forming blood clots on her abdomen. After a second operation, she was transferred to ICU, where she contracted a virus, although she was in an apparently highly sterilised environment. She was in a coma for a fortnight - only divine intervention saved her. This patient was far more fortunate than many others, because she actually survived. Some of the doctors involved have managed to escape punishment, but others are now behind bars or have been forced to pay compensation. Dr Mohamed Sharaf, the former Chairman of the Public Treatment Institution, believes insufficient training is very much to blame. "The increasing number of medical students makes it very difficult for the teaching staff to maintain high standards," Dr Sharaf explained to Al-Wafd daily. Meanwhile, young, poorly paid physicians are compelled to work at more than one clinic or hospital to make a decent living. This means they don't have enough time for each patient. Business-oriented physicians have also gone 'off track', giving priority to personal gain rather than the health and well-being of the patients. Dr Sharaf highlights poor administration as another flaw in the running of hospitals. Running hospitals is not a simple process anyway. However, he draws a distinction between professional mistakes and complications that may arise due, for instance, to the side-effects of drugs. Dr Mohamed Khalil, head of the Pediatrics Department at the Faculty of Medicine, Cairo University, urges patients to choose to be treated at well-equipped hospitals, while the physicians themselves must be very diligent. As for the Medical Association, its Chairman, Dr Hamdi Al-Sayed, says that one of the problems is underfunding. The Minister of Health himself has said that he needs an additional LE18 billion in order to improve the medical sector nationwide, as the current annual healthcare budget is only LE7 billion. Dr Al-Sayed notes that the Association has called for an independent inspection body to supervise all medical establishments, arguing that the Association itself should be responsible for punishing negligent doctors. "The penalty should depend on the nature of the mistake: it could be a warning, a fine, temporary suspension or dismissal from the Association," he says. |
