The Monaco Monitor

The Government of Monaco finalizes a bill which should be deposited before the national Council during the first quarter 2007”, heralded Mr. Denis Ravera, Government advisor for the Social Affairs and Health. Principle of the text in preparation: prohibition to smoke in the public places. Its philosophy: to respect an individual freedom while protecting the public from the passive tobacconist. Publicity on the tobacco will be, as for it, maintained. For your information note that in France, prohibition to smoke in the public places will come into effect on February 1, 2007.

Princess Stephanie of Monaco became a special representative for UNAIDS on Friday, vowing to promote prevention of the killer disease and combat discrimination against people who suffer from it. “AIDS has no borders, and knows no social, political, religious or racial barriers. (more…)

Princess Stephanie of Monaco said Friday it was a shame the Roman Catholic Church opposed the use of condoms in the fight against AIDS. In her first speech as goodwill ambassador for the U.N. AIDS agency, Stephanie said there was no alternative to the use of condoms in the prevention of HIV/AIDS. She also said the church is “against abortions and the use of condoms would avoid abortions, too.'’ (more…)

L’Orchestre Philharmonique de Monte-Carlo will be in festive mood this Sunday, 8th October, with a series of ‘Matinées Classiques’ to honour its 150th birthday. The show starts at 11am at the Salle Garnier and the renowned Paul Goodwin will conduct a programme of favourites - Bach J.S. (a selection from Suite de Sinfonias), Bach C. (Symphonie en ré majeur) and Haydn (Symphony no.103, “Roulement de timballes”).  Paul Goodwin is a distinguished oboe musician-turned conductor and his shows across Europe and in the United States are critically acclaimed. He currently divides his time between opera and orchestra conducting and is regularly invited to direct Europe’s and the US’s finest classical musicians. He enjoyed great success with his “Mostly Mozart Concerts” at the Barbican Centre in London as well as at the BBC’s Proms series. He has also worked with famous artists such as Kiri Te Kanawa, Joshua Bell and Mstislav Rostropovitch.

The Principality of Monaco will be hosting the “A Vos Marck”, a five-day event created by Gilles Bellec from the company G18. Army General Gérard Desjardins will be the military consultant. The raid, which is taking on a European dimension this year, groups together twelve mixed teams from French, German and Dutch civil and military defense units. A Monegasque team will also be taking part. Highly technical events, which will be spread over three days, are in store for the participants, who will leave from Monaco and move along the Mediterranean coast, where they will be involved in GPS orientation programmes at sea. The latter will follow compulsory and complex itineraries monitored from the raid PC via a satellite system and will also involve endurance navigation. The raid will also consist of physical tests: team kayak canoeing along the beaches of Monaco, as well as an urban semi-marathon along the roads of the Principality. Competitors will be split into mixed teams of 4 and will be competing against each other under the management and surveillance of Hubert Auriol, the car and motorbike driver and triple winner of the Paris Dakar Rally. Press conferences are being organized every morning from Thursday 5th to Saturday 7th October in the Monaco Yacht Club. On Friday 6th October, members of the press will have the opportunity of following participants at sea aboard a boat specially reserved for them

It emerged last week that Monaco and China have strengthened their relationship. Late Friday 29th September, in the Prince’s Palace, H.S.H. the Sovereign Prince received the Letters of credence from His Excellency Jinjun ZHAO, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the People’s Republic of China to the Principality of Monaco. Once the Letters of Credence had been submitted, H.S.H. the Prince held private talks with Ambassador Jinjun Zhao in the Family Room. In February this year, H.S.H. the Sovereign Prince welcomed H.E. LI Zhaoxing, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the People’s Republic of China, to the Palace during an official visit to the Principality. At their meeting, H.S.H. the Prince and Mr LI Zhaoxing discussed the strengthening of diplomatic relations between both States, which has now materialized with the accreditation of S.E. Jinjun Zhao as Ambassador to the Principality. The next step in strengthening such relations should be the appointment of an Honorary Consul of Monaco in Beijing. Mr Zhao is the fourth Ambassador to have been accredited within the Principality of Monaco following the Ambassadors of France, Italy and the Apostolic Nuncio representing the Holy See.

The Ireland Fund of Monaco celebrates its big bi-annual fundraising weekend this weekend on October 6th to 9th, October. This Monaco-based charity is part of the Ireland Funds, a worldwide organization that contributes to the development of modern Ireland and is dedicated to furthering education, culture, charitable entities and, above all, peace. This year, HSH Prince Albert II will present the second ‘Princess Grace Humanitarian Award’ to a person of Irish nationality who has distinguished themselves in this field. The prize will be awarded at the Hotel Hermitage during a gala evening on the 7th in the presence of over 250 guests. During the soiree, the President of the Fund, Michael Fitzgerald, will also announce the creation of two initiatives. The reception is open to all at a cost of 300 euros a ticket.

The Club du Plongée (Dive club) at Port de Fontvieille is hosting the 3rd underwater photography competition this Saturday, 7th October. An event organized by the Club d’Exploration Sous-Marine de Monaco, it will bring together 25 teams (some 50 divers amongst them) of professional and amateur photographers. After two hours of dives, each team will display a selection of four photos, which will be put before a jury. The public is invited to view the images from 6pm and the prize ceremony will be held afterwards. You will have the opportunity to meet the participants and see some very original photography. The meeting point is at the Club du Plongée, Cale de Hallage, at the Port de Fontvieille.

Every day at 11.55am prompt, in front of the Palais Princier on the Rock, the guardians of the Prince come marching in to the beat of drums and the blare of trumpets. After a short but expertly executed changing of the guard the new watch is mounted.  While this little piece of pomp, unchanged in over a hundred years, is the most visible role played by the Sovereign Prince’s Company of Carabineers (“La Compagnie des Carabiniers du Prince”), it is but one facet of their duties. While the Vatican’s famed Swiss Guard is often cited as the world’s smallest army, the “Compagnie des Carabiniers” has 112 men (three officers, 15 NCOs, and 94 private soldiers) to the Swiss Guard’s 134. The primary duties of both forces are similar: to protect the sovereign ruler. In the Swiss Guard’s case it is the Pope. Founded in 1817 in the reign of Prince Honore IV, the “Carabiniers” have been the watchdogs of eight Princes of Monaco. In April 2005, they were in the world’s spotlight as the men who shouldered the casket of Prince Rainier as he was laid to rest next to the late Princess Grace in Monaco Cathedral…

Monaco’s Port Hercule is looking seriously at buying an electric-powered boat to ferry people around the harbour. The boat was in action at the Monaco Yacht Show, held in September, and coped well with the traffic. Among the 2,000-plus people who tried it out was HSH Prince Albert II, a keen environmentalist. The small ferry carries 50 people and would be used to take cruise passengers disembarking at the new “digue” (harbour wall) across to the foot of Monte-Carlo and the Casino.