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A team from the Porsche Supercup, a supporting series during the upcoming Grand Prix of Bahrain this weekend has cancelled its participation in the race, outing its doubts about the safety at the middle-east country.
.Bahrain’s Sunni monarchy backs cultural and sporting events in attempts to show stability, despite a nearly 14-month-long uprising by the kingdom’s Shiite majority
.Bahrain’s Chamber of Commerce and Industry said that persistent unrest may have “catastrophic effects” on the nation’s economy and warned that investors may pull out if it doesn’t abate, Gulf Daily News said.
.Bahrain's top businessmen have warned of imminent bankruptcies if street violence and protests continue, adding that foreign investments could 'dry up' if authorities cannot bring back law and order to the country.
The Bahrain Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BCCI) has also demanded an immediate investigation be launched into attacks on local businesses.
'The BCCI calls upon the Interior Ministry to immediately arrest perpetrators of violence and those behind attacks on several businesses and launch a full investigation into such acts,' said a BCCI statement.
'Businesses in Bahrain have suffered major losses in the last few months and the present spate of demonstrations; sit-ins, legal and illegal rallies and acts of sabotage and vandalism have had serious consequences and continue to have a detrimental effect. This has got to stop.'
The statement warned that investors could pull out of the country if such violence continues.
'This could have catastrophic effects on Bahrain's economy, which is already reeling,' it added.
Ahmed Ismael Abdulsamad was shot in the right thigh on Saturday as he filmed a protest in the Shia village of Salmabad that plainclothes security forces tried to break up with tear gas and rubber bullets.
Opposition groups blamed "militiamen" accompanying security forces fired live bullets at the protesters from a civilian car, hitting Abdulsamad.
Dozens of young protesters gathered in the village of Abu Saiba, west of Manama, and Tubli, south of the capital, according to postings by the Coalition of the Youth of the February 14th Revolution on Facebook.
Police fired tear gas to disperse the small gatherings and made some arrests, according to provided footage.
Activists have intensified their campaign to push Formula One to cancel the Bahrain round of the world championship, slated for April 20-22 at the Sakhir circuit, southwest of Manama.
The race was cancelled last year due to the unrest that gripped the Shiite-majority state after a mid-March brutal crackdown on protests demanding democratic reforms that would challenge the power of the Sunni Al-Khalifa ruling dynasty.
"We (object to) holding a sports race that belittles the sacrifices of our children and ignores our suffering and wounds," said a statement read by a youth dressed in a white death shroud and a black hood, according to a video posted online.
Bahrain Grand Prix - is it all about money?
Riots and the death of a 22-year old protester last Saturday in the Kingdom of Bahrain have again led to calls from human rights organizations to cancel the Bahrain Grand Prix. There were even rumors the FIA was preparing a statement to cancel the race, but FOM CEO Bernie Ecclestone has rubbished the rumors. “Of course the race is going to happen," Ecclestone said. "No worries at all. What I don't understand are the negative statements being made, people catching them and continuing them. They're saying things they don't understand.”
He also denied money had anything to do with the decision to put the race back on the calendar after it had been cancelled last year. "Forget the financial side, it's nothing to do with that at all," said Ecclestone. “These people were brave enough at the beginning to start an event in that part of the world. That's it. We'll be there as long as they want us.”
Well, contrary to what Ecclestone wants us to believe, it does have something to do with money, and not just a little bit of money, but a lot of money. Not only Bahrain and the Formula One Management (FOM) will lose money, also the teams will lose money if the race is cancelled again. So, what is at stake? Formula Money, who is an expert in Formula One finances, has published some interesting figures concerning the Bahrain Grand Prix.
The first Bahrain Grand Prix was staged in 2004, but in 2009 and 2010 the event was already so successful it generated more exposure for Formula One teams and trackside sponsors than the five oldest races on the Formula One calendar: Monaco, Great Britain, Germany, Belgium and Italy.
Over the next five years Formula Money expects the event will generate $560.2 million worth of broadcast exposure for brands in Formula One. This is $437.8 million of brand exposure for “on car coverage” (sponsors, engine manufacturers and team owners), and $122.4 million of exposure for trackside advertisers. Canceling the 2011 Bahrain Grand Prix did cost $95.3 million worth of exposure, canceling the event until the contract ends in 2016, will mean a loss of $655.5 million of brand exposure, and that is a lot of money.
Red Bull did benefit the most of the 2010 Bahrain Grand Prix, they gained brand exposure from the logos on the Red Bull and Toro Rosso cars worth $22.4 million, number two was race title sponsor Gulf Air with $12.3 million and number three was Ferrari sponsor Santander with $9.4 million worth of brand exposure.
But now the “real” money, the money the teams themselves could lose. The prize money for the Bahrain Grand Prix is $44.7 million, Formula Money found that the total 2012 prize money is $894.5 million (to be divided by the top ten teams), and the winner takes home $126 million. But if the Bahrain Grand Prix would be cancelled, the Constructors' Championship winner would lose $6.3 million while the 10th placed team would see its prize money reduced by $2.6 million.
But according to Formula Money, not just the teams and sponsors would lose money, the race is also worth some $220 million to the local economy, which is twice as much as the average Grand Prix generates.
And that is not all, there is of course the race fee, estimated to be 40 million Euro, which goes to the FOM. According to Ecclestone, the 2012 fee has already been paid and it is like last year very unlikely Crown Prince Salman bin Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa will get it back if the race is cancelled, as it is believed that part of the deal is that Bahrain should be safe for Formula One and it is up to the King and Crown Prince of Bahrain to make sure that it is indeed safe.
“They will pay if there is no race, the money is in the bank already,” Ecclestone confirmed. And he repeated, ”So we’re not going because we’re going to get paid. That has nothing to do with it. We have a contract with them and we’re respecting the contract.” And about the negative publicity he simply said, “Seriously, the press should just be quiet and deal with the facts rather than make up stories.”
Well, this is a fact: F1 Racing magazine carried out a survey amongst 10,000 international Formula One fans, 60 percent said it was ‘not right’ to go to Bahrain, and only 24 percent were in favor.
Maybe he's being melodramatic, but I'm sure that's the sentiment of more than a few Bahrainis.In regards to the GP: Abdulhadi Khawaja the God Father of Human rights in Bahrain is entering 60 days of hunger strike and is on the verge of a coma, violence is increasing as more protests go out in his support and quashed instantly. If Khawaja Dies.. "it will be a catastrophe on every level" not my words.. but Nick Kristoffs' but I add that I consider that an understatement.
If the GP goes ahead, during that weekend Bahrain will be a warzone to say the least to secure the track from any sort of unwelcomed sights.
Hill in my view is behaving like a man driven by a bad conscience. He speaks up for the race when he is pampered, wined and dined. Today we have exactly the same situation that we had when he approved of the 2012 race only five weeks ago. So he really behaves like a turn coat and not like a man with a view for the realities of this troubled country. How much money has he been paid to act like a clown?What we must put above all else is what will be the penalty in terms of human cost if the race goes ahead. It would be a bad state of affairs, and bad for Formula One, to be seen to be enforcing martial law in order to hold the race. That is not what this sport should be about. Looking at it today you'd have to say that [the race] could be creating more problems than it's solving.
Things are different now. The protests have not abated and may even have become more determined and calculated. It is a worrying state of affairs. With under three weeks to go, conditions do not seem to have improved, judging by the reports in our European newspapers, social media and on Al Jazeera TV. The recent meeting to garner support for the race as a unifying event was troubling insofar as it tried to represent the rioting in Bahrain as the result of bad press reporting and as a 'youth' issue.
Promoting the race as 'Uniting Bahrain', whilst a laudable ambition, might be elevating F1 beyond even its own prodigious powers. I'm just saying we have to tread carefully. I hope the FIA are considering the implications of this fully and that events in Bahrain are not seen as they are often sold, as a bunch of yobs throwing Molotov cocktails, because that's a gross simplification. If they believe that, they ought be more wary. You don't get 100,000 people risking their lives in protest for nothing.
If we go, we all go. But there is obviously still a great deal of pain, anger and tension in Bahrain. It would be better for F1 to make it clear that it properly understands this, and that it wants only the best for all Bahrain, or whatever country it visits. I think F1 is sailing very close to this limit. But there is an even more troubling thought, which is this: is F1 playing brinkmanship for purely financial reasons while people are putting their lives in peril to protest against this event?
What we must put above all else is what will be the penalty in terms of human cost if the race goes ahead. It would be a bad state of affairs, and bad for Formula One, to be seen to be enforcing martial law in order to hold the race. That is not what this sport should be about. Looking at it today you'd have to say that [the race] could be creating more problems than it's solving.
I think there are better men who have said the same for a long time.strad wrote:Whatever..I have to agree with what he says now...
A bit presumptuous are we?WhiteBlue wrote:Hill in my view is behaving like a man driven by a bad conscience. [...]
I don't think so. The facts he is quoting now were all available to me, you and Mr. Hill when he approved the race after being given the red carpet by the royals only a few weeks ago.bhallg2k wrote:A bit presumptuous are we?WhiteBlue wrote:Hill in my view is behaving like a man driven by a bad conscience. [...]
Hill is not an F1 driver. He was the president of the BRDC which is an eminently political job. He is now a commentator for Sky TV which is probably the most influential global F1 TV broadcaster that exists. In that capacity his opinions influence millions of his viewers all over the world. And in my view he is doing a very bad job with his Bahrain opinions changing every few weeks. Going racing isn't really a geopolitical question. It is a question of assessing the security risks properly which Bernie and Hill did not. One should ask the question why?bhallg2k wrote:I pity anyone for whom having the wool pooled over his/her eyes by a race car driver discussing geopolitical issues is even possible.
Compare Hill's position with Joe Saward's or lately James Allan's. They are all influential journalists. You will see the difference if you care to read their blogs or published opinions.bhallg2k wrote:Otherwise, I think it's probably best that we call upon journalists and diplomats in the region for answers. It's likely that those professionals know better.