Algerian press, gov't wave yellow card at rowdy Fennecs fans

2009-11-18

Authorities, editors and ordinary Algerians urged Greens fans to stop the violence after Egyptian-owned businesses were ransacked following Saturday's loss to the Pharaohs.

By Mouna Sadek for Magharebia in Algiers – 18/11/09

[Khaled Desouki/AFP/Getty Images] A Sudanese man waves Algeria's flag as the Egyptian side trains for the Wednesday match with the Greens in Khartoum.

In the tense run-up to Algeria's World Cup showdown with Egypt, some out-of-hand Fennecs fans found that everyone from the media to the government wanted them to shape up.

"We would encourage the public to continue to demonstrate their support for our national side in a calm manner," read a government statement released on Monday (November 16th) as the national side prepared to meet Egypt in Wednesday's decisive match in Khartoum.

The announcement came after the Algiers offices of EgyptAir and Orascom, the mobile telephone company known as "Djezzy", were attacked by crowds of fans after Algeria's devastating loss to Egypt last Saturday.

In a press conference held on Monday, Djezzy's director of communications appealed to Algerians to bear in mind the company's support for the Greens.

"Djezzy sponsored the Algerian national team for seven years. We made the largest contribution to the operation to get Algerian supporters to Khartoum. Djezzy has set aside 20 million dinars to help supporters travel to Sudan," said Hamid Grine, who also claimed the company has 45,000 Algerians on its payroll and only a handful of foreign nationals working as managers.

Many ordinary Algerians were disgusted with the fan violence. "The buildings and offices they torched are in Algeria, not Egypt," said Mohammed, 26. "What if Algerians found themselves out of work as a result? People need to calm down and think about the best way of winning this match."

Earlier this week, Algerian newspaper editors met to co-ordinate efforts to encourage peaceful reactions to the upcoming match. "Algerian supporters must have a single goal – to go and support the national side in a purely sporting and fair-minded way," the editors declared in a statement.

Football fans "must not fall into the trap of blindly attacking anything in our country which symbolises the Land of the Pharaohs", El Watan editorialised.

Meanwhile, in Khartoum, Sudanese fans of the Fennecs swarmed the Algerian embassy demanding that flags be distributed ahead of the match. Embassy staff tried to satisfy the clamouring crowds by distributing some 50,000 flags.

Algerians leaving for Khartoum are doing so with some apprehension. "Fennecs fans have to keep their heads and not react when provoked," said El Hadj Braham, who was en route to Sudan with his sons at Houari Boumediene Airport in Algiers. "I've told my boys that it's important for the image of our country to have an exemplary attitude. Violence doesn't solve problems."

Back on the ground in Algeria, Mourad, 45, was preparing for the critical match. "Our players [Karim] Ziani and [Karim] Matmour have rekindled our patriotic fire – the streets of Algeria have rarely been as festive as they've been in recent days. We must continue in the same vein and believe in our own ability."

Mourad also emphasised the need for Algeria to present its best colours on match day. "We must show Egypt and the whole world that Algeria is a sporting nation. We've seen a dangerous escalation in the war of words. It's important to keep things in perspective."

In related news, the Minister for Foreign Affairs announced Tuesday that following extensive investigation, officials determined that no Algerians were killed in Cairo during the football frenzy, countering scores of media reports claiming otherwise.