Egyptians pop 500LE million of Chinese fireworks for Eid

[DJKeefy]

Fireworks, rockets, toy-grenades, and toy guns purchases increase 70 per cent during Eid, as children celebrate the holidays with a big made-in-China bang.

In the weeks leading up to Eid Al-Adha, children anticipate the moment when they can wear their new Eid outfits and pour into the streets to pop firecrackers.

Egypt spends more than LE500 million ($82 million) on fireworks and toy guns annually, a consumption price that increases each year.

Samira, a mother of three sons, could not help but think of the different scenarios of disagreements soon to ensue during Eid. During every Eid, Samira's boys spend all their Eid money on toys that not only add more noise to a bustling Egypt, but also pose fire-hazards, firecrackers and toy guns to Samira's disgruntlement.

Samira added that the prices of those "destructive toys" increase every year and consume hundreds of pounds from a single family.

Samira, as a concerned mother, demands the increase of supervisions from those responsible.

She calls for these toys to be banned from markets to stop children from buying them and prevent parents from worrying about their kids and others around them when they play with fire-hazard toys.

Ahmed Abu Gabal, the President of the Department of Children's Toys and Stationary in the Chamber of Commerce, said that the total import receipt of firecrackers and toys ranges between LE500 ($82 million) and LE700 million ($115 million) per year, which he considers a waste of Egypt's resources.

At least 90 per cent of the sale revenues go to China, pointing that European countries and the United States contribute to no more than 10 per cent of children's toys.

He also noted that toys that pose a fire hazard are snuck into Egypt in trucks supposedly carrying different products. He highlighted the importance of modifying the scale by which children's toys are judged to fit with the needs of the Egyptian market. He added that children's safety is a red line that should never be crossed.

Moreover, Abu Gabal stated that there was a decrease in the use of rocket fireworks last year because citizens then were scared of possibly breaking the law, just after stability was returning.

Kamal Yousef – a children's toy shop owner from Attabah, Cairo – said that the demand for children's toys during Eid is about 70 per cent more than other days of the year. He pointed out that the only fun available to kids during Eid is firecrackers and toy-guns, which provide excitement for them.

Yousef added that current generation of children prefer rocket fireworks and toy-guns that work with beads and said these toys are the most popular this year.

He stressed the importance of intensifying supervision on private markets to prevent the spread of illegal fireworks, which have wasted more than LE70 million ($11.5 million) this year already and harm the sales of law-abiding businesses.

Another toy salesman, Mina Bolos, said he sells rocket fireworks imported from China every year and that the sales of such rockets increase annually. He added that the rocket purchases have been handled by the government since the days of President Mubarak and that is still the case.

When asked about the kinds of rockets, Bolos stated that, "the types of rocket fireworks differ according to the number of bullets. Some have three bullets, while others have five or six."

Bolos said that the price of a single rocket varies between LE7 ($1.2) and LE9 ($1.5), LE15 ($2.5) to LE20 ($3.3) for a toy-gun and LE25 ($4.2) for a toy-rifle; pointing out that Chinese toys are usually short-lived and unsafe.

Source: http://english.ahram.org.eg/News/56497.aspx

[LovelyLadyLux]

In a word - "boycott" am pretty sure if they don't sell 'em they won't bring 'em.......course that does require the ability to say "NO" and mean it.....

[Grandad]

Don't deny the kids a little bit of fun at Eid. It is supposed to be a time of happy celebration and I know that most kids have very little between Eids.

The fact that the products originate in China is really no big surprise, is it??? The majority of products that we purchase in the UK are Made in China whether it says so on the label or not.

[LovelyLadyLux]

Maybe my reply sounded harsh and it wasn't meant to be 'harsh harsh' but if it came down to eating or buying a firework it definetly would'nt be the firework. Maybe I'm a bit biased too cause 'fireworks' aren't really allowed in Canada. For most celebrations involving them the city or town will host an evening (usually down at the waterfront) and they will foot the bill for shooting off 30 minutes of booms/bangs and bright lights. You can't legally buy fireworks but you always get a great display banged off in each town.

I've also been in Trinidad for Dwali where fireworks are rampant AND kids are allowed to toally shoot them off sans any type of adult supervision and always always always there are serious mishaps as the adults do not properly supervise (especially the boys) and watch what the kids are doing. Have a feeling Egypt would be about the same.

[Horus]

I tend to agree with LLL on this one, much as I loved them as a kid I remeber how we used to be pretty careless about what we did with them and there were some serious injuries every year, usually resulting in severe burns or blindness. Now I am older I can see the sense of stricter control and would go mental if I thought that my youngest Grandchildren were given the fireworks to set off or collect as we were. The other aspect especially here in the UK are the idiots who just have to keep letting those huge explosive ones off, usually at some un-godly hour starting on Bonfire night and continuing until well after New Year. They are getting more and more powerful and being sold all year round at some places, so rather than making provisions for your pets and animals for the one night, they are subjected to the idiotic barage of mega rockets by these morons for months on end until their feeble minds turn to some other antisocial activity, ban them all I say unless it's an organised event, well done Canada.
Bah Humbug!

[DJKeefy]

Egypt does not know the meaning of health and safety so the kids probably will be a lot less aware of the dangers of fireworks, Ive seen for my own eyes kids around 4+ years old lighting bangers and crackers and throwing them at other kids, also they like making thier own versions by mixing the gun powder and using own made contraptions to make bigger bangs etc (mind you I did that when I was a kid with dud fireworks)

[Grandad]

I forgot the two words, 'under supervision'. I agree that fireworks ARE potentially dangerous but I don't subscribe to the view that fireworks should only be seen at organised displays.

They may be spectacular but they are not fun, and FUN is something that it seems is being drained away from childhood. You can't play conkers, you must not do three legged or sack race at school sports day, don't climb trees, don't run, walk.....the list goes on and how are children going to learn how to recognise hazards if they are not allowed to experience risk?

I believe this topic is about all things coming out of China into Egypt for Eid including toys. I have been a guest in a number of poorer Egyptian homes and something that has always been evident to me is the almost total lack of toys and playthings. We are talking here about Eid, a kind of Christmas to our Islamic friends when children are treated to gifts and sweets and new clothes.

Like any families around the world I am sure that Egyptian families would treat their children at Eid in a manner that they can afford and not at the expense of eating......

[LovelyLadyLux]

I agree that in today's world we (society/gov't) seems to be legislating 'fun' out of everything and kids nowadays can really only sit in a chair carefully lest they hurt themselves. I think that some legislation goes well beyond common sense.

In the USA fireworks are illegal yet are easily purchased off the Indian Reservations who sell them as a means to making extra cash. That being said the 'fireworks' typically start sometime early June (going off at all hours of the day and night) to celebrate the 4th of July. Two years ago, during a tinder dry spell the entire entrance to a community subdivision caught on fire cause of fireworks that were actually 'supervised.' I saw a neighbour light up one of the big ones and when it didn't go off in a timely manner walk out and stare directly down into the cannister to see 'why' it wasn't exploding. I nearly stroked out watching this idiot man do this!!!

I think in Egypt when each day seems to be a struggle and food needs to be put on the table and toys are 'in absentia' I do believe things like 'fireworks' are an extravegance that should be foregone. Personally if I made a finanacial donation to 'the cause' (believing I was giving $$ for food/clothing/educational items/necessities of life and then found out my $$ was spent on fireworks I wouldn't donate again.

I know I'm biased against fireworks (other than community events) but I've seen tough times, have had to prioritize and put off 'til a better day many things I'd of happily given my daughters. Fireworks - an intangible half second 'bang' at a cost of big bucks was always an easy choice for me to make. Don't even want to get started on the safety aspects of giving a 4 or 5 yr old 'firepower' unsupervised!

[Horus]

Keefy's recollections are what make me shudder, we would do the most awful things with them and to be honest we were totally oblivious to the danger and it’s a wonder I have all my fingers and two eyes, but I also recall all those horror stories in the papers just after Bonfire night about all the badly burnt kids and certainly would not want that to happen to any child. It may sound a bit killjoy, but not giving a child an explosive to play with is hardly spoiling their fun and I don’t think it comes into the same category as playing Conkers or a three legged race, especially when you consider the safety standards of anything made in China and not subject to very strict import rules.

[LovelyLadyLux]

At the start of the article Keefy posted it talks about "Samira" bemoaning her sons spending money on fireworks. I hestitate to say this as I have no 'stats' to back up what I'm about to say - BUT - I highly doubt that 'Samira' (or hardly any mom in Egypt) has much control over what her sons purchase with their money once they reach the age of being able to actually make a purchase.

The article, to me, and what Samira said reflects IMO the position of many Egyptian women who have NO control over what the 'men folks' do. I specifically note that Samira didn't talk about her 'daughters' at all cause I'm betting she has FULL control over what they purchase second only to what her husband doles out to her to use to send a son to (ahem) BUY stuff for the house............

[A-four]

I do so very much agree with the wonderful Lovelyladylux here that a mother has little control on kids expenditure these days, but that's the world all over, but, then again, Egyptian festivals never lack big spends of money.

The 'fireworks' of my earlier days in Luxor during this festival, were set off always away from tourist, and these were in the form of a plastic rocket with a carbon cap in the top, that when dropped had a fifty-fifty chance of going off. How things change, this massive increase in fireworks from China, really says it all.

As Keefy rightly points out, in Luxor we get mindless youths now, who set these off without a care in the world for the health and safety of others let alone themselves. I do so worry about the 15 to 35 year old in Egypt, who now, after the troubles honestly believe Egypt owes them something, that they believe, have been denied during the Mubarak years, and now think they are above the law,.........I worry.

[LovelyLadyLux]

Rise of the internet, rise of mass communication complete with audio/video has allowed the youth of Egypt to step into our living quarters and directly 'see' first hand how we live AND having seen how we live they believe it is their right to live this way as well.

What they are not seeing is how our homes/lifestyle was aquired and grew over time. I definitely was not born with a silver spoon stuck up anywhere - not even sure I was born with an intact spoon - and came from basically nothing. We didn't have indoor plumbing, running water, central heating or even 'new' clothes when I was a child. What I did have was a father who worked six days a week and long long hours PLUS studying on the side so he was able to achieve a decent standard of living for us. We didn't have fireworks to blast off and so as to 'get ahead' we went without plenty.

I don't believe the youth of today are really aware of the hardships their ancestors went through so as to be able to give them a decent living situation today. I think the young people of Egypt and many other countries are missing the step of hard work, possible relocation of entire families so as to take advantage of emergent opportunities. Nothing will or should just come to you cause you want it. I firmly believe if you don't invest something of yourself into what you want you don't hold it of value.