Under the patronage of Lt. General HH Sheikh Saif bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior; Lt. General Saif Abdullah Al Sha’far, Undersecretary at the Ministry of Interior, inaugurated the “Stadium discipline and Fighting Riot” conference, organized by the Police Sports Federation, at the Armed Forces Officers Club in Abu Dhabi.
The conference included three dialogue sessions, with an elite of specialists in the fields of sports and security; and was attended by a large crowd of officials from the various police agencies and sports bodies and institutions in the state.
H.E the Undersecretary of the Ministry of Interior emphasized the important role of such events in educating sports fans on the need to show ethical behavior while cheering for their favorite clubs. He added that it is a national duty to instill a civilized sports cheering and curb stadium rioting, in order to develop an ethical way of expression, consistent with our culture and good manners. This is the priority that the higher leadership has always endeavored to achieve, by supporting all activities and events that aim to consolidate and develop it.
“Combating the phenomenon of stadium rioting is a societal and national duty, and a means to protect people and their property. This cannot be achieved without the cooperation of concerned entities in the sports and security fields," he continued.
The opening ceremony was attended Major General Khalifa Hareb Al Khaili, Assistant Undersecretary of the Ministry of the Interior for Resources and Support Services; H.E Ibrahim Abdul Malik Mohammed, Secretary General of the General Authority of Youth and Sport Welfare; Major-General Hamid Mohammed Al Hudaidi, Commander-in-Chief of Sharjah Police; and a large number of officials and senior officers of the Ministry of Interior.
In his address, Colonel Abdul Malik Jani, Head of Police Sports Federation Department, stated that organizing the “Stadium discipline and Fighting Riot” conference comes in line with the Police Sports Federation’s efforts to protect people and property; promote a culture of sportsmanship; and instill the concepts of civilized cheering. This reflects our wise leadership’s directives and its commitment to maintain the noble values and principles.
He added: “The higher leadership emphasizes at every opportunity, the need to protect the community from strange concepts inconsistent with sportsmanship. The generous patronage of Lt. General HH Sheikh Saif bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior for this conference, embodies his attention and keenness to promote the culture of civilized cheering.”
“We celebrated lately the prestigious triumph of our national football team, in the 21st edition of the Gulf Cup of Nations. At this time, our sports fans have shown significant and much appreciated awareness and civilized cheering, which reflects the great nature of the Emirati people. As we congratulate our national team on this outstanding achievement, we wish to congratulate our sports fans, for their civilized manner in cheering the team,” he continued.
Moreover, Head of Police Sports Federation Department indicated that cheering should reflect the ethics and sportsmanship of individuals. It should not offend the competitor or contain immoral and inappropriate behavior. He pointed out that, even though many sports fans respect the civilized cheering ethics and show good sportsmanship; there are those who do not handle loss very well.
Concluding, Colonel Abdul Malik Jani noted that the “Stadium discipline and Fighting Riot” conference aims to combat the stadium rioting phenomenon; pr