As he unpacked boxes of souvenirs at his shop in the holy city of Karbala, Ameer Bashir said that he bought new stock this year after the government announced that coronavirus travel restrictions would be eased for foreign Shiite pilgrims planning to observe the upcoming Arbaeen pilgrimage.
“God willing, we will see a change in the market this year,” Mr Bashir told The National from his tiny shop on the prime property facing the revered gold-domed shrines of Prophet Mohammed’s grandsons, Imam Hussein and his brother Imam Abbas, that usually draw millions of Shiites from Iraq and beyond every year.
But times have been hard since the Covid-19 pandemic blocked international travel and enforced restrictions on large gatherings.
“I’m optimistic that the good days will be back again and that we can offset the losses we endured over the past period due to the absence of foreign pilgrims,” said Mr Bashir, 23.
For more than a year, pilgrims from abroad were largely barred from entering Iraq – even as the country began opening up again and eased travel restrictions brought in to stop the spread of Covid-19.
The tourism and retail industries felt the pinch with hotels, shops, cafes, restaurants and tour operators shutting down or laying off workers.
But in early September, Baghdad announced that it would allow 40,000 pilgrims, including 30,000 Iranians, to visit Iraq for Arbaeen – one of the largest Shiite religious gatherings, which marks the end of the 40 days of mourning after the anniversary of the killing of Imam Hussein at the battle of Karbala in 680.
Iraq has since increased the total number of pilgrims to 80,000. While the state has not said what the national quotas will be, local businesses say they are expecting at least 60,000 from Iran.
The Arbaeen pilgrimage, considered the most important religious event for Shiites, starts on Monday and will culminate on Tuesday.
Official figures show that in 2019, 14 million people attended Arbaeen commemorations in Kabala, a third of them from overseas countries including Iran, Lebanon, Pakistan and Gulf states.
In years past, tens of thousands came overland and many walked at least some of the way from Iran to Kabala in large convoys of people.
This year, overseas travellers will have to enter Iraq through airports and will have to show a negative Covid test taken within three days of their arrival.
While they are pleased with the news, Kabala businessmen such as Mr Bashir say their problems started before the pandemic.
The widespread anti-government protests in late 2019 led to violent clashes in central and southern Iraq, including Karbala, forcing many foreign pilgrims to stay away.
Then there were the economic crises in Iran and Lebanon. Both countries face sharp devaluations in the value of their currencies against the dollar, forcing pilgrims to hold on to their cash and businesses like Mr Bashir's to suffer.
“Since then, we’ve lost about 70 per cent of our income because we mainly depend on foreign pilgrims,” he said. Mr Bashir estimates that he has lost about 50 million Iraqi dinars (about $35,000) in revenue as a result.
This year, Mr Bashir has ordered new stock worth about $4,000 – including silver jewellery, prayer beads, rugs, trinkets, shrouds, wristwatches and mobile phone accessories.
“Like the old days, we’re also planning to stay open 24 hours and to hire a second worker to help us out,” he said.
During the heyday before 2019, Ihsan Mohammed Ali’s three hotels in Kabala used to be fully booked for at least 10 days around Arbaeen, mostly booked up by Tanzanian and Lebanese pilgrims.
Now, two of the hotels are closed and one is hosting only a handful of local journalists visiting to cover the scaled-back pilgrimage.
Pre-2019, Mr Ali's 375-bed hostelry would earn him about $400,000.
“We used to prepare the warehouses and workers' place for pilgrims to meet the high demand during the high season,” Mr Ali told The National from a restaurant where the few other patrons were locals eating breakfast.
Like other hotel owners, he says the country’s battered tourism industry suffers from the lack of government regulation as well as the pandemic and regional economic issues.
Business owners say they want the government to help with long-term, low-interest loans, tax and fee exemptions and also for Baghdad to try to attract pilgrims from places other than Iran, whose visitors spend less and less money each year.
“In general, those who are in charge of the tourism sector are incompetent,” Mr Ali said. “None of them are willing to defend tourism in the country.”
Since 2004, Kuwaiti citizen Habib Al Moussawi has been a regular visitor to Iraq’s shrine cities. Last year, he was unable to travel because of Covid-19 restrictions but this year he joined a group of 10 pilgrims who arrived earlier this month.
They set up a tent to offer free meals and drinks for visiting pilgrims.
Mr Al Moussawi, who owns a travel agency, said that 150 Kuwaitis are scheduled to arrive on Friday and that their national quota this year was just 2,000.
“If the borders were open last year, we would have come regardless of coronavirus,” he told The National.
“Nothing prevents us from visiting Imam Hussein, those who want to visit Imam Hussein fear nothing."
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The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE.
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Specs
Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric
Range: Up to 610km
Power: 905hp
Torque: 985Nm
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Jetour T1 specs
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Red flags
- Promises of high, fixed or 'guaranteed' returns.
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- Lack of clear information, vague language, no access to audited financials.
- Overseas companies targeting investors in other jurisdictions - this can make legal recovery difficult.
- Hard-selling tactics - creating urgency, offering 'exclusive' deals.
Courtesy: Carol Glynn, founder of Conscious Finance Coaching
The candidates
Dr Ayham Ammora, scientist and business executive
Ali Azeem, business leader
Tony Booth, professor of education
Lord Browne, former BP chief executive
Dr Mohamed El-Erian, economist
Professor Wyn Evans, astrophysicist
Dr Mark Mann, scientist
Gina MIller, anti-Brexit campaigner
Lord Smith, former Cabinet minister
Sandi Toksvig, broadcaster
The bio
Favourite vegetable: Broccoli
Favourite food: Seafood
Favourite thing to cook: Duck l'orange
Favourite book: Give and Take by Adam Grant, one of his professors at University of Pennsylvania
Favourite place to travel: Home in Kuwait.
Favourite place in the UAE: Al Qudra lakes
The schedule
December 5 - 23: Shooting competition, Al Dhafra Shooting Club
December 9 - 24: Handicrafts competition, from 4pm until 10pm, Heritage Souq
December 11 - 20: Dates competition, from 4pm
December 12 - 20: Sour milk competition
December 13: Falcon beauty competition
December 14 and 20: Saluki races
December 15: Arabian horse races, from 4pm
December 16 - 19: Falconry competition
December 18: Camel milk competition, from 7.30 - 9.30 am
December 20 and 21: Sheep beauty competition, from 10am
December 22: The best herd of 30 camels
No Shame
Lily Allen
(Parlophone)
Explainer: Tanween Design Programme
Non-profit arts studio Tashkeel launched this annual initiative with the intention of supporting budding designers in the UAE. This year, three talents were chosen from hundreds of applicants to be a part of the sixth creative development programme. These are architect Abdulla Al Mulla, interior designer Lana El Samman and graphic designer Yara Habib.
The trio have been guided by experts from the industry over the course of nine months, as they developed their own products that merge their unique styles with traditional elements of Emirati design. This includes laboratory sessions, experimental and collaborative practice, investigation of new business models and evaluation.
It is led by British contemporary design project specialist Helen Voce and mentor Kevin Badni, and offers participants access to experts from across the world, including the likes of UK designer Gareth Neal and multidisciplinary designer and entrepreneur, Sheikh Salem Al Qassimi.
The final pieces are being revealed in a worldwide limited-edition release on the first day of Downtown Designs at Dubai Design Week 2019. Tashkeel will be at stand E31 at the exhibition.
Lisa Ball-Lechgar, deputy director of Tashkeel, said: “The diversity and calibre of the applicants this year … is reflective of the dynamic change that the UAE art and design industry is witnessing, with young creators resolute in making their bold design ideas a reality.”
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
What the law says
Micro-retirement is not a recognised concept or employment status under Federal Decree Law No. 33 of 2021 on the Regulation of Labour Relations (as amended) (UAE Labour Law). As such, it reflects a voluntary work-life balance practice, rather than a recognised legal employment category, according to Dilini Loku, senior associate for law firm Gateley Middle East.
“Some companies may offer formal sabbatical policies or career break programmes; however, beyond such arrangements, there is no automatic right or statutory entitlement to extended breaks,” she explains.
“Any leave taken beyond statutory entitlements, such as annual leave, is typically regarded as unpaid leave in accordance with Article 33 of the UAE Labour Law. While employees may legally take unpaid leave, such requests are subject to the employer’s discretion and require approval.”
If an employee resigns to pursue micro-retirement, the employment contract is terminated, and the employer is under no legal obligation to rehire the employee in the future unless specific contractual agreements are in place (such as return-to-work arrangements), which are generally uncommon, Ms Loku adds.
The five pillars of Islam
1. Fasting
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4. Shahada
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Votes
Total votes: 1.8 million
Ashraf Ghani: 923,592 votes
Abdullah Abdullah: 720,841 votes
