In 1982, my father, a young Emirati, married my mother, a young woman from Falkirk in Scotland, where he was completing his studies. They moved to Abu Dhabi a year later, my father to work as an accountant, my mother as a nurse. It was here they raised a family of three boys.
My mother sometimes talks of the difficulties she encountered here in the 1980s. She would tell us stories of how she would always wait for my father to arrive home at night. She feared that if anything happened to him she would have nothing.
My father would talk about how society viewed mixed marriages back then. People still look twice today when they see a man dressed in local clothes walking hand in hand with a western woman, so you can only imagine the stares they would get back then. Additionally, he would tell us how difficult it was explaining his decision to his family.
But none of that mattered to my mother and father. They loved each other and wanted to be together. You would think that would be enough, right? However, a lot more comes into play than the feelings two people have for each other. Here are some of the issues that I feel contribute to the marriage problems we face in the UAE.
First and foremost, the problems start within our very own households. Whether it’s the discussions on dowry payments or a financial gift from our Marriage Fund towards the cost of wedding arrangements, marriage now seems more like a transaction rather than the union of two people in love. As a society we must focus on the emotional dynamics rather than just the financial requirements.
Secondly, FNC member Ahmed Al Amash has said that “families used to be stronger”. But I think that it is unhelpful to continue to compare ourselves with the past.
Relationships weren’t necessarily better historically, they were different, just like our country was different. Today, women in the workforce are the norm, not the exception.
With more working requirements from both sides of the marriage, families will get smaller, but that doesn’t make them any less special. We just need to understand that is how things have evolved, and to stop comparing a typical marriage today with one from yesterday.
Another important factor that I think contributes to the debate is the lack of interaction between genders during their formative years. I attended an American school where groups of friends included boys and girls, but hardly any of those girls were local.
We learnt how to interact with one another, work on projects and understand how to treat each other with respect. Maybe we should consider chaperoned environments for boys and girls. This would allow them to have a better understanding of each other, take a more mature approach to marriage and get a better picture of what a happy relationship should look like.
On a final note, I think it is important to address mixed marriages. I know I might sound biased – I am a product of a mixed marriage, after all – but being raised by two different cultures can give children a broader understanding of the world. Children are able to better explore and integrate into cultures beyond their own.
I like to feel that those characteristics add value to our country and widen our perspectives.
So where do we go from here? Well, we are dealing with elements of human emotion, which you simply can’t wrap policies around. Something tells me that our society will go in the direction of travel it wants.
Khalid Al Ameri is an Emirati social commentator
On Twitter: @KhalidAlAmeri
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Sun jukebox
Rufus Thomas, Bear Cat (The Answer to Hound Dog) (1953)
This rip-off of Leiber/Stoller’s early rock stomper brought a lawsuit against Phillips and necessitated Presley’s premature sale to RCA.
Elvis Presley, Mystery Train (1955)
The B-side of Presley’s final single for Sun bops with a drummer-less groove.
Johnny Cash and the Tennessee Two, Folsom Prison Blues (1955)
Originally recorded for Sun, Cash’s signature tune was performed for inmates of the titular prison 13 years later.
Carl Perkins, Blue Suede Shoes (1956)
Within a month of Sun’s February release Elvis had his version out on RCA.
Roy Orbison, Ooby Dooby (1956)
An essential piece of irreverent juvenilia from Orbison.
Jerry Lee Lewis, Great Balls of Fire (1957)
Lee’s trademark anthem is one of the era’s best-remembered – and best-selling – songs.
Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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Emirates (www.emirates.com) flies directly to Hanoi, Vietnam, with fares starting from around Dh2,725 return, while Etihad (www.etihad.com) fares cost about Dh2,213 return with a stop. Chuong is 25 kilometres south of Hanoi.
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Group A: Palmeiras, Porto, Al Ahly, Inter Miami.
Group B: Paris Saint-Germain, Atletico Madrid, Botafogo, Seattle.
Group C: Bayern Munich, Auckland City, Boca Juniors, Benfica.
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Group G: Manchester City, Wydad, Al Ain, Juventus.
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The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
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Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
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