Last week's Cabinet reshuffle brought many surprises, not just in terms of some of those taking up Cabinet posts for the first time but also in terms of the reorganisation of several ministries and the creation of several ministerial posts.
Internationally, the nomination of our first Minister of State for Happiness and of 22-year old Shamma Al Mazrui as Minister of State for Youth Affairs, as well as the choice of other women for many of the new appointments, attracted considerable attention. More than mere attention, perhaps – amazement too. But then this isn't the first time, and it won't be the last, that the UAE has raised eyebrows abroad with its innovative steps in terms of Government and its emphasis on the empowerment of its women.
Major challenges lie ahead for the new Cabinet. I am confident that the combination of experienced old hands and the impressive clutch of newcomers will serve the country well in the years ahead.
I shall devote this column, though, to one of the new portfolios, allocated to a tried and tested Cabinet veteran, Sheikha Lubna Al Qasimi, formerly Minister of International Co-operation and Development, and now Minister of State for Tolerance.
The first woman to be nominated as a Minister in the UAE, over a decade ago, Sheikha Lubna was, in my view, an outstanding success in her former role, not just because of her skills at communicating the UAE's views to an international audience but also because of the way in which she brought together the efforts of the country's diverse overseas aid and humanitarian institutions.
There is now, where there wasn't before, a coherence about the message being given about the country's activities in this field. One result, with all the figures being properly collated for the first time, is that the UAE has been recognised globally as the most generous country, per capita, in the world, in terms of the percentage of its national income being allocated to aid and relief.
Our role as aid-givers for those in need, whether as a result of natural disasters or of man-made catastrophes, is now, deservedly, acknowledged.
That assistance, of course, has never been restricted to one region, to one group of people or to those of one particular belief. Instead, it has gone to countries and to peoples without discrimination, evidence of the UAE's broad and tolerant humanitarian approach.
That should serve Sheikha Lubna well as she comes to grips with her new portfolio as Minister of State for Tolerance. Here too, there is a need for wider international recognition about the spirit of cultural and religious tolerance that is a fundamental part of Emirati beliefs and of the Emirati way of life.
Here at home, that spirit is familiar to all, whether it be in the celebrations of Eid, Diwali or Christmas or in daily life. It is evident, too, in the way in which the diverse aspects of our national heritage are cherished.
In its tolerance, the UAE offers a marked contrast to much of the rest of the world. Elsewhere in the region, the words and atavistic practices of those who, like ISIL, deny the basic human right to the freedom of belief of those whose views differ with theirs, reign rampant over millions of people. In Europe, struggling to cope with the arrival of desperate multitudes seeking an escape from conflict in the Middle East, an ugly xenophobia is taking root that threatens not only new arrivals but also the nature of the societies whose succour they seek. Almost unbelievably, the current Republican front-runner for the next US presidential election, Donald Trump, is a man who calls for a ban on the entry of Muslims into the United States, including those, one assumes, who are US citizens, born and bred.
The UAE has a long, proud record of tolerance. Sheikha Lubna has already proved her ability to speak for this country to the world. She has a powerful message to present. I wish her well.
Peter Hellyer is a consultant specialising in the UAE’s history and culture
