School decision a cause for concern

Yet another villa school announces closure (Parents in uproar after learning Indian school in Abu Dhabi is to close, September 18).
There is already a dearth of Indian-curriculum schools in Abu Dhabi and further closures will complicate matters. Schools that are closing with such short notice and putting the future of their students at stake, should take the responsibility. These institutions must have got the closure notice from Abu Dhabi Education Council (Adec) well in advance.
Students of higher classes will suffer the most. As such, it is difficult to get admission to higher grades. Students also prefer not to change school in their final years.
As far as I know, most of the villa schools have moved to bigger campuses on the outskirts of the city. As a result, many children who used to walk to the school now have to take school bus. That means an additional expenditure for many parents.
Many middle-class Indians will find it difficult to afford the increase in expenses. There are people (like me) who had to move house to stay close to their children's schools. These schools should remain open at least for another couple of years and make sure that all senior students get admission elsewhere.
Sneha Shruti, Abu Dhabi
The decision to close down Indian Islahi Islamic School from April 1 is a bad move by Adec.
The education council should have known the system of teaching being followed by the school. It now risks the future of students, especially those in ninth and 11th grades.
This decision only increases the already complicated situation regarding Indian-curriculum schools in Abu Dhabi. Indian Islahi Islamic School may be operating from a villa, but it is certainly not small. The council should extend the deadline by at least a year for the above mentioned grades.
Name withheld by request
Court reform bill needs a careful evaluation
The news article Court reforms given positive verdicts (September 17) is good news. As a legal consultant, I feel obliged to make some comments about the matter.
Consequences of reforms are generally positive in the UAE. But I personally hope that the FNC will carefully study the cabinet-approved reform bill on Code of Civil Procedures to avoid any ill consequence in the long run.
The three main points elaborated in the article are: 1) speedy procedure 2) litigants can appeal their civil cases individually without any help from an attorney, and 3) litigants can appeal in the same court that issued the verdict.
For the first matter – the speedy civil procedure – the speed, per se, should not be the issue; rather avoiding wastage of time is a correct approach. We must realise that in many major legal systems of the world, including Sharia, the court procedure — both civil and penal procedures — is rather slow due to concerns over individual rights, social justice, economic stability and well-being of citizens.
Speed in administration as part of civil court procedure is acceptable, but litigation shall take its own course both to make sure all angles are covered and to avoid any violation of litigants' rights.
For the second matter, there should be no major problem in theory for a litigant to appeal his/her own case individually. But in practice, the knowledge, skill and objectivity of a litigant may not match those of the legal community – judges, public prosecutors and lawyers. This inequality may lead to injustice to the individual litigant and harm his/her status.
As for the third matter – for an appeal case to go to the same court that issued the verdict – I personally wish that the FNC gives close consideration to this vital point.
Appeal courts must be independent from lower courts to give a chance to litigants who feel their rights were not fully protected in the lower court, to lodge their cases in an appeal court usually with different judges just to try to secure their rights.
Arjang Arjangian, Dubai
Let people live the way they want to
I am responding to the article 'My niqab, and why I wear it' (September 19). My question is this: why can't we let people live the way they want to?
I have met so many different people since I came to the UAE and I have never felt so tolerated and safe as I have here.
If we try to understand other people, their behaviour and their culture, such misunderstandings can be easily sorted out. We need to open our hearts and minds to the world.
Melanie Pavic, Dubai
Fed's message raises questions
The article Fed's QE decision could bring confusion and pain down the road (September 19) by Tim Fox was a good read.
The momentum behind the rally on Thursday was certainly not credible, just like the US Federal Reserve's reputation at the moment.
Avinash HR, Sharjah