Under the watchful gaze of the composite interests of human rights organisations, envious artists and regional players intent on manipulating certain sections of the Western media, the UAE has long stood firm on the solid ground of wisdom, careful planning and strong vision.
For many years, I bowed to the profound objectivity of the Western media, especially those well-established newspapers from countries who swear to protect freedom of expression.
Recently, however, I am sorry to say my respect has been inverted to dismay and disgust, and I have had to conclude that seeking truth and justice are not always the aims of Western journalists.
Reflecting on the value of truth in some of today’s press, I see the truth as being coined to serve biased interests – a fact that is naively tolerated to varying degrees. But this should not be to the extent of overshadowing reality.
The British newspaper, The Observer, has recently focused its attentions on labour rights at Abu Dhabi’s Saadiyat Island development projects and published a video on The Guardian website criticising both the emirate’s government and the developers of the museums, educational institutes and cultural centres that will soon populate the island.
This type of attack seems to be conducted every time the UAE steps up its development commitments or achieves a significant milestone.
To my mind, it is no surprise that this video was released shortly after Dubai had won the Expo 2020 vote.
The questions of underpaid workers, substandard living conditions and debts related to recruitment costs, have always been at the forefront of concerns raised in regard to construction projects in the region. All of these issues were raised in the aforementioned video, but the UAE has consistently achieved a good regional ranking in terms of human rights protection.
A careful review of the video reveals it to be rather accusatory in tone and lacking in concrete facts. Its release did not seem to herald a genuine humanitarian call, but served as something closer to an overarching criticism of Abu Dhabi’s ambitious Saadiyat project and a thinly veiled attempt to damage the country’s overall international standing.
The UAE Government has been at pains to ensure the welfare of foreign labourers – whether in terms of housing and living environments, wage protection systems, policies or laws to ensure fair treatment, dispute resolution and much more besides. This country consistently ranks highly in terms of human rights protection and development initiatives. This fact puts the hardliners in a very difficult position.
Undeniably, the commitment to stated government policies are likely to vary among subcontractors, who are not always directly accountable to the main developer. For instance, issues relative to recruitment debts accrued outside the UAE are beyond the jurisdiction of the government here.
Developers rarely turn a blind eye to subcontractors and are often in continuous negotiation to address issues related to pay scales and adequate living conditions.
I should also offer some reflections on Arabtec, which has previously faced criticism for uncontrollable labour disputes among its employees.
In this particular video Arabtec has been unfairly criticised.
The real reason for the labourers’ riot was a cultural issue relating to the workers – who mainly hailed from Pakistan and Bangladesh – and who simply refused to reside in the same compounds and rioted as they sought to be segregated.
It is also worth considering the demands of the Gulf Labor organisation, an interest group of artists that has called for a global boycott of the Saadiyat project on the grounds of labour rights abuse.
To me, this seems like a boycott founded on the notion of opposing prestigious projects and museums when they are imagined in places that are not in line with their particular affiliations. I wonder if the Guggenheim was seconded to another city – perhaps Beirut or Beijing – whether such organisations would still come into being.
I have come across severe labour rights abuses all over the world: be they in China, where prisoners are used to work on official projects or in the USA, where migrant Mexican workers are often deprived of their rightful earnings. Pakistan has major issues regarding child labour and domestic labourers’ abuse. In Bangladesh too, basic workers’ rights are routinely abused, to the extent of suffering a trade boycott this year by the USA.
To address such abuse, one would judge and compare the efforts exerted by the authorities to commit to principles and whether steps are being taken to ensure all possible measures are in place. The UAE Government’s efforts have far exceeded the majority of requirements for labour rights. Where areas are under review, the country has ensured measures are in place to address the issues.
On a final note, would it not have been fairer if The Observer’s investigation had waited for the response of the authorities or the Saadiyat project developer to their questions, instead of releasing the video before any answers had been received?
Surianah's top five jazz artists
Billie Holliday: for the burn and also the way she told stories.
Thelonius Monk: for his earnestness.
Duke Ellington: for his edge and spirituality.
Louis Armstrong: his legacy is undeniable. He is considered as one of the most revolutionary and influential musicians.
Terence Blanchard: very political - a lot of jazz musicians are making protest music right now.
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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
The specs
Engine: Four electric motors, one at each wheel
Power: 579hp
Torque: 859Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh825,900
On sale: Now
What is a robo-adviser?
Robo-advisers use an online sign-up process to gauge an investor’s risk tolerance by feeding information such as their age, income, saving goals and investment history into an algorithm, which then assigns them an investment portfolio, ranging from more conservative to higher risk ones.
These portfolios are made up of exchange traded funds (ETFs) with exposure to indices such as US and global equities, fixed-income products like bonds, though exposure to real estate, commodity ETFs or gold is also possible.
Investing in ETFs allows robo-advisers to offer fees far lower than traditional investments, such as actively managed mutual funds bought through a bank or broker. Investors can buy ETFs directly via a brokerage, but with robo-advisers they benefit from investment portfolios matched to their risk tolerance as well as being user friendly.
Many robo-advisers charge what are called wrap fees, meaning there are no additional fees such as subscription or withdrawal fees, success fees or fees for rebalancing.
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
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Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000
- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
UAE cricketers abroad
Sid Jhurani is not the first cricketer from the UAE to go to the UK to try his luck.
Rameez Shahzad Played alongside Ben Stokes and Liam Plunkett in Durham while he was studying there. He also played club cricket as an overseas professional, but his time in the UK stunted his UAE career. The batsman went a decade without playing for the national team.
Yodhin Punja The seam bowler was named in the UAE’s extended World Cup squad in 2015 despite being just 15 at the time. He made his senior UAE debut aged 16, and subsequently took up a scholarship at Claremont High School in the south of England.
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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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UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
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THE BIO
Born: Mukalla, Yemen, 1979
Education: UAE University, Al Ain
Family: Married with two daughters: Asayel, 7, and Sara, 6
Favourite piece of music: Horse Dance by Naseer Shamma
Favourite book: Science and geology
Favourite place to travel to: Washington DC
Best advice you’ve ever been given: If you have a dream, you have to believe it, then you will see it.
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
Test
Director: S Sashikanth
Cast: Nayanthara, Siddharth, Meera Jasmine, R Madhavan
Star rating: 2/5
The stats: 2017 Jaguar XJ
Price, base / as tested Dh326,700 / Dh342,700
Engine 3.0L V6
Transmission Eight-speed automatic
Power 340hp @ 6,000pm
Torque 450Nm @ 3,500rpm
Fuel economy, combined 9.1L / 100km