Human rights in Dubai - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Human rights in Dubai are based on the Constitution and enacted laws, which do address many of the concerns of human rights organizations. For example, the Constitution promises equitable treatment of all people, regardless of race, nationality

Nationality

Nationality is membership of a nation or sovereign state, usually determined by their citizenship, but sometimes by ethnicity or place of residence, or based on their sense of national identity....

or social status

Social status

In sociology or anthropology, social status is the honor or prestige attached to one's position in society . It may also refer to a rank or position that one holds in a group, for example son or daughter, playmate, pupil, etc....

, per Article 25 of the Constitution of the United Arab Emirates

Constitution of the United Arab Emirates

The Constitution of the United Arab Emirates provides a legal and political framework for the operation of the United Arab Emirates as a federation of seven emirates. The Constitution came into effect on December 2, 1971 and was permanently accepted in May 1996. Authored by Adi Bitar, a former...

. In contrast to other nations in the region, there is also a significant degree of both press and religious freedom.

However, many human rights complaints have been reported upon. Most notably, of the 250,000 foreign laborers in the city live in conditions described by Human Rights Watch

Human Rights Watch

Human Rights Watch is an international non-governmental organization that conducts research and advocacy on human rights. Its headquarters are in New York City and it has offices in Berlin, Beirut, Brussels, Chicago, Geneva, Johannesburg, London, Los Angeles, Moscow, Paris, San Francisco, Tokyo,...

as being "less than human."

Foreign Workers & Labor Rights

NPR

NPR, formerly National Public Radio, is a privately and publicly funded non-profit membership media organization that serves as a national syndicator to a network of 900 public radio stations in the United States. NPR was created in 1970, following congressional passage of the Public Broadcasting...

reports that workers "typically live eight to a room, sending home a portion of their salary to their families, whom they don't see for years at a time." The BBC

BBC

The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...

has reported that "local newspapers often carry stories of construction workers allegedly not being paid for months on end. They are not allowed to move jobs and if they leave the country to go home they will almost certainly lose the money they say they are owed." Additionally, most of the workers are forced to give up their passport

Passport

A passport is a document, issued by a national government, which certifies, for the purpose of international travel, the identity and nationality of its holder. The elements of identity are name, date of birth, sex, and place of birth....

s upon entering Dubai, making it very difficult to return home. In September 2005, the Minister of Labour ordered one company to pay unpaid salaries within 24 hours after workers protested, and published the name of the offending company.

In December 2005, the Indian consulate in Dubai submitted a report to the Government of India

Government of India

The Government of India, officially known as the Union Government, and also known as the Central Government, was established by the Constitution of India, and is the governing authority of the union of 28 states and seven union territories, collectively called the Republic of India...

detailing labor problems faced by Indian expatriates in the emirate. The report highlighted delayed payment of wages, substitution of employment contract

Employment contract

A contract of employment is a category of contract used in labour law to attribute right and responsibilities between parties to a bargain.On the one end stands an "employee" who is "employed" by an "employer". It has arisen out of the old master-servant law, used before the 20th century...

s, premature termination of services and excessive working hours as being some of the challenges faced by Indian workers in the city. On 21 March 2006, workers at the construction site of Burj Khalifa, upset over bus timings and working conditions, rioted: damaging cars, offices, computers, and construction tools.

The city's discriminatory legal system and unequal treatment of foreigners has been brought to light by its alleged attempts to cover up information on the rape of Alexandre Robert, a 15 year old French-Swiss national, by three locals, one of whose HIV-positive status was hidden by the authorities for several months and by the recent mass imprisonment of migrant laborers, most of whom were from India, on account of their protests against poor wages and living conditions.

The alleged labour injustices in Dubai have attracted the attention of various Human Rights groups, which have tried to persuade the government to become a signatory to two of the International Labour Organization

International Labour Organization

The International Labour Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations that deals with labour issues pertaining to international labour standards. Its headquarters are in Geneva, Switzerland. Its secretariat — the people who are employed by it throughout the world — is known as the...

's 7 core conventions, which allows for the formation of labour unions. The Dubai government has denied any kind of labour injustices and has stated that the watchdog's (Human Rights Watch) accusations were misguided. Towards the end of March 2006, the government announced steps to allow construction unions. UAE labour minister Ali al-Kaabi said: "Labourers will be allowed to form unions."

Religious Freedom

Islam is the official religion in Dubai and thus traditional Islamic morality lays the foundation for the judicial system and its laws. A policy of religious toleration generally allows foreigners to practice their faith in a private residence or they can petition the government for a land grant and permission to build a religious institution to hold religious services, which may be a slow process http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/irf/2002/14017.htm.

A few Christian Churches and hospitals do exist, along with some facilities for Hindus, Sikhs and Bahai. Non-Muslim groups are generally allowed to meet and advertise their events, but the law prohibits and harshly punishes proselytizing http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/irf/2002/14017.htm. For more information see, Freedom of religion in the United Arab Emirates

Freedom of religion in the United Arab Emirates

The Constitution of the United Arab Emirates provides for freedom of religion in accordance with established customs, and the government generally respects this right in practice; however, there were some restrictions. The federal Constitution declares that Islam is the official religion of the...

Freedom of Expression

As is the case with religious freedom, Dubai does, in comparison to other nations in the region, extend a degree of toleration for freedom of expression. Sheikh Mohammed, Dubai’s Crown Prince, has made public speeches asserting that Dubai will remain committed to press freedom, international journalists are generally left alone and a new law was enacted that will protect journalists from imprisonment for doing their job http://gulfnews.com/news/gulf/uae/media/a-day-to-mark-freedom-of-press-1.89375. The Constitution of the United Arab Emirates guarantee freedom of opinion, press and expression within the limits of the law.

However, human rights groups have expressed concerns about freedom of expression in Dubai, which is often limited by enacted laws or Ministerial edicts in the name of protecting traditional Islamic morality or the image and reputation of Dubai and its leaders.

In 2007, the Dubai government shut down two Pakistani based television channels, Geo News

GEO News

Geo News is a Karachi-based Pakistani news channel, fully owned and operated by Jang Group. The channel started its broadcasting in November 2005 and has millions of Urdu-language viewers around the world.- Popular Shows :...

and Ary One. Their entertainment, but not news and political programming, were eventually permitted to broadcast in Dubai http://www.anhri.net/en/reports/2007/pr1127.shtml.

The Dubai Ministry of Culture and Media banned the exhibition of a play, "Kholkhal", just hours before it was scheduled to be performed at the 8th annual Gulf Theater Festival http://www.anhri.net/en/reports/2007/pr1127.shtml.

While journalists can no longer be jailed for doing their job, other legal actions can be taken against them. Several members of the Dubai press remain on a government list as being banned from being published within the Emirate. There is also reportedly a degree of self-censorship that occurs, for fear of governmental sanctions, of certain certain topics that are critical of government policy, the royal family, or may offend traditional Islamic morality http://www.anhri.net/en/reports/2007/pr1127.shtml.

For more information see, Emirates Discussion Forum

Emirates Discussion Forum

The Emirates Discussion Forum , or simply uaehewar.net, is an internet forum focusing on the affairs of the United Arab Emirates...

Women's Rights

The Constitution of the United Arab Emirates stipulates equal rights for women in certain areas of society, such as legal status, claiming of titles, and access to education and Dubai does allow for the creation of social and charitable organizations for women, although they must avoid overt political advocacy.

A growing number of women are in the public and private sector workforce and women are also allowed to serve in the Dubai military. In Dubai women are eligible to vote and hold public office http://ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=37105, with the government setting aside certain seats for female representation.

For more information see, Women in the United Arab Emirates

Women in the United Arab Emirates

The role of women in the United Arab Emirates has advanced greatly in recent years, making the UAE a leader in women's rights in the Arab world. Though there were few opportunities for women outside the home before 1960, the discovery of oil led to advancement in women's position...

LGBT rights

In keeping with traditional Islamic morality, both Federal and Emirate law prohibit homosexuality

Homosexuality

Homosexuality is romantic or sexual attraction or behavior between members of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality refers to "an enduring pattern of or disposition to experience sexual, affectional, or romantic attractions" primarily or exclusively to people of the same...

and cross-dressing

Cross-dressing

Cross-dressing is the wearing of clothing and other accoutrement commonly associated with a gender within a particular society that is seen as different than the one usually presented by the dresser...

with punishment ranging from long prison sentences, deportation, for foreigners, and the death penalty. No nightclub exists for LGBT patrons and no political organization is allowed to advocate for LGBT rights. For more information see, LGBT rights in the United Arab Emirates.

Commercial Sex Workers

Heterosexual Prostitution

Prostitution

Prostitution is the act or practice of providing sexual services to another person in return for payment. The person who receives payment for sexual services is called a prostitute and the person who receives such services is known by a multitude of terms, including a "john". Prostitution is one of...

, though illegal by law, is conspicuously present in the emirate because of an economy that is largely based on tourism and trade. Research conducted by the American Center for International Policy Studies (AMCIPS) found that women from the former USSR and Ethiopia

Ethiopia

Ethiopia , officially known as the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. It is the second-most populous nation in Africa, with over 82 million inhabitants, and the tenth-largest by area, occupying 1,100,000 km2...

n women are the most common prostitutes, as well as women from some African countries, while Indian prostitutes are part of a well organized trans-Oceanic

Oceania

Oceania is a region centered on the islands of the tropical Pacific Ocean. Conceptions of what constitutes Oceania range from the coral atolls and volcanic islands of the South Pacific to the entire insular region between Asia and the Americas, including Australasia and the Malay Archipelago...

prostitution network. A 2007 PBS

Public Broadcasting Service

The Public Broadcasting Service is an American non-profit public broadcasting television network with 354 member TV stations in the United States which hold collective ownership. Its headquarters is in Arlington, Virginia....

documentary entitled Dubai: Night Secrets reported that prostitution in clubs is tolerated by authorities and many foreign women work there without being coerced, attracted by the money.

Zero tolerance drug policy

Drugs found in urine or blood testing count as "possession" under UAE law. Raymond Bingham, BBC's DJ Grooverider

Grooverider

Grooverider is a British drum and bass DJ.-Biography:Grooverider began his DJing at illegal raves and warehouse parties in the UK in the late 1980s, and rose to prominence with partner Fabio through his sets at nightclub nights such as 'Rage'. Grooverider was also on the London pirate radio...

, was sentenced to four years in prison after a pair of jeans in his luggage was found to contain just over 2 grams of marijuana. The Dubai authorities have been known to stop tourists on layovers at the airport and are now using extremely sensitive electronic detection equipment, including urine and blood screening, to search for traces of illegal substances. Keith Brown, a British national and father of three, was arrested on September 17, 2007 after authorities claim to have discovered a speck of cannabis on the bottom of one of his shoes. According to an article in the Daily Mail
Daily Mail
The Daily Mail is a British daily middle-market tabloid newspaper owned by the Daily Mail and General Trust. First published in 1896 by Lord Northcliffe, it is the United Kingdom's second biggest-selling daily newspaper after The Sun. Its sister paper The Mail on Sunday was launched in 1982...

, the alleged illegal substance was smaller than a grain of sugar - weighing approximately .003 grams. He has also been sentenced to four years in prison. Another UK citizen, Tracy Wilkinson, was arrested and accused of being a "drugs baroness" in 2005 after authorities found codeine

Codeine

Codeine or 3-methylmorphine is an opiate used for its analgesic, antitussive, and antidiarrheal properties...

in her blood. Wilkinson has a bad back and received an injection of codeine at a Dubai hospital. She ended up spending two months in a cell where she contracted dysentery

Dysentery

Dysentery is an inflammatory disorder of the intestine, especially of the colon, that results in severe diarrhea containing mucus and/or blood in the faeces with fever and abdominal pain. If left untreated, dysentery can be fatal.There are differences between dysentery and normal bloody diarrhoea...

, head lice

Head louse

The head louse is an obligate ectoparasite of humans. Head lice are wingless insects spending their entire life on human scalp and feeding exclusively on human blood...

and an infestation of flea

Flea

Flea is the common name for insects of the order Siphonaptera which are wingless insects with mouthparts adapted for piercing skin and sucking blood...

s before she was eventually released on bail. German television producer Cat Le-Huy was arrested in January 2008 for possessing a bottle of the over-the-counter hormone sleep aid Melatonin

Melatonin

Melatonin , also known chemically as N-acetyl-5-methoxytryptamine, is a naturally occurring compound found in animals, plants, and microbes...

. Authorities claimed that some dirt in Mr. Le-Huy's luggage was hashish

Hashish

Hashish is a cannabis preparation composed of compressed stalked resin glands, called trichomes, collected from the unfertilized buds of the cannabis plant. It contains the same active ingredients but in higher concentrations than unsifted buds or leaves...

. A Vancouver resident named Bert Tatham was arrested at Dubai International Airport returning home from Afghanistan

Afghanistan

Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...

(where he was ironically working with farmers to try to convince them not to grow poppies). The anti-narcotics officer was found to have two dead poppy bulbs and a tiny amount of hashish melted into the seams of one of his trouser pockets. After spending more than 10 months in prison, he was eventually pardoned by U.A.E. President H.H. Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan.

The 2007 censorship of two Pakistani satellite channels

On 16 November 2007 Tecom

Dubai Media City

Dubai Media City , part of Dubai Holding, is a tax-free zone within Dubai, United Arab Emirates. It has been built by the Dubai government to boost UAE's media foothold, and has become a regional hub for media organizations including news agencies, publishing, online media, advertising, production,...

stopped broadcast

Broadcast

Broadcast or Broadcasting may refer to:* Broadcasting, the transmission of audio and video signals* Broadcast, an individual television program or radio program* Broadcast , an English electronic music band...

of two major Pakistan

Pakistan

Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...

i satellite

Satellite

In the context of spaceflight, a satellite is an object which has been placed into orbit by human endeavour. Such objects are sometimes called artificial satellites to distinguish them from natural satellites such as the Moon....

news channels, uplinked from Dubai Media City

Dubai Media City

, which was initially marketed by Tecom under the tagline "Freedom to Create." The Dubai

Dubai

Dubai is a city and emirate in the United Arab Emirates . The emirate is located south of the Persian Gulf on the Arabian Peninsula and has the largest population with the second-largest land territory by area of all the emirates, after Abu Dhabi...

government

Government

Government refers to the legislators, administrators, and arbitrators in the administrative bureaucracy who control a state at a given time, and to the system of government by which they are organized...

had ordered Tecom to shut down the popular independent Pakistani news channels Geo News

GEO News

and ARY One World

ARY One World

ARY News is a Dubai-based Pakistani news channel launched in 26 September 2004. A bilingual news channel in English and Urdu, it is a part of the ARY Digital Network, which is a subsidiary of ARY Group. It has a large audience and one main competitor in Geo News...

on the demand of Pakistan's military regime led by General Pervez Musharraf

Pervez Musharraf

Pervez Musharraf , is a retired four-star general who served as the 13th Chief of Army Staff and tenth President of Pakistan as well as tenth Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee. Musharraf headed and led an administrative military government from October 1999 till August 2007. He ruled...

. This was implemented by du Samacom disabling their SDI

SDI

SDI may refer to:*SDI, also known as MDI, or Mini Dental Implants* SDI , a range of diesel engines by the Volkswagen Group for use in cars and vans* SDI a shoot 'em up by Sega* S.D.I...

& ASI

ASI

-Names:* ASI Solutions, an Australian IT company* Asi, a Russian name for the Ossetians* Asi, another name for the Orontes River* Asi language, a language spoken by Bantoanons from the island of Banton, Philippines...

streams. Later, policy makers in Dubai permitted these channels to air their entertainment programs, but news, current affairs and political analysis were forbidden. Although subsequently the conditions were removed, marked differences have since been observed in their coverage. This incident has had a serious impact on all organizations in the media city with Geo TV and ARY OneWorld considering relocation.

External links

Inside Dubai's labor camps- Picture gallery from The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...

of South Asian slave labor in Dubai
The dark side of Dubai - Article by Johann Hari
Johann Hari
Johann Hari is an award winning British journalist who has been a columnist at The Independent, the The Huffington Post, and contributed to several other publications. In 2011, Hari was accused of plagiarism; he subsequently was suspended from The Independent and surrendered his 2008 Orwell Prize...

on the racial discrimination against South Asian slave laborers in the region.

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