D A I J I W O R L D

August 5, 2006

In a land where your eyes feast on sand dunes and extensive desert sands, one cannot imagine the existence of a western cowboy. Yet the same is true in Sharjah, one of the seven Emirates of the UAE.

For the Sharjah residents he is a well know person. Come rain, mist, winter or merciless sunshine, the ever familiar figure of a man with military trousers, a heavy coat over a layer of a shirt and a sweater , a cap on his balding head and his little personal belongings in a discarded supermarket trolley is true of the DESERT COWBOY.

He resembles Charlie Chaplin playing the Tramp. Nobody actually knows his real name. But to the residents, he is simply known as COWBOY. Given a first glance, one can brush him off as a rare vagabond in the UAE. But he has the distinction of assisting the Sharjah Police in directing traffic during peak hours, helps in as day-time security for selective buildings and also teaches little children Arabic. This cowboy, however, has a remarkable story.

Abdul Rahman Mohammed Alban, being is actual name, hails from Aden, the then prosperous port city of present day Yemen. He found his way into the desert land of the UAE back in 1968. Both Yemen and the Emirates were British Colonies then. Hence he was brought by a benevolent British family to Dubai as a domestic help.

Although his official records given by the British say he was born in 1961, his look suggests that he is well over sixty years of age. Abdul Rahman was born in a remote hamlet of Yemen know as Lahaj, far from the city of Aden. As his name suggests, he belonged to the ferocious Alban tribe. Tragically, there was a fierce flood in which his family perished. He was picked up by the British relief workers and taken to Aden where he lived in the shelter. He cannot even recall who his parents were nor does he remember his siblings. All he remembers is that his parents were very poor. He remembers surviving only on bananas as he had no food to eat.

Once he reached Dubai, Abdul Rahman was given a job in an American school where he taught handicraft to the children. He still continued to loyally serve the British family who had brought him out of Aden, helping them with gardening and other household cores. It was there that he started wearing his charasteric dress of a tramp and was nicknamed Cowboy, a name which still remains even after forty years.

Sometimes the then British intelligence used his vagrant looks to act as a watchdog on people getting in KHAT (a type of drug) from Yemen on camels. He looked so shabby and dirty that no drug peddler ever suspected him.

Somewhere down the line, the cowboy had a slice of goodness. He was engaged to an American lady and was married to her in the Church. Unfortunately, it did not last long. This uneducated, poor, stateless cowboy did not stand match to other bright young men of his time. His lady love finally decided to marry an engineer from the United States. He had to divorce her. Ever since, he never contemplated marriage.

Years passed and the British family of which he was very much a part of, dispersed. The United Arab Emirates was formed. Abdul Rahman’s services were no longer needed at the American school. Once again, in his middle age, he was an orphan. Not knowing what to do, he moved to Sharjah. He had no work, no place to stay and no documents on himself. But he had saved all the money he had earned in the twenty years that he worked in school, that summed up to 19,000 dihrams. Since everybody considered him an ordinary , dirty looking, poorly dressed tramp, nobody suspected that he had in his pocket , that huge amount of money.

Considering his plight, he was finally given shelter by a company owned by His Excellency Sheikh Sultan Al Qasami, of Sharjah. He spent the nights in the company yard. Since Abdul Rahman lived in extreme weather conditions in Yemen, he could survive the merciless heat of the UAE and the bitter cold of winter. He did odd jobs to different godfathers who came to his help when he most needed them. He lived in sheds, terraces and backyards. His honesty saw him through difficult moments.

But the hands of law did not make it easy for the Cowboy. UAE has one of the toughest labor and Immigration laws. He was picked up by the Federal authorities and was kept in a lock up. Since he did not have a passport or any valid document to prove his authenticity, Abdul Rahman was in deep trouble. Once again, his kind ex-employer at the American School pleaded his case. At the behest of Sheikh Sultan he was released along with a letter of recommendation that he could stay in the country since he had arrived a long time before the formation of the UAE as a country. This kind gesture gave him a life-long guarantee to stay in the UAE without a visa and passport. He used his saved up money to open a fixed deposit and get himself a health card, a pre-requisite for any expatriate in the UAE.

He then plunged into offering his services anywhere necessary. He started assisting the Sharjah Police in directing chaotic Sharjah traffic during peak hours and public parking places. He ran errands at offices and also kept an eye on buildings (Tawari) during the compulsory afternoon break of the UAE.

Abdul Rahman is in no need of any extra money. He has fixed benefactors who give him small amounts of money which he uses only for taxi fare. Since he is known everywhere, every hotel that he goes to eat does not charge him for the food he eats. He can even enter a cinema hall and watch an Indian film without having to pay. He also gives tuitions in Arabic to small children but does not charge any fee. Not having an opportunity to go to school ever in his life, Abdul Rahman learnt to read and write Arabic with a help of a kind Sudanese gentleman. He later learnt to speak Hindi, Urdu and English.

Abdul Rahman , as the name suggests, is a Muslim. He says he comes from a tradition where they pray the Holy Qaran with their hearts and minds. ( Maulanas ) He refers himself as a mystic who can pray for you and give you solace when you are in danger, difficulty or dejected. He recalls having helped many people only my reciting their name to God and their problems have been solved.

Age and poor health finally has caught up on this dynamic desert cowboy. Years of eating spicy Indian food ultimately led him to develop acute ulcers. Abdul Rahman had to slow down and could not do his duties any more.

The desert cowboy has a great regard for Indians. He recalls the big Indian business community in Aden who were driven out during the civil war. He says his country would have been 10 times more prosperous if they were still there. He praises Christians and Hindus alike. He never forgets all the Christians and Hindus who had helped him when he had nowhere else to go.

The desert cowboy has no future plans. He serves people and people help him. He is honest and people trust him. He believes in god and has a great sense of duty. He is retired but is ready to help anyone who needs him. He stands no match to the desert fox Omar Muktar or Lawrence of Arabia but Abdul Rahman will always remain Sharjah’s DESERT COWBOY.

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