NEWS FROM THE UAE
SOURCE : THE NATIONAL
UAE urges united front against human trafficking
UAE - MAR 01: The head of the UAE’s efforts to eradicate human trafficking has called on the Gulf states to unify and prove they are prepared to stamp out the illegal trade.
Dr Anwar Gargash, the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs and the chairman of the UAE National Committee to Combat Trafficking, said the country was at the forefront of regional measures to tackle the issue.
But he stressed that a unified effort was “essential to combating this crime”.
He said: “It is important to show to the whole world that the Arab region is serious in combating human trafficking, and many efforts are being made to obtain this objective.”
His statement yesterday, after an anti-trafficking training course for police and prosecutors in Dubai, followed a UN report that examined the region’s efforts to deal with the problem. Only the UAE, Bahrain and Oman had a comprehensive legal framework to prosecute people traffickers, it said.
The Global Report on Trafficking Persons, released last month, criticised Saudi Arabia and Iran in particular for refusing to share information about the extent of the problem or to take proper measures to deal with it.
It noted that 150 officers were assigned to tackle trafficking in the UAE, where South Asian men make up more than half the convicted offenders. But most victims in this country were women from Uzbekistan, Moldavia and South Asia who had been forced into prostitution, it said.
Yesterday, Dr Gargash said that human trafficking was against Islam and the heritage and ethics of UAE society.
As part of the UAE’s efforts to tackle the problem, it had sought international expertise from the Geneva-based International Organisation for Migration (IOM), he added.
The IOM, which has 125 member states, promotes humane migration and provides services and advice to governments and migrants. It has been working with the UAE to train law enforcement officers to help catch the traffickers.
Dr Gargash said the UAE was toughening its stance on the crime, as demonstrated by the recent establishment of a dedicated anti-trafficking department within the Dubai police.
During the IOM training sessions, which were held late last week, about 25 UAE prosecutors, police and officials representing migrant shelters analysed case studies and learnt interview techniques as well as how to identify potential trafficking victims. The training included role playing and tutorials on methods for prosecuting cases, as well as a review of the national trafficking law, Federal Law 51.
The legislation, enacted in 2006, includes a maximum Dh1 million (US$272,000) fine for offenders and possible life imprisonment.
The UAE officials were also expected to help develop a UAE-specific model for investigations.
Richard Danziger, the head of IOM’s Counter Trafficking Division, chaired the workshop and praised the UAE for its interest in learning international best practice for fighting human trafficking. He said the IOM was considering continuing its tutorials for officials on specific aspects of preventing and prosecuting such crimes.
According to the UN’s report on trafficking, which was funded partly by a $15 million donation from Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed, the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, there were 26 convictions for the crime in the UAE in 2005-2006.
Last month, police raids have led to four men being sentenced to five years in prison for running a Deira brothel.
In a separate case in Al Muraqabat, three men were arrested for allegedly forcing four women into prostitution.
Dr Gargash has said previously that the UAE has already achieved “key successes” in fighting trafficking “in a short space of time”, pointing out that the US state department’s annual Trafficking in Persons Report has upgraded the country over its efforts to comply with international standards.
The report recommended that the UAE boost law enforcement efforts to “identify, prosecute and punish acts of sex trafficking” and also increase protection services for victims, especially those in forced labour.
It also noted that the Government had improved training on anti-trafficking methods, opened a shelter for victims, started compensating former child camel jockeys and increased prosecutions, convictions and sentences for sex-trafficking offenders.
However, the US state department’s 2008 Human Rights Report, released last week, noted that “trafficking continued to be a serious problem” and that the country remained a transit point for women being trafficked into Oman and men into Iraq.
Earlier this month, the UAE and Thailand signed a draft security agreement to co-operate on tackling human trafficking, as well as illegal drugs and organised crime.
Last year, Belarus offered to help train UAE officials to fight the growing problem.
The Ministry of Interior, meanwhile, is making preparations to open a centre for human rights in the UAE, Al Ittihad newspaper has reported.
According to a source from the ministry, the centre will act a base for human rights workers and campaign to protect human rights and ensure national and international legislation is followed, the newspaper said.
Freak weather spoils weekend plans
UAE - MAR 01: Sandstorms and record high temperatures disrupted the activities of residents across the emirates over the weekend. The temperature in Dubai reached 37°C, the highest for the month of February since record-keeping began in 1974, and the sandstorms greatly reduced visibility.
“I did not have to work today but it did ruin my plans of having a relaxing weekend by the pool at the Hiltonia,” said Stuart Davies, a banker in Abu Dhabi.
Winds were expected to pick up again last night, bringing with them the possibility of sandstorms today and possibly beyond.
Ahmad Ayoub, a mechanical engineer with Abu Dhabi Company for Onshore Oil Operations, said: “Normally when it is like this, we stop all work activity outside. We wait a couple of hours in the morning because if it is either foggy or sandy you can’t operate machinery. So we wait for the sun to come out to clear fog, but sandstorms are more tricky.”
He said it was dangerous to travel through the desert in a sandstorm because there were no sand tracks. When the weather is good, there were always tracks to follow. “But during a sandstorm, after a while the sand tracks change and people get lost and then they get stuck.”
Visibility was down to 800 metres in the capital, and two kilometres in Al Ain and Sharjah. In Jebel Ali, the worst-hit area, visibility was as low as 300 metres. “Ras al Khaimah is clear but they may get some dust eventually,” said Clive Stevens, a forecaster at the Dubai Meteorological Office.
“Visibility in Dubai started to deteriorate at between 8 and 9am this morning,” he said. “The reported visibility is 700 metres.”
By early morning yesterday, south-easterly winds had picked up in Abu Dhabi, travelling through the desert and bringing clouds of dust.
They were expected to have lessened in strength and changed direction by today.
“Visibility will improve but not much over the week,” said Dr S K Gupta, another forecaster.
He said winds were gusting up to 30 knots (55kph) on Saturday in Abu Dhabi and 35 knots in Jebel Ali.
“If you look at cities such as Sharjah, Dubai and Abu Dhabi, they are all coastal cities, but Jebel Ali is inland and in the middle of an open desert, so we always record different and more severe conditions there.” Cooler winds, dusty conditions and low visibility will further dominate the weather this week, forecasters said, saying that daytime temperatures would probably fall by around 10 degrees.
Low visibility, strong winds and rough seas are expected on Monday and Tuesday, with 50-foot waves forecast.
Andy Davis, a Jumeirah Beach resident, was among those whose weekend plans were spoilt.
“Usually on a clear day I can see the Atlantis,” he said from his apartment balcony that overlooks the sea. Today it’s a sandy horizon.”
Mr Davis was entertaining guests from Abu Dhabi.
“Some friends came to go to the beach but now we are staying in and playing video games instead,” he said. “The sand has destroyed my weekend.”
“Ras al Khaimah is clear but they may get some dust eventually,” said Clive Stevens, a forecaster at the Dubai Meteorological Office.
“Visibility in Dubai started to deteriorate at between 8 and 9am this morning,” he said. “The reported visibility is 700 metres.”
By early morning yesterday, south-easterly winds had picked up in Abu Dhabi, travelling through the desert and bringing clouds of dust.
They were expected to have lessened in strength and changed direction by today.
“Visibility will improve but not much over the week,” said Dr S K Gupta, another forecaster.
He said winds were gusting up to 30 knots (55kph) on Saturday in Abu Dhabi and 35 knots in Jebel Ali.
“If you look at cities such as Sharjah, Dubai and Abu Dhabi, they are all coastal cities, but Jebel Ali is inland and in the middle of an open desert, so we always record different and more severe conditions there.” Cooler winds, dusty conditions and low visibility will further dominate the weather this week, forecasters said, saying that daytime temperatures would probably fall by around 10 degrees.
Low visibility, strong winds and rough seas are expected on Monday and Tuesday, with 50-foot waves forecast.
Andy Davis, a Jumeirah Beach resident, was among those whose weekend plans were spoilt.
“Usually on a clear day I can see the Atlantis,” he said from his apartment balcony that overlooks the sea.
“Today it’s a sandy horizon.”
Mr Davis was entertaining guests from Abu Dhabi.
“Some friends came to go to the beach but now we are staying in and playing video games instead,” he said.
“The sand has destroyed my weekend.”
Bad drivers back to school
DUBAI - MAR. 01: Drivers caught breaking the law are being offered remedial lessons in private to save them from embarrassment.
The tutorials will give offenders a chance to remove up to eight black points from their licences; the penalty system was launched a year ago today by Dubai Police. Officials say the classes will be established by the end of this month.
Faisal al Qasim, head of the Dubai Police Traffic Institute, said three main subjects will be taught to all offenders but each will have to take lessons aimed at their individual violation.
“It’s like college – there are prerequisite subjects that everyone has to take and then each will be treated according to their violation.
“We aim to offer private lessons so that it won’t be embarrassing for people,” he said.
Drivers will take classes once or twice a week, or until it is determined that they have learnt from their mistakes, said Mr al Qasim.
“How long an individual takes the lessons depends on the case. We want to see that they have responded and have changed and understood and realised their actions,” he said.
The three main subjects covered will be federal traffic law, safe driving, and the dangers of speeding.
In addition, the institute will provide counselling by certified psychologists to drivers who suffer from road rage or frustration.
“Counsellors will offer advice and tips on how they can calm themselves down through listening to music or Quran, for instance, and accept that traffic congestion exists all around the world,” Mr al Qasim said.
The programme will also tackle those drivers who have accumulated more than 24 black points, although they face harsher punishments, such as having their licences withdrawn and/or having their cars impounded.
For those offenders, lessons will not mean having their black points deducted and they will have to pass an extensive driving exam to have their licences reissued.
“The system is designed to delete a maximum of eight points and so any traffic violation which racks more than that, for example 12 points, will not receive any deduction,” Mr al Qasim added.
Grey days for Etisalat as iPhones sold at cheap rates
DUBAI - MAR 01: Grey-market electronics vendors are continuing to sell Apple iPhones despite the official launch of the handsets by Etisalat in the UAE.
At dozens of grey-market electronics shops, salesmen said iPhone prices had fallen sharply over the past few months, not only because of a falling demand for expensive phones, but also because the vendors hope to undersell some of the eight iPhone packages offered by Etisalat.
Etisalat last week became the country’s first official provider of the iPhone, a touch-screen device using third-generation technology, known as 3G.
The phone was introduced by Apple in 2007 and until now had been available in the UAE only from unauthorised vendors who, many believe, imported them illegally from places such as Italy and Hong Kong.
Etisalat charges Dh3,090 for an unlocked 16-gigabyte phone, while the average grey-market price is Dh2,400, down from Dh4,000 a few months ago. For the 8GB model, the grey-market prices are around Dh500 lower than the Dh2,646 charged by Etisalat.
Phones purchased together with an Etisalat monthly service contract can cost much less, or even nothing at all. But there are steep fees for breaking a contract.
Since Etisalat is selling the iPhone unlocked, it is allowing customers to switch to the du network and international operators.
There is some confusion, however, over whether Etisalat is officially allowing owners of the iPhones purchased legally abroad, or on the grey market here, to sign up for Etisalat’s special iPhone packages without buying a new handset.
Some customer service representatives at the company say yes, but an agent at the Virgin Megastore in the Abu Dhabi Mall said no.
In an e-mail statement, Etisalat said only that it “encourages its customers to purchase the iPhone through the right channels to benefit from the warranties and latest updates while also avoiding the risk of losing data”. The company said it lacked the jurisdiction to “impose restrictions on imports” and that the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority should be contacted about the issue.
When The National contacted the TRA, no-one would talk about it.
A salesman at MixMax Trading, a small electronics store, predicted that lower grey-market prices, and the fact that non-iPhone service plans can still be used with the iPhone, would probably discourage some customers from buying the device from Etisalat.
“The Etisalat package has a warranty, so a lot of people might find that it’s safer to pay more for the services,” the salesman conceded.
“But it’s expensive, and there are the monthly charges involved with the service, so that might not make people want to buy from Etisalat.”
A salesman at Watch and Talk, another boutique electronics store, agreed. “When you buy here, or at any of the dealers around here, you can use the phone in the UAE or in any country you want,” he said. “So it’s easier to use.”
Some predicted that grey-market prices would fall even further as the economic downturn gears customer preferences towards less expensive phones. Several noticed sales spikes in the Nokia 5800, a 3G phone with features similar to those on the iPhone.
“When demand for less expensive phones grows because people have less money, of course you’ll see people buying cheaper phones,” said Rady Cn, a salesman at Union Electronics Trading. “I mean, some Nokia phones cost as little as Dh90.”
Mr Cn said the associated perks and security of buying into an Etisalat iPhone package could conceivably lure customers away from the grey market and thereby affect prices.
“I think in general you could see iPhone prices fall even more in the grey market, because there aren’t any warranty offers and benefits,” he said.