The following article was written about Qatar, but if you change the name to UAE, it is a perfect desription of the enviorment where I live. Qatar was originally supposed to me one of the Emirates, but elected to form their own country instead in the early 1970's


http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/from_our_own_correspondent/7981478.stm
 

The United Arab Emirates has about 4 million people. Less than a million of those are citizens (Nationals or Emiratis) of the country. The rest are expats who are brought in to do the work. Emiratis will not do the lower end work such as cleaning, labour, or even the higher skilled trades such as mechanics, carpentry, plumbing. They have not yet developed the skills to do the high end skilled work,such as medicine, post secondary teaching, etc. Therefore all of these jobs are contracted out to foreigners. I am one of them.
 

Reading the local papers, you would think that the world economic crisis has had not effect on this rich country - especially the city of Dubai. However, actual data would contradict that.

Enormous rents and property prices have dropped 35% since their peak last year and are expected to drop by another 20% this year. At one point, the UAE was cancelling 1500 work visa each day due to people leaving. Many construction projects have been stopped mid stream and workers are being laid off and sent home.

Many expat workers who are laid off cannot dispose of their possessions quickly and are just leaving them. Hundreds of cars are left at the airport each week with the keys in them and a note saying "sorry".

Fortunately the slowdown has not hit the post secondary education system, where I work.
 

Jebel means mountain in Arabic. Jebel Haffet, just outside Al Ain, rises to 4000 feet (over 1200 meters) above the desert floor. There is a beautiful three lane highway that leads to The Mercure, a five-star hotel and on to the palace of Shaikh Kalifa, President of the UAE and then to the summit where you can overlook the desert. Total distance about 12 kilometers (8 miles) - at an average 8% grade. Every week, twice some weeks, I ride my racing bike from the base to the hotel - about 9km. I then run the remaining 3km to the peak. It's all part of my triathlon training. It's paradise.
 

The city where I live. It is about 150km (90 miles) from Dubai in the UAE. The only major city in the UAE that is not on the coast. We are in the middle of the desert. The name Al Ain is Arabic for somethng like "oasis". Al Ain is the Garden City of country. It is lush green with date palms, other trees and lots of flowers and grass. It is all maintained by irrigation from the waters in the Arabian (Persian) Gulf and thousands of Asian expat workers.
 

Emiratis target 'masculine women'
Magdi Abdelhadi
BBC Arab affairs analyst


The UAE government has launched a campaign against what it describes as masculine behaviour among women.

Under the slogan "excuse me I am a girl", it has launched a series of workshops, lectures and TV programmes.

The aim, the UAE authorities say, is to help women avoid what is seen as "delinquent behaviour".

That is how the social affairs ministry in the emirates describes what would in some other societies be known as homosexuality or transvestitism.

Officials from the ministry told the local press that "masculine behaviour" among young girls was first spotted in special care homes.

There were no studies available that describe the extent of the phenomenon in the rest of the Emirati society, they said, but it is believed to be common in girls' schools.

A social worker in charge of the campaign, Awatef al-Rayyes, was quoted as saying that this kind of behaviour could be attributed to a number of causes including the unfair treatment of wives by their husbands and lack of mixing between the sexes.

This, she said, could lead to girls feeling more secure in the company of other girls and some may adopt the male role by having their hair cut short or by putting on a man's voice.

Officially, Arab societies view heterosexuality as the publicly accepted norm, and all other forms of sexuality or sexual conduct are regarded as deviant or abnormal.

However, homosexuality is believed to be common.

Attitudes to lesbians and gay men vary from one country to another: in some, they are tolerated, albeit, grudgingly, and in others persecuted or even prosecuted.


http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7940501.stm

 

No dancing in public in Dubai: report
Date: 3/14/2009 10:17:00 PM


Playing loud music, dancing, nudity, kissing and even holding hands in public is considered inappropriate behaviour under new guidelines laid down by the authorities of Dubai, a report said Saturday.
Arabic-language daily Al Emarat Al-Youm said the Dubai Executive Council had urged residents of Dubai, where foreigners make up more than 80 percent of the population, to respect the customs of the Muslim majority country and avoid inappropriate behaviour.
The rules, which apply to all public places, include a ban on all forms of nudity, playing music loudly and dancing, exchange of kisses between men and women -- and even on unmarried couples holding hands.
Any breach of the guidelines, by nationals or expatriates, carries a possible prison penalty, the paper said.
The guidelines also stipulate that anyone caught under the influence of alcohol -- even small amounts -- outside designated drinking areas is liable to being fined or imprisoned, the paper added.
Dubai, a member of the seven-emirate United Arab Emirates, has a diverse culture as it is home to a foreign population made up mainly of low-skilled workers from Asia and Western professionals.
Unlike most of its neighbours in the conservative Gulf region, the emirate tolerates a relatively relaxed dress code and hosts dozens of hotels that have bars and clubs, where alcohol is legally served.
However, a series of incidents, including crackdowns on cross dressers and the expulsion of two British expats found guilty of having sex on the beach, has thrown into the limelight the sometimes clashing local and foreign cultures.