After putting up an $11 million Christmas tree, the Emirates Palace Hotel in Abu Dhabi apologized.
Oh, they're not taking it down or anything. But someone in the UAE apologized for doing something too extravagant.
Showing posts with label uae. Show all posts
Showing posts with label uae. Show all posts
Sunday, December 19, 2010
Friday, July 23, 2010
Random News Generator- Kuwait
The United States is far from the only country with controversy over what they teach in their schools, as witnessed today in the Random News Generator, which has landed on Kuwait.
And, unsurprisingly, it involves the prophet Mohammed... or at least, two of his companions, which are a point of contention among Sunni and Shiite Muslims. Among Sunni Muslims, the companions are highly regarded. Among Shiites, they are demonized.
The controversy is that Minister of Education Moudhi Humoud met with some Islamic studies teachers concerning questions about the companions on a 9th-grade final exam, telling them that they might want to skip over the questions, which have been seen as promoting a Sunni viewpoint, sparking outcry from Shiites.
For this, some Sunnis in the Kuwaiti parliament are calling for a 'grilling', which is a line of questioning that means pretty much what you think it means, and which usually ends in the emir pressuring the minister to step aside before the questioning gets too probing. They've had it in for Humoud ever since she arrived, dating back to when she was sworn in without a headscarf.
We'll have to wait to see how that goes. While we're here, we should check in on some previous RNG stories...
UAE: The trial of the 17 Indian foreign workers on death row has been adjourned to September 1st. This is the third such adjournment; all have been over matters of finding a good interpreter. The first two, on May 19 and June 16, were due to no interpreter being available; this one is due to the found interpreter not being accepted by the court.
Macedonia: No, they and Greece still haven't come to terms over their name, preventing them from ascending to the EU or NATO. As far as the Macedonian public is concerned, that is perfectly fine by them.
Peru: The deadline for Doe Run to restart operations at its infamously polluting La Oroya smelter, under environmental regulations imposed by the Peruvian government, is tomorrow, or else Peru will shut it down for good. So far, it's not open, and a last-ditch effort by Doe Run to settle with its various creditors fell through last night. That probably has sealed La Oroya's fate, but we'll check back and make it official.
And, unsurprisingly, it involves the prophet Mohammed... or at least, two of his companions, which are a point of contention among Sunni and Shiite Muslims. Among Sunni Muslims, the companions are highly regarded. Among Shiites, they are demonized.
The controversy is that Minister of Education Moudhi Humoud met with some Islamic studies teachers concerning questions about the companions on a 9th-grade final exam, telling them that they might want to skip over the questions, which have been seen as promoting a Sunni viewpoint, sparking outcry from Shiites.
For this, some Sunnis in the Kuwaiti parliament are calling for a 'grilling', which is a line of questioning that means pretty much what you think it means, and which usually ends in the emir pressuring the minister to step aside before the questioning gets too probing. They've had it in for Humoud ever since she arrived, dating back to when she was sworn in without a headscarf.
We'll have to wait to see how that goes. While we're here, we should check in on some previous RNG stories...
UAE: The trial of the 17 Indian foreign workers on death row has been adjourned to September 1st. This is the third such adjournment; all have been over matters of finding a good interpreter. The first two, on May 19 and June 16, were due to no interpreter being available; this one is due to the found interpreter not being accepted by the court.
Macedonia: No, they and Greece still haven't come to terms over their name, preventing them from ascending to the EU or NATO. As far as the Macedonian public is concerned, that is perfectly fine by them.
Peru: The deadline for Doe Run to restart operations at its infamously polluting La Oroya smelter, under environmental regulations imposed by the Peruvian government, is tomorrow, or else Peru will shut it down for good. So far, it's not open, and a last-ditch effort by Doe Run to settle with its various creditors fell through last night. That probably has sealed La Oroya's fate, but we'll check back and make it official.
Sunday, May 23, 2010
RNG Update
Main computer's still in the shop. Still. So, we might as well get an update on some of our previous stories covered in the Random News Generator, linking to the original coverage of each story...
UAE: The court hearing of the 17 Indian nationals accused in the death of a Pakistani in Sharjah has been adjourned to June 16, after allowing them access to a Punjabi translator.
Nepal: Jordon Romero summitted Mount Everest yesterday, becoming the youngest person to do so. However, as Nepal wouldn't give him permission to climb on Nepalese territory due to his age, Romero did it from China, which doesn't care about age.
In December, he plans to climb Antarctica's highest peak, Mount Vinson, which would give him the highest peaks of all seven continents.
Macedonia: It's still called the Republic of Macedonia. Greece is still displeased. A whole lot of nothing has actually gotten done.
UAE: The court hearing of the 17 Indian nationals accused in the death of a Pakistani in Sharjah has been adjourned to June 16, after allowing them access to a Punjabi translator.
Nepal: Jordon Romero summitted Mount Everest yesterday, becoming the youngest person to do so. However, as Nepal wouldn't give him permission to climb on Nepalese territory due to his age, Romero did it from China, which doesn't care about age.
In December, he plans to climb Antarctica's highest peak, Mount Vinson, which would give him the highest peaks of all seven continents.
Macedonia: It's still called the Republic of Macedonia. Greece is still displeased. A whole lot of nothing has actually gotten done.
Thursday, April 22, 2010
Sharjah Update
It's high time to give an update on an earlier story covered here concerning 17 Indian workers in Sharjah, UAE facing the death penalty for the death of a Pakistani. When we last left off, the condemned were awaiting an appeal to be filed by their home nation.
That appeal has been filed, and as it happens, the Indian government will pick up the legal tab.
That's not all that's happened since we last checked in. The group Lawyers for Human Rights International made a visit to the condemned, and they allege torture. Quoting from India Blooms:
That appeal has been filed, and as it happens, the Indian government will pick up the legal tab.
That's not all that's happened since we last checked in. The group Lawyers for Human Rights International made a visit to the condemned, and they allege torture. Quoting from India Blooms:
LFHRI said the prisoners reported that none of them was arrested from the spot [the act was committed in 2008; the prisoners have been incarcerated for nine months] and on their arrest they were brutally tortured by giving beatings to them for continuous 9 days by police men of CID branch [Criminal Investigation Department].I'll keep you posted.
They were beaten with Golf clubs & plastic pipes and were also given electric shocks. They were made to stand on one foot and not allowed to sleep and asked to make confessions to the crime, which as per their version they never committed," Navkiran Singh, who is LFHRI general secretary, told IBNS [India Blooms News Service].
However in spite of brutal torture, they never confessed. Some of these prisoners also showed their injuries received by them in the police interrogation and also disclosed that the said injuries are contained in their medical reports, said Singh, who visited the prisoners in the jail.
Friday, April 2, 2010
Random News Generator- UAE
Let's try something new today. I have a list of countries, territories and whatnot. It numbers 230. I'm going to have a number randomly chosen, and then we'll cover a piece of news from that location. If context must be provided, so be it.
I introduce the Random News Generator, which today lands on... the United Arab Emirates.
And for that, off to Jalandhar, where 17 Indian nationals have been sentenced to death for the murder of a Pakistani during a fight and are currently asking for- and recieving- assistance from the Indian Prime Minister, Manmohan Singh, and Muslim religious leaders. As it stands, 11 days remain to file a formal appeal, though nothing can be done until at least Sunday due to a bereavement in the Indian royal family. The 17, 16 of them from the state of Punjab, maintain their innocence.
According to the accusation, these 17 were part of a metal bar-wielding mob, fighting for control of a liquor business in January 2009. They are also accused of selling some of that liquor in and around Al-Sajaa, a local labor camp. In the emirate of Sharjah, where this happened, liquor is illegal and sharia law is in effect.
According to one of the group, Aravinder Singh, ""We don't know anything about the fight. We just used to work in Dubai as labourers for whatever little we got. At 2:30 in the night police arrested us and asked us to sit silent. After 3 days in jail, we were told of the case against us. When we said that we haven't committed the crime, they asked us to remain silent. I was kept with my brother with 7 days and then separated. I was told that I have been sentenced for 3 months and then I will be sent to India,"
Foreign workers in the UAE have few rights. There are so many foreign workers that Arab nationals make up only 16.5% of the population; in Dubai, the number is only 5%. Locals feel their culture threatened by the massive numbers of foreigners, both workers and tourists, coming to the UAE. This case comes amid a growing push to reclaim cultural control.
The workers are attracted to the UAE on the promise of an easy life, a tolerant nation, great weather, and the proximity of wealth. But once there, they often find themselves having been lied to. Forced to sign on much worse terms than promised, workers are underpaid- if paid at all- in debt via recruiting fees, and unable to speak or read the language, become citizens, form unions, strike, obtain quality healthcare, or even quit, as their passports have been taken by their employer. Steps have been taken to improve the situation, but the measures are small, such as a booklet handed out to workers to inform them of the rights they do have.
We'll see how it turns out for the 17.
I introduce the Random News Generator, which today lands on... the United Arab Emirates.
And for that, off to Jalandhar, where 17 Indian nationals have been sentenced to death for the murder of a Pakistani during a fight and are currently asking for- and recieving- assistance from the Indian Prime Minister, Manmohan Singh, and Muslim religious leaders. As it stands, 11 days remain to file a formal appeal, though nothing can be done until at least Sunday due to a bereavement in the Indian royal family. The 17, 16 of them from the state of Punjab, maintain their innocence.
According to the accusation, these 17 were part of a metal bar-wielding mob, fighting for control of a liquor business in January 2009. They are also accused of selling some of that liquor in and around Al-Sajaa, a local labor camp. In the emirate of Sharjah, where this happened, liquor is illegal and sharia law is in effect.
According to one of the group, Aravinder Singh, ""We don't know anything about the fight. We just used to work in Dubai as labourers for whatever little we got. At 2:30 in the night police arrested us and asked us to sit silent. After 3 days in jail, we were told of the case against us. When we said that we haven't committed the crime, they asked us to remain silent. I was kept with my brother with 7 days and then separated. I was told that I have been sentenced for 3 months and then I will be sent to India,"
Foreign workers in the UAE have few rights. There are so many foreign workers that Arab nationals make up only 16.5% of the population; in Dubai, the number is only 5%. Locals feel their culture threatened by the massive numbers of foreigners, both workers and tourists, coming to the UAE. This case comes amid a growing push to reclaim cultural control.
The workers are attracted to the UAE on the promise of an easy life, a tolerant nation, great weather, and the proximity of wealth. But once there, they often find themselves having been lied to. Forced to sign on much worse terms than promised, workers are underpaid- if paid at all- in debt via recruiting fees, and unable to speak or read the language, become citizens, form unions, strike, obtain quality healthcare, or even quit, as their passports have been taken by their employer. Steps have been taken to improve the situation, but the measures are small, such as a booklet handed out to workers to inform them of the rights they do have.
We'll see how it turns out for the 17.
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