British TV to 'expose' Dubai !

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sasherwani2

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Even though I am not a big supporter of the way Dubai handled the boom or the crash and the way Dubai treated its investors, I do not support the British media either which is using cheap tactics just because Dubai took away a lot of their skilled labourforce and tourism. The British media needs to show a lot more maturity than this.
 
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naxal

New Member
........... But I'm on the Brirtsh side ! :rolleyes: ;) ........ LOL
 
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Happy hammer

New Member
SLUMDOGS AND MILLIONAIRES!

Sums it up pretty well - 12 hours a day, 6 days a week for £120 per month with overtime at 30p an hour. Living in piss and sh**, 8 men to a cell (oops i mean room) and nothing to eat except bread, rice and water.

Now what does that remind you of?

Clue- second world war, man with a funny moustache?

The people responsible for this in Dubai should be ashamed!!!!!!!!!!!!
 
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Wannaberich

New Member
SLUMDOGS AND MILLIONAIRES!

Sums it up pretty well - 12 hours a day, 6 days a week for £120 per month with overtime at 30p an hour. Living in piss and sh**, 8 men to a cell (oops i mean room) and nothing to eat except bread, rice and water.

Now what does that remind you of?

Clue- second world war, man with a funny moustache?

The people responsible for this in Dubai should be ashamed!!!!!!!!!!!!
load of bollocks
 
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patience

New Member
Ahh good on the British for keeping it REAL after all it was a UK company they were ivestigating that happen to be in Dubai. I don't know what your so upset about.
 
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Pietman0_0

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SLUMDOGS AND MILLIONAIRES!

Sums it up pretty well - 12 hours a day, 6 days a week for £120 per month with overtime at 30p an hour. Living in piss and sh**, 8 men to a cell (oops i mean room) and nothing to eat except bread, rice and water.

Now what does that remind you of?

Clue- second world war, man with a funny moustache?

The people responsible for this in Dubai should be ashamed!!!!!!!!!!!!
Happy Hammer,

I am not the biggest fan of Dubai due to various personal reasons but this place is definitely not as you make it out to be. I work in construction and I have personally lived in the staff camps and seen the condition of certain labour camps. As a general rule contractors are obligated to provide labour with medical cover, transport to and from work and kitchen facilities. You will find most companies setting up their own canteen or hire a company to cook food, costing labour individuals a mere 50 pounds a month for three meals a day. The food is mainly asian cuisine. It consists of rice and curries. (Which by the way is brilliant) Briyani (Chicken or mutton, onions, curry, tomatoes and rice) is extremely popular. Served with Indian type bread. I do agree that some rooms do get cramped but generally you will find 2 or three guys sharing a room. These guys don’t live in 5 star accommodation like you and I might have experienced before. Comparing what they live in with what they have back home, it is undoubtedly a step towards luxury. Our company provides laundry services to labour (free of charge) which is extremely useful during summer when they work outside in the blazing sun. They get one free flight every two years back home. The average salary for labour is about 200 pounds but can go up to 500 pounds easily depending on the individual’s skill level. This figure does sound pretty low but please consider that all other living expense is covered and no tax is levied against the individual. Converting 500 pounds to Indian rupies (approximately 36,000 rupies) is a small fortune for any Indian back home.

The government places extreme emphasis on labour laws and protecting the health and safety of labour working on site. Summer months there is a compulsory 3 hour break during mid day to avoid over exhaustion. Any offenders (contractors found working during this time) may be fined or their trade licenses revoked.

Dubai is obviously not a perfect place. There are people extorting the prosperity which the country provides. A point worth noting is that Dubai is made up of hundreds of different nationalities. These nationalities run their own businesses and have their own policies. If a company’s policy varies from what is required by law in terms of labour requirements then you should rather target that particular company and not Dubai as a whole.
 
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heat_wave

New Member
Why doesn't British media focus on all the drugs, knife crime, shootings, unemployment and poor economy before shifting their focus elsewhere. Its just sounding more and more like they have their own motives for these documentaries and articles.
 
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Happy hammer

New Member
Pietman0_0

Thanks for your informative comments.

It's good to hear that not all of the labour camps are operated in the same way. However we have seen now that some are and that is not acceptable. I accept that Panorama have probably given a slightly biased view as they did not show any of the better run labour camps to balance things out but that was not the point of the programme. The point of the programme was to show that some of these people are having to live in appalling conditions. They have been lied to on numerous accounts and are now trapped in this awful situation. Due to the gagging policies of the Dubai government towards reporting or negative publicity, people are often not aware of the true situation and then it's much easier for them to turn a blind eye.

I'm also in no doubt that much of the blame rests with the developers, British or otherwise, but the bottom line is that the buck stops with the Dubai authorities. They are the body who need to enforce whatever rules there are to increase standards. It's only then that the rest of the world will believe the construction industry in Dubai is operating professionally. It's for this reason that i applaud this type of reporting and i hope that some good will come from it.

To those of you who are anti the truth, no doubt you have your reasons (probably financial),keep burying your head in all that sand. After all as long as your OK who cares about anyone else?
 
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sasherwani2

New Member
Just like one Joseph Fritzel doesnt represent the entire Austria, not all labour accomodations are as sorry as the British media portrays it to be. Thats called distorted newsreportaing using selective information. Grow up UK? Dubai has some serious issues but please you should be the last one to criticize Dubai. Whose your president anyway? Gordan Brown?
 
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patience

New Member
Just like one Joseph Fritzel doesnt represent the entire Austria, not all labour accomodations are as sorry as the British media portrays it to be. Thats called distorted newsreportaing using selective information. Grow up UK? Dubai has some serious issues but please you should be the last one to criticize Dubai. Whose your president anyway? Gordan Brown?

Actually, he's a Prime Minister.

If Dubai exercised freedom of speech and a free media, the UK press wouldn't need to publicise the appalling human rights conditions going on in Dubai.
 
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patience

New Member
Why doesn't British media focus on all the drugs, knife crime, shootings, unemployment and poor economy before shifting their focus elsewhere. Its just sounding more and more like they have their own motives for these documentaries and articles.
They do! Check ou the UK press and TV
 
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patience

New Member
Pietman0_0

Thanks for your informative comments.

It's good to hear that not all of the labour camps are operated in the same way. However we have seen now that some are and that is not acceptable. I accept that Panorama have probably given a slightly biased view as they did not show any of the better run labour camps to balance things out but that was not the point of the programme. The point of the programme was to show that some of these people are having to live in appalling conditions. They have been lied to on numerous accounts and are now trapped in this awful situation. Due to the gagging policies of the Dubai government towards reporting or negative publicity, people are often not aware of the true situation and then it's much easier for them to turn a blind eye.

I'm also in no doubt that much of the blame rests with the developers, British or otherwise, but the bottom line is that the buck stops with the Dubai authorities. They are the body who need to enforce whatever rules there are to increase standards. It's only then that the rest of the world will believe the construction industry in Dubai is operating professionally. It's for this reason that i applaud this type of reporting and i hope that some good will come from it.

To those of you who are anti the truth, no doubt you have your reasons (probably financial),keep burying your head in all that sand. After all as long as your OK who cares about anyone else?

Well said!

I regret the day I ever invested in Dubai. There are more horror stories to come out of Dubai yet!
 
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anil

New Member
I think most people who invest in Dubai already know what is going on. This is not really news.

You only need to go there and talk to people to understand what things are like. Just talk to the hotel staff and see how many hours they work and how they live, then it is easy to understand how things must be for construction workers.

As for the BBC report, they do this kind of unbalanced, dramatic reports on many subjects. It gets the attention of people that are not normally aware of these things.
 
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heat_wave

New Member
Pietman0_0

Thanks for your informative comments.

It's good to hear that not all of the labour camps are operated in the same way. However we have seen now that some are and that is not acceptable. I accept that Panorama have probably given a slightly biased view as they did not show any of the better run labour camps to balance things out but that was not the point of the programme. The point of the programme was to show that some of these people are having to live in appalling conditions. They have been lied to on numerous accounts and are now trapped in this awful situation. Due to the gagging policies of the Dubai government towards reporting or negative publicity, people are often not aware of the true situation and then it's much easier for them to turn a blind eye.

I'm also in no doubt that much of the blame rests with the developers, British or otherwise, but the bottom line is that the buck stops with the Dubai authorities. They are the body who need to enforce whatever rules there are to increase standards. It's only then that the rest of the world will believe the construction industry in Dubai is operating professionally. It's for this reason that i applaud this type of reporting and i hope that some good will come from it.

To those of you who are anti the truth, no doubt you have your reasons (probably financial),keep burying your head in all that sand. After all as long as your OK who cares about anyone else?
You know what I don't have a problem with them reporting on labour camps and such. I have a problem with british journalists writing tacky articles about their distaste for the Dubai lifestyle. Such as Germaine Greer saying Burj Dubai looked like a needle in the Lords ass. Its just a cheap tactic. As for labour camps sure its the negative side of Dubai. Everywhere has a negative side as far as I'm concerned an article or documentary on that is good journalism. Its all the rubbish that comes out on a day to day basis from British papers which is just getting irritating.
 
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Pietman0_0

New Member
Pietman0_0

Thanks for your informative comments.

It's good to hear that not all of the labour camps are operated in the same way. However we have seen now that some are and that is not acceptable. I accept that Panorama have probably given a slightly biased view as they did not show any of the better run labour camps to balance things out but that was not the point of the programme. The point of the programme was to show that some of these people are having to live in appalling conditions. They have been lied to on numerous accounts and are now trapped in this awful situation. Due to the gagging policies of the Dubai government towards reporting or negative publicity, people are often not aware of the true situation and then it's much easier for them to turn a blind eye.

I'm also in no doubt that much of the blame rests with the developers, British or otherwise, but the bottom line is that the buck stops with the Dubai authorities. They are the body who need to enforce whatever rules there are to increase standards. It's only then that the rest of the world will believe the construction industry in Dubai is operating professionally. It's for this reason that i applaud this type of reporting and i hope that some good will come from it.

To those of you who are anti the truth, no doubt you have your reasons (probably financial),keep burying your head in all that sand. After all as long as your OK who cares about anyone else?

Happy Hammer,

I agree with you 100%....... Well said. I think deep down there are many people who also feels disgusted by the way many medium to lower class expats are treated here. You are right in saying that the authorities should step in and set the standards.

They say that sometimes one needs to make mistakes in order to learn from them. Lets just hope that Dubai's mistakes doesn't have the reverse effect and cause a catastrophe.

One thing is for sure. Dubai made the history books. How will it go down?.....What will it's fate be?.....well....only time will tell.....

I will stay positive ;)
 
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Happy hammer

New Member
Just read this on another forum:

Ministry to investigate BBC claims of labour violations
By Wafa Issa, Staff Reporter
Published: April 08, 2009, 23:09


Dubai: The Ministry of Labour said the UAE does not tolerate violation of labour laws and workers' rights and it will investigate claims made in a BBC TV programme on violation of workers' rights in Dubai.

According to a statement issued on Wednesday Saqr Gobash Saeed Gobash, Minister of Labour, ordered the inspection team at the ministry to investigate the claims made in Panorama, a BBC TV programme broadcast on April 6, that expatriate labourers are forced to live and work in poor conditions.

The episode titled Slumdogs and Millionaires claimed to expose the bad working and living conditions of construction workers in Dubai and to "reveal the darker side of Dubai that works behind the scenes to make the glamorous image a reality".

Gobash said that the UAE is dedicated to protect the rights of the expatriate workforce as per the directives of the country's leadership and that these rights are covered by legislations.

"The country's record on workers' rights is a source of honour and it is not possible under any circumstances to violate these rights as they are protected by the UAE labour law and international convention swhich the UAE has ratified," he said.

"The UAE has a legal and moral commitment towards its temporary expatriate workforce and therefore it is not possible to accept any practice that violates the rules.

"The ministry will not shy away from taking the necessary measures against any violating company and those committing major violations will be referred to court," Gobash added.

Maher Al Obaid, Executive Director for Inspection Affairs at the Ministry of Labour, said the department will carry out inspections and any violating companies will be penalised.


So DoBuy looks like the "****ing English" have done some good after all.
 
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dalvir bains

New Member
Sultan Sooud Al Qassemi:
If you think Dubai is bad, just look at your own country
Say that I’d written that in first world Britain there are 380,00 homeless

Friday, 10 April 2009

I recently figured that if British journalists such as Johann Hari (Tuesday, 7 April) who come to Dubai don't send back something sensationalist it won't get printed and they won't get paid. After all, sleaze sells.

I called a British journalist friend of mine and said: "I'm going to write an article about London, the same way your compatriots write about Dubai." By the time I was back at home I had come to my senses, it's not fair to London, a city so dear to my heart, or Londoners to be judged by the actions of a few. It's easy to generalise about a country when figures are manipulated to sensationalise and sell papers.

Say for example that I had written an article that states that, in wealthy first world Britain there are 380,000 homeless people, many of them mentally ill, starving and abandoned in sub-zero temperatures to live on the streets.

Say then that I wrote an article that states that Britain, the so called "jail capital of Western Europe" sentenced in 2006 alone a staggering additional 12,000 women to prison and that up to seven babies a month are born in jail where they spend their crucial first months.

I could have written an article that stated Britain, victor in the Second World War, had given refuge to 400 Nazi war criminals, with all but one of them getting away with it. Or one stating that the number of Indians who died while serving the British Empire, to build your Tube and grow your tea, is so large it is simply unquantifiable by any historian.

Or say I write an article about the 2.5 million-strong Indian volunteer army who served Britain during the Second World War, where 87,000 of them died for their occupiers' freedom and yet until recently those who survived continued to be discriminated against in pay and pension.

I could have written an article that stated that, in civilised Britain, one in every 23 teenage girls had an abortion and in 2006 more than 17,000 of the 194,000 abortions carried out in England and Wales involved girls below the age of 18.

I could have written an article stating that Britain, the human rights champion, not wanting to get its hands dirty, had resorted to secretly outsourcing torture to Third World states under the guise of rendition by allowing up to 170 so called CIA torture flights to use its bases. Or that Britain's MI5 unlawfully shared with the CIA secret material to interrogate suspects and "facilitate interviews" including cases where the suspects were later proven to be innocent.

I could have written an article that stated that the Britain of family values is the only country in the EU that recruits child soldiers as young as 16 into its Army and ships them off battlegrounds in Iraq and Afghanistan, putting it in the same league as African dictatorships and Burma.

I could have written an article that states that Britain either recently did or has yet to sign the Council of Europe Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings, the United Nations Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the involvement of children in armed conflict or the UN's International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families .

I could have highlighted the fact that liberal Britain is responsible for the physical and racial abuse of hundreds of failed asylum-seekers at the hands of private security guards during their forced removal from the country .

I could have written about the countless cases of slave-like working conditions of immigrant labours such as the 23 Chinese workers who lost their lives in 2004 as they harvested cockles in the dangerous rising tides in Morecambe Bay.

I could have written about how mortality rates from liver diseases due to alcohol abuse have declined in Europe in recent decades but in Britain the rate trebled in the same period reflecting deep societal failures.

I could have written about how in "Big Brother" Britain maltreatment of minors is so serious that one in 10, or an estimated one million children a year, suffer physical, sexual, emotional abuse or neglect.

Or that according to Oxfam 13.2 million people in the UK live in poverty – a staggering 20 per cent of the population in the sixth richest nation in the world.

I could have written all that, but out of respect for Britain, I decided not to. Because when you stitch together a collection of unconnected facts taken out of context, you end up with a distorted and inaccurate picture: something that Britain's Dubai-bashers would do well to learn.

The writer is a journalist based in Dubai
 
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Wannaberich

New Member
Britain needs to clean up its own act before it is critical of the actions of others.It is just sheer arrogance.
What about the thousands of exploited and underpaid foreign workers in the uk of which there are many.What about the mis-treatment of people in the Uk including the elderly and mentally disabled.What about the killing of innocent people in Iraq.
No doubt there is mis-treatment of workers in Dubai.Then again there are also plenty who are treated well and this of course is not shown.
Also by focusing just on Dubai it gives the impression this is not a problem anywhere else.Of course it is.This allows those other countries to get away with their own mis-treatment.If the UK have a genuine interest in workers rights etc then they need to cover these other countries.If they dont then it will seem even more they have a hidden agenda where Dubai is concerned.
 
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