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TITLE: UNITED ARAB EMIRATES HUMAN RIGHTS PRACTICES, 1993
DATE: JANUARY 31, 1994
AUTHOR: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE
UNITED ARAB EMIRATES
The United Arab Emirates (UAE) is a federation of seven
emirates established in 1971. None have democratically elected
institutions or political parties. Each emirate retains
extensive control over mineral wealth (including oil) and some
aspects of defense and internal security. Most emirates are
governed through traditional tribal mechanisms, relying heavily
on the open majlis or meeting wherein citizens may express
their concerns directly to their leaders. In accordance with
the 1971 Constitution, the seven emirate rulers comprise a
Federal Supreme Council, the UAE's highest legislative and
executive body. The Supreme Council selects a President and
Vice President from its membership; the President in turn
appoints the Prime Minister and Cabinet. The Supreme Council
meets officially only occasionally, although the leaders meet
frequently in more traditional settings. The Council of
Ministers (Cabinet) manages the federation on a day-to-day
basis.
In February the Federal Supreme Council revived the Federal
National Council (FNC), a 40-member body of prominent citizens
appointed by the leaders of the seven emirates in ratios
reflecting the size of each emirate. The FNC had been inactive
since the Gulf war. It has no legislative authority but can
question Cabinet ministers and make recommendations to the
Supreme National Council.
Each emirate maintains its own police force, but only the
Federal Government and the Emirate of Dubai have independent
internal security organizations.
The UAE has a largely free market economy based on oil and gas
production, trade, and light manufacturing. The Government
owns the majority share of the oil enterprise in the largest
Emirate, Abu Dhabi, with the other shares held by various
private oil company equity partners. The four emirates with
small or nonexistent petroleum resources are dependent on
federal government subsidies for such essential services as
health, electricity, water, and education. The economy, which
provides the UAE with one of the world's highest per capita
incomes, is heavily dependent on foreign labor, which makes up
80 percent of the population. These workers, primarily from
Asian or other Arab countries, perform most manual and
technical labor.
A number of human rights remained closely restricted in 1993.
The principal problems continued to be the denial of the right
of citizens to change their government, incommunicado
detention, and restrictions on the freedoms of speech, press,
assembly, association, and worker rights. Women continue to
make progress in education and in the work force, but certain
types of discrimination persist. Although there had been a
trend toward somewhat freer expression in 1991 and 1992, there
was no significant progress in 1993. The press continued to
avoid direct criticism of the Government and exercised
self-censorship on topics sensitive to the Government.
RESPECT FOR HUMAN RIGHTS
Section 1 Respect for the Integrity of the Person, Including
Freedom from:
a. Political and Other Extrajudicial Killings
There were no reports of political or other extrajudicial
killings.
b. Disappearance
No political disappearances were reported.
c. Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading
Treatment or Punishment
The Constitution prohibits torture or degrading treatment, and
there were no reports of such abuse in 1993. In the past,
Shari'a courts were known to sentence Muslims and non-Muslims
to flogging for crimes related to alcohol abuse and adultery.
The Federal Supreme Court ruled in 1993 that Shari'a
punishments may not be imposed on non-Muslims.
In 1993 there was a trend toward harsher sentencing. In March
a UAE national and a foreign national convicted of piracy were
each sentenced to the amputation of a hand and a foot; this
followed the sentencing of another foreign national to the
amputation of his hand for stealing. However, in both of these
cases higher authorities are said to have ordered lighter
sentences. No amputation sentences were known to have been
carried out.
d. Arbitrary Arrest, Detention, or Exile
The Constitution prohibits arrest, search, detention, or
imprisonment except in accordance with the law, and the laws of
each emirate prohibit arrest or search without probable cause.
Under the Criminal Procedure Code, the police must report any
arrest to the Attorney General within 48 hours, and he must
determine within the next 24 hours whether to charge, release,
or, with sufficient police justification, allow limited,
further detention pending an investigation. Once charged,
detainees are brought to trial reasonably expeditiously,
although the Code includes no specific right to a speedy
trial. There is no formal system of bail, but detainees
sometimes are released upon the deposit of money or an
important document such as a passport. The laws of the UAE
allow incommunicado detention until the accused has been
formally charged, and it is practiced.
Exile of citizens is prohibited by the Constitution and is not
practiced.
e. Denial of Fair Public Trial
The UAE has a dual system of Shari'a (clerical) and civil
courts, each of which deals with both criminal and civil
cases. The civil courts are usually part of the federal system
and are answerable to the Federal Supreme Court in Abu Dhabi.
The Shari'a courts are administered by each individual emirate,
though they are ultimately answerable to the Federal Supreme
Court. The court systems in the Emirates of Dubai and Ras
al-Khaimah are independent of the federal system, although they
do apply the Civil Procedure Code. Each court system has a
multilevel appeals process, and verdicts in all capital cases
are appealable to the President. The nature of the case
determines which court system hears a particular case, but most
cases fall under the jurisdiction of the civil courts. Due
process rights are uniform under both Shari'a and civil court
procedure. There is a presumption of innocence unless guilt is
proven.
Legal counsel is readily available and permitted to represent a
defendant in both court systems. The court may appoint legal
counsel if counsel agrees to provide services free; only Dubai
has an office of public defender. The losing party may be
required to pay the winner's legal fees. The judge is
responsible for looking after the interests of a person not
represented by counsel. Under the new Criminal Procedures
Code, the accused has a right to defense counsel at trial in
cases that involve a capital crime or possible life
imprisonment. If the defendant is indigent, the Government
will provide counsel. The Federal Supreme Court ruled in 1993
that a defendant in an appeal case has a "fundamental right" to
select his attorney and that this right supersedes a judge's
power to appoint an attorney for the defendant.
There are no jury trials. All cases, except national security
cases and those deemed by the judge likely to harm public
morality, are open to the public. Most judges are foreign
nationals, primarily from other Arab countries. In 1993 the
Ministry of Justice initiated a program to train and develop
UAE national judges and prosecutors.
There is no separate national security court system. The
military has its own court system based on Western military
judicial practice. Military tribunals try only military
personnel.
There are no known political prisoners.
f. Arbitrary Interference with Privacy, Family, Home, or
Correspondence
The Constitution prohibits entry into homes without the owner's
permission, except in accordance with the law. Although the
police may enter homes without a warrant and without
demonstrating probable cause, an officer's actions in searching
premises are subject to review, and he is subject to discipline
if he acts irresponsibly. Anyone other than a police officer
must have a court order to enter a private home. Local custom
and practice place a high value on privacy, and entry into
private homes without the owner's permission is rare. There is
no surveillance of private correspondence.
Section 2 Respect for Civil Liberties, Including:
a. Freedom of Speech and Press
Although UAE citizens are constitutionally assured freedom of
speech, in practice there is censorship, and most inhabitants,
especially foreign nationals, are circumspect in public
discussions of sensitive political topics or in criticizing the
Government. In 1993 an American citizen was detained briefly,
but not arrested, for allegedly profaning the President in
conversation with a third party.
Many of the local English- and Arabic-language newspapers are
privately owned, but all receive government subsidies. All
foreign publications are routinely subjected to censorship
reviews before distribution. Domestic publications practice
self-censorship, making formal censorship rare. Journalists
also practice self-censorship in articles concerning the UAE
destined for publication abroad.
In 1993 members of the newly revived FNC were often quite
critical of government policies in their discussions during FNC
sessions. Their criticisms were covered in the press.
The UAE press continues to be cautious in reporting on
government policy, the ruling families, national security,
religious matters, and relationships with neighboring states.
A trend toward more open expression of opinion on subjects
sensitive to the Government that began during the Gulf war did
not continue in 1993. There were credible reports that the
Government temporarily revoked the passport of an intellectual
who published a newspaper article advocating democratic
election of the Federal National Council members. Yet the
Arabic press also carried articles written by non-UAE Arabs
calling for greater democracy in the region.
All television and radio stations are government owned and
conform to government reporting guidelines. However,
television stations in Abu Dhabi and Dubai continue to
broadcast the programs of the Cable News Network (CNN), with no
apparent censorship.
The Censorship Department of the Ministry of Information and
Culture reviews all imported newspapers, periodicals, books,
films, and videos, and bans items considered pornographic,
violent, derogatory to Islam, favorable to Israel, unduly
critical of friendly countries, or critical of the Government
or the ruling family. Widespread legal ownership of satellite
dishes has undermined the Government's censorship efforts.
Authorities confiscate material written in Hebrew. The small
publishing industry is subject to government censorship in
accordance with the above criteria.
In 1993, after an appeal, 2 of the 10 Indian expatriates
convicted in 1992 of blasphemy for producing and performing in
a play that was critical of Islam and Christianity had their
sentences extended from 6 to 10 years. Six of the convictions
were upheld and six were overturned.
The unwritten but widely accepted ban on criticism of the
Government also restricts academic freedom. However, the trend
observable over the last several years toward more overt
criticism of the Government by academics continued to be
evident in 1993. In December 1992, a seminar entitled "Human
Rights in the World and in the Arab World" was held by the UAE
Bar Association and the UAE Association of Sociologists in
Dubai. The participants presented papers containing
recommendations on monitoring human rights both inside and
outside the UAE. Though the Government did not allow the
publication of a key paper on human rights in the UAE, the
seminar received extensive coverage in the press.
b. Freedom of Peaceful Assembly and Association
These freedoms are tightly restricted. Political organizations
are prohibited. Organized public gatherings require a
government permit. Each emirate determines its own practice on
public gatherings, with some emirates taking a more liberal
approach to seminars and conferences on sensitive subjects (see
Section 2.a.). Citizens normally confine their political
discussion and debate to the numerous "assemblies" (majlises),
held in private homes, which are a local tradition. There are
no restrictions on the formation of private associations.
c. Freedom of Religion
Islam is the official religion. UAE citizens are predominately
Sunni Muslims, but Shi'a Muslims are also free to worship and
maintain mosques throughout most of the UAE. However, Shi'as
are not permitted mosques in the Emirate of Ras al Khaimah.
According to a press report, the Emirate of Dubai has placed
private mosques under the control of its Department of Islamic
Affairs and Endowments. This move gives the Government greater
control over the appointment of preachers and was reportedly
taken by the Government to prevent the spread of what it
considers religious extremism. By tradition and social custom,
non-Muslims are free to practice their religion but may not
publicly proselytize or distribute religious literature. A
British Christian was recently arrested and sentenced to 6
months in prison for proselytizing. There are Christian
churches and Hindu and Sikh temples, some built on land donated
by the ruling families, in the major cities. Foreign clergymen
are allowed to minister to expatriate congregations. Christian
teaching is permitted in private schools for Christian
children. Religious groups are allowed to engage in private
charitable activities.
(See Section 2.a. on the appeal of Indian nationals charged
with blasphemy.)
d. Freedom of Movement Within the Country, Foreign
Travel, Emigration, and Repatriation
There are no restrictions on freedom of movement or relocation
within the country, except for security areas such as defense
and oil installations. Unrestricted foreign travel and
emigration are permitted to male citizens except those involved
in financial disputes under adjudication. However, a husband
may bar his wife and children from leaving the country without
his permission. All citizens have the right to return. There
is a small population of stateless residents, many of whom have
lived in the UAE for more than one generation. They are
Bedouins or the descendants of Bedouins who are unable to prove
that they are of UAE origin. Since they do not hold passports,
they may not travel abroad.
During and immediately after the Gulf war, the authorities
revoked the residence permits and employment visas of some
long-term residents of Palestinian, Iraqi, Yemeni, Jordanian,
and Sudanese origin. In 1993 fewer of these residents had
their residence permits or visas revoked, particularly those in
highly technical professions. The Government reportedly asked
known dissidents of Syrian and Egyptian nationality to leave
the country; they were not forcibly repatriated but were told
to find another country of residence.
UAE nationals are not restricted in seeking or changing
employment. However, only foreign nationals in specific
occupations, primarily professional, may change employers
without first leaving the country for 6 months. This law is
often not enforced.
There are no formal procedures for accepting refugees, and
persons who seek refugee status are routinely jailed or
detained while awaiting resettlement in a third country.
Although one may acquire a UAE passport through marriage or
presidential fiat, there is no formalized procedure for
naturalization. Noncitizens are expected to leave the country
at retirement age but may remain if sponsored by their children.
Section 3 Respect for Political Rights: The Right of Citizens
to Change Their Government
The UAE has no formal democratically elected institutions, and
citizens do not have the right to change their government or
even to form political parties. Although there are
consultative councils at the federal and national levels, most
executive and legislative power is in the hands of the seven
emirate rulers, their extended families, and those persons and
families to whom they are allied by historical ties, marriage,
or common interest. These emirate political leaders constitute
the dominant political force at the national level.
Members of the Federal National Council (FNC) are appointed by
the rulers of each emirate in a ratio depending on the size and
wealth of the emirate. The FNC has no legislative authority
but may summon ministers, criticize government policies, and
make recommendations to the Cabinet. Its sessions are open to
the public.
Decisionmaking at the federal level is through consensus of the
seven emirates and their leading families. This need for
consensus tends to slow decisionmaking at the federal level.
Citizens have the opportunity to make their views and
grievances heard through attendance at majlises held by the
rulers of each emirate. Women may attend women's majlises
presided over by the wives of the rulers.
Although the rulers and ruling families by tradition are
presumed to have the right to rule, their incumbency ultimately
depends on the quality of their leadership and their
responsiveness to their subjects' needs. Emirate rulers are
accessible, in varying degrees, to citizens who have a problem
or a request. The choice of a new emirate ruler falls to the
ruling family in consultation with other prominent tribal
rulers.
Women are free to hold government positions, but there are few
women in senior positions because they are relatively new to
government service and because there continues to be strong
family pressure against women entering the workplace. Although
the UAE's Shi'a minority has enjoyed commercial success, few of
their members manage to reach top positions in the Federal
Government.
The political dominance of the ruling families is intertwined
with their substantial involvement and influence in economic
life. The ruling families and their close allies control and
profit from petroleum production and, with important merchant
families, have a major stake in the UAE's commercial life. A
complex system of distribution of wealth, including through the
federal and emirate governments, ensures generous subsidies and
a high standard of living for most UAE citizens.
Section 4 Governmental Attitude Regarding International and
Nongovernmental Investigation of Alleged Violations
of Human Rights
The UAE does not have any internal groups that monitor human
rights. Government prohibitions on freedom of press and
association would make it very difficult for a private group to
investigate and publicly criticize the Government's human
rights restrictions. The Human Rights Seminar held in December
1992, which was covered by the UAE press, has led to a small
increase in public awareness of human rights issues. There
were reports that a group of citizens has begun to meet
irregularly to discuss human rights and democracy in the UAE.
In December the Abu Dhabi Government sponsored a human rights
symposium attended by foreign and domestic academics, jurists,
and government officials. A representative of an international
human rights organization attended and delivered a paper at the
seminar.
Section 5 Discrimination Based on Race, Sex, Religion,
Disability, Language, or Social Status
Women
Most women play a family-centered, subordinate role in UAE
society because of the frequency of early marriage and
traditional attitudes about women's activities. As noted
earlier, husbands may bar their wives and children from leaving
the country without their consent, and married women may not
take employment without their husbands' written consent. In
cases of divorce, Islamic law is observed. The woman receives
custody of children until they are 7 years of age. After that,
a child usually lives with his or her father unless there are
circumstances that convince judicial authorities that custody
should be given to the mother. In divorce cases in which the
mother is a non-Muslim or a foreigner, the court usually grants
custody to the father regardless of the child's age. A woman
who remarries forfeits her right to the custody of children
from a previous marriage. Polygyny, in accordance with Islamic
law, is permitted for men. In practice, few UAE men have more
than one wife. Women are restricted from holding majority
shares in most major types of businesses. UAE women employed
outside the home generally receive equal pay for equal work. A
woman's property is not commingled with that of her husband.
Women's education continues to advance rapidly. Female
enrollment at the UAE University, for example, now constitutes
70 percent of the student body, though this is partially
attributable to the fact that UAE women rarely study abroad, as
many UAE men do. Opportunities for women are also growing in
government service and in traditional occupations such as
education and health. Women are officially encouraged to
continue their education, and government-sponsored women's
centers provide adult education and technical training
courses. The UAE military service accepts women volunteers in
the officer corps and as enlisted personnel. A special
military training course for women, started after the Gulf war,
continues.
Spouse abuse is rarely reported in the UAE. Knowledgeable
sources report a low incidence of medical cases resulting from
spouse abuse. However, when reported, the local police
authorities take action to protect women from abuse. UAE laws
also protect women from verbal abuse or harassment from men,
and violators are subject to criminal action. There continue
to be credible reports of abuse of female domestic servants by
both UAE and foreign employers, but the authorities do take
action against the offender when an incident is reported.
Children
The Government is committed to the welfare of children.
Figures on federal and emirate expenditures on children are not
available, but UAE children receive free health care, free
education, guaranteed housing, and the other perquisites of UAE
citizenship. Expatriate workers are not permitted to bring
their families to the UAE unless they make a sufficient wage to
provide for them. They must pay for the schooling of their
children, but health care charges are negligible.
National/Racial/Ethnic Minorities
Discrimination based on national origin, while not legally
sanctioned, is prevalent in the UAE (see Section 2.d.).
Employment, immigration, and security policy as well as
cultural attitudes towards foreign workers are conditioned by
national origin. There is some discrimination against the
Shi'a minority, based on their national origins rather than on
their religious affiliation.
People with Disabilities
The UAE has no federal legislation requiring accessibility for
the disabled. However, the Ministry of Labor and Social
Affairs sponsors the UAE Handicapped Centers, which provide
facilities and services to the disabled. Services range from
special education and transportation assistance to sending a
team to the Special Olympics.
Section 6 Worker Rights
a. The Right of Association
UAE law does not grant workers the right to organize unions and
to strike. It is a criminal offense for public sector workers
to strike. In practice, there are no unions and no strikes.
Foreign workers who might attempt to organize a union risk
deportation.
b. The Right to Organize and Bargain Collectively
UAE law does not grant workers the right to engage in
collective bargaining, and it is not practiced. Most of the
work force is composed of foreign nationals. Workers in the
industrial and service sectors are normally employed under
contracts that are subject to review by the Ministry of Labor
and Social Affairs. The purpose of the review is to ensure
that the pay offered is enough for the employee's basic needs
and to secure a means of living. For the resolution of
work-related disputes, workers must rely on conciliation
committees organized by the Ministry of Labor and Social
Affairs or on special labor courts. Domestic servants and
agricultural workers are not covered by UAE labor laws and thus
have great difficulty in obtaining any assistance in resolving
labor disputes. In the free port where manufacturing takes
place, the same laws and regulations apply as in the rest of
the country.
c. Prohibition of Forced or Compulsory Labor
Forced or compulsory labor is illegal and not practiced.
However, foreign workers are often recruited in their own
countries by unscrupulous agents who bring them into the UAE
under conditions approaching indenture.
d. Minimum Age for Employment of Children
Labor regulations prohibit employment of persons under age 15
and have special provisions for employing those aged 15 to 18.
Laws prohibiting the employment of children are enforced by the
Department of Labor. Labor regulations allow contracts only
for adult foreign workers. In January the Government announced
new regulations prohibiting the employment of young children as
camel jockeys and decreed that camel jockeys should weigh no
less than 45 kilograms. It also created a Camel Racing
Association which has effectively enforced the new rules during
the 1993 racing season. Small children who were employed as
jockeys were returned to their parents.
e. Acceptable Conditions of Work
There is no legislated or administrative minimum wage. Supply
and demand determine compensation. However, according to the
Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs, there is an unofficial,
unwritten minimum wage rate which would afford a worker and
family a minimal standard of living. As noted in Section 6.b.,
the Labor and Social Affairs Ministry reviews labor contracts
and does not approve any contract that stipulates a clearly
unacceptable wage.
The standard workday and workweek are set at 8 hours per day, 6
days per week, but these standards are not strictly enforced.
The law provides for a minimum of 24 days per year of annual
leave plus 10 national and religious holidays.
Most foreign workers receive either employer-provided housing
or a housing allowance, medical care, and homeward passage
through their employers. The vast majority of such workers,
however, do not earn the minimum salary ($1,000 per month)
required for them to sponsor their families for a UAE residence
visa. Employers have the option to petition for a ban from the
work force of 1 year for any foreign employee who leaves his
job without fulfilling the terms of his contract.
The Government sets health and safety standards, which are
enforced by the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Labor and
Social Affairs, municipalities, and Civil Defense. Every large
industrial concern is required to employ an occupational safety
officer certified by the Ministry of Labor. If an accident
occurs, a worker is entitled to fair compensation. Health
standards are not uniformly observed in the housing camps
provided by employers. Workers' jobs are not protected if they
remove themselves from what they consider to be unsafe working
conditions. However, the Ministry of Labor may require
employers to reinstate workers following an investigation of
the alleged unsafe working conditions. All workers have the
right to complain to the Labor Ministry, whose officials are
accessible to any grievant, and an effort is made to
investigate all complaints. The Ministry, which oversees
worker compensation, is, however, chronically understaffed and
underbudgeted so that complaints and compensation claims are
backlogged.
Foreign nationals from India, Pakistan, the Philippines,
Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka continue to seek work in the UAE in
large numbers. There are many complaints that recruiters in
the country of origin use unscrupulous tactics to entice manual
laborers and domestics to come to the UAE, promising
unrealistically high salaries and benefits and at times bring
them in illegally. The workers must promise the recruiters
several months of future wages to secure their passage. When
they come there are often no jobs waiting for them so they must
find jobs as undocumented workers, accepting wages far below
the accepted minimum wage. Such cases may be appealed to the
Labor Ministry and, if this does not resolve the issue, to the
courts. However, many laborers choose not to protest or to
engage in such a lengthy process for fear of reprisals by their
employers. Moreover, since the UAE tends to view foreign
workers through the prism of their various nationalities,
employment policies, like immigration and security policies,
have at times been conditioned upon national origin.
[end of document]
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