United Arab Emirates Essay Example for Free

United Arab Emirates EssayIn his article titled United Arab Emirates Sulayman Najm Khalaf gives an interesting overview of the UAE, one of the richest and most prosperous countries in the world. He briefly covers a wide range of subjects that concern the way of life of the Emirati society and vary from the bucolics location and geography, its chronicle, ethnic and social composition, political institutions, social welfare, the history of economic development, urbanization to the family life of its citizens, religion, child rearing, education, eating habits, etiquette, etc (Khalaf). Khalafs brief account of gender components and statuses in the Emirati society at one time make me see the role of women in the countrys social, political, religious, or artistic life in a slightly different way. Although it is a well known fact that Emirati women, the like women in many early(a) Muslim countries, do not have the same rights and opportunities as men regardless of whatever the cou ntrys political relation officials may declare, I did believe they had a greater influence on many aspects of social life and better access to the countrys authorities than they actually have.I was also surprised to learn that in spite of the high ratio of the number of educated women in the UAE and their impressive performance in schools and universities, most of them tend to get married early, instead of taking the existing career opportunities, and actually choose to dedicate themselves to raising children and managing domestic affairs. I wrong believed that the current status of women in the UAE was somewhat approaching the status of women in Western countries.In his article Khalaf describes some aspects of the special relationship between 4 principal social classes existing in the United Arab Emirates on the one hand, and between the Emirati nationals and the immigrants on the other hand. I was not aware of the high importance which is attached to the division of the natio nals into social classes, their roles in Page 2 the Emirati society, and particularly the obvious impossibility for their members to move from a lower social group to a higher one.The article also changed my beliefs about the existence of equal opportunities for the citizens of the United Arab Emirates. Despite apparent openness and equality that I believed were typical of the country, and also perimeter for other ethnic or religious groups, now I am quite aware of the visible existence of gender discrimination and discrimination against other cultural or religious groups which, what is particularly shocking for a Westerner, are overtly encouraged by the state.As far as discrimination against the immigrants is concerned, now that I have read Khalafs article I am inclined to believe that the incomers are tolerated in the UAE not out of a champion of Emirati hospitality that is often advertised abroad, but because the country needs them and their low paid labor and services. This c an be substantiated, for example, by the fact that the nationals that are and a minority group representing only 20% of the population are favored by most state laws or business regulations (Khalaf).Despite organism a multiethnic society, the UAE grants privileges to and appears to protect the interests of only one ethnic group reserving other groups for a sustainable but nonetheless a relatively decent, by local standards, existence. It can be thus concluded that equal opportunities as we understand them in the West simply do not exist in the United Arab Emirates.The author explains that apart from Islam which is the countrys official religion foreign incomers can open and attend their own places of worship, too. But, as he emphasizes in the article, the majority of immigrants are of Asian or Arab descent following Islam. Khalaf does not mention, for example, how many, if any, practicing Christians or Buddhists as well as their churches or temples there are in the country.It would be also interesting to find out more about how the UAE regulates the inflow of immigrants from the much poorer countries of the region. Little does the author say about certain aspects of the countrys Page 3 political life, for example, how the president and his deputy are elected and by whom, how the judiciary is formed, etc.REFERENCES 1. Khalaf, S. N. United Arab Emirates. Retrieved April 17, 2008 from the World Wide meshing http//findarticles. com/p/articles/mi_gx5228/is_2001/ai_n19144272