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UAE rebuffs Human Rights Watch report on Saadiyat Island
Gulf News Report
Published: May 19, 2009, 17:18


Abu Dhabi: A senior UAE official on Tuesday slammed New York-based Human Rights Watch (HRW) for its lack of transparency and credibility following the release of its report on the working condition of labourers in Abu Dhabi's Saadiyat Island.

The report failed to recognise the government's consistent efforts to improve the rights and conditions of all those working in the country, Dr Anwar Mohammad Gargash, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, said in a statement carried by WAM.


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At a press conference in Abu Dhabi, Sarah Leah Whitson, Middle East and North Africa director at HRW, claimed "thousands" of South Asian workers, involved in the development of the $27 billion Saadiyat Island project, suffered from "unlawful recruiting fees, broken promises of wages and a sponsorship system that gives an employer virtually complete power over his workers".

"The UAE is surprised and disappointed by HRW's attempts to sensationalise the drawbacks in the country's labour policies into media sound bites, without consideration of the rapid strides that have been made over the past few years," Dr Gargash said. He said that in recent years, the government has consistently sought to engage its international partners in collaborative efforts to upgrade its national labour legislation, regulatory framework and inspection capacity.

"In giving these factors minimal consideration, the report is a blatant error in judgement and exposes the serious flaws in the research methodology and compilation of the report," the minister said.

"While the government is open to constructive criticism on the scope and pace of its efforts to extend protection to workers under the law, the report's arbitrary generalisations and minute research sampling do not withstand scrutiny and cast a cloud on the credibility of the entire report," the minister added.

Dr Gargash said, "Respecting workers rights is a moral, cultural and economic imperative for the UAE. The government is proud of its steady progress in transparently achieving its objectives and remains committed to doing much more on a priority basis in future.

"The UAE government considers the protection of the rights of workers, irrespective of gender, age or nationality, a moral imperative as well as a matter of rule of law. Its commitment to uphold these rights and steadily and effectively deal with challenges it faces in their enforcement is visible to anyone dealing with labour issues in this country and internationally," the minister added.

The UAE government further recognises that the protection of workers against unfair labour practices is a matter of legitimate interest to regional and international stakeholders including governments, multilateral organisations and the international NGO community and welcomes genuine non-partisan engagement and dialogue on this issue.


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They have Saadiyat Island on visit-dubai.co.uk

uaebadoo wrote:UAE rebuffs Human Rights Watch report on Saadiyat Island
Gulf News Report
Published: May 19, 2009, 17:18


Abu Dhabi: A senior UAE official on Tuesday slammed New York-based Human Rights Watch (HRW) for its lack of transparency and credibility following the release of its report on the working condition of labourers in Abu Dhabi's Saadiyat Island.

The report failed to recognise the government's consistent efforts to improve the rights and conditions of all those working in the country, Dr Anwar Mohammad Gargash, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, said in a statement carried by WAM.


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At a press conference in Abu Dhabi, Sarah Leah Whitson, Middle East and North Africa director at HRW, claimed "thousands" of South Asian workers, involved in the development of the $27 billion Saadiyat Island project, suffered from "unlawful recruiting fees, broken promises of wages and a sponsorship system that gives an employer virtually complete power over his workers".

"The UAE is surprised and disappointed by HRW's attempts to sensationalise the drawbacks in the country's labour policies into media sound bites, without consideration of the rapid strides that have been made over the past few years," Dr Gargash said. He said that in recent years, the government has consistently sought to engage its international partners in collaborative efforts to upgrade its national labour legislation, regulatory framework and inspection capacity.

"In giving these factors minimal consideration, the report is a blatant error in judgement and exposes the serious flaws in the research methodology and compilation of the report," the minister said.

"While the government is open to constructive criticism on the scope and pace of its efforts to extend protection to workers under the law, the report's arbitrary generalisations and minute research sampling do not withstand scrutiny and cast a cloud on the credibility of the entire report," the minister added.

Dr Gargash said, "Respecting workers rights is a moral, cultural and economic imperative for the UAE. The government is proud of its steady progress in transparently achieving its objectives and remains committed to doing much more on a priority basis in future.

"The UAE government considers the protection of the rights of workers, irrespective of gender, age or nationality, a moral imperative as well as a matter of rule of law. Its commitment to uphold these rights and steadily and effectively deal with challenges it faces in their enforcement is visible to anyone dealing with labour issues in this country and internationally," the minister added.

The UAE government further recognises that the protection of workers against unfair labour practices is a matter of legitimate interest to regional and international stakeholders including governments, multilateral organisations and the international NGO community and welcomes genuine non-partisan engagement and dialogue on this issue.


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I would take Dr Gargash's words over HRW any day. What a fine gentleman. He is a man of honor.