Human Rights and Freedom in United Arab Emirates

United Arab Emirates United Arab Emirates [Country Profile Page]
Status	Independent State
Social and Moral Index	80th best
Location	Asia, The Middle East
Population	9.6m1
Life Expectancy	78.71yrs (2017)2

The United Arab Emirates is amongst the worst places in the world at ensuring human rights and freedom, and it has severe cultural issues when it comes to tolerance and equality. The UAE does better than average when it comes to opposing gender inequality₃. But that's it. The UAE has problems. It does worse than average when it comes to commentary in Human Rights Watch reports₄, supporting press freedom₅ (still low for Asia) and in supporting personal, civil & economic freedoms₆. And finally, it falls into the worst 20 when it comes to its success in fighting anti-semitic prejudice₇, speed of uptake of HR treaties₈, its nominal commitment to Human Rights₉, LGBT equality₁₀ and in freethought₁₁. UAE's government does not tolerate criticism and "arbitrarily detains and forcibly disappears" critics₁₂. It has "continued to play a leading role in the Saudi-led coalition, which has conducted scores of unlawful attacks in Yemen"₁₂. Despite some improvements, migrant construction workers "face serious exploitation"₁₂ and progress will remain difficult as long as the richest 1% hold 23% of the country's entire income₁₃.

1. United Arab Emirates's Human Rights, Equality & Tolerance
2. Human Rights & Tolerance Data Sets
   1. Human Rights Watch Comments
   2. Nominal Commitment to HR
   3. HR Treaties Lag
   4. Personal, Civil & Economic Freedom
   5. Press Freedom
   6. Slavery
3. Gender Equality Data Sets
   1. Gender Inequality
4. Prejudice Data Sets
   1. Anti-Semite Opinions
   2. LGBT Equality
   3. Freedom of Thought
5. Links

1. United Arab Emirates's Human Rights, Equality & Tolerance

#equality #gender_equality #human_rights #morals #politics #prejudice #tolerance

The best countries in the world at ensuring human rights, fostering equality and promoting tolerance, are Sweden, Norway and Denmark₁₅. These countries are displaying the best traits that humanity has to offer. The worst countries are The Solomon Islands, Somalia and Tuvalu₁₅.

The data sets used to calculate points for each country are statistics on commentary in Human Rights Watch reports, its nominal commitment to Human Rights, speed of uptake of HR treaties, supporting personal, civil & economic freedoms, supporting press freedom, eliminating modern slavery, opposing gender inequality, the rate of gender bias (from 7 indicators), the year from which women could participate in democracy, its success in fighting anti-semitic prejudice, LGBT equality and freethought. The regions with the best average results per country are Scandinavia, Baltic States and Europe₁₅, whereas the worst are Melanesia, Micronesia and Australasia₁₅.

For more, see:

• "Which are the Best Countries for Human Rights, Equality and Tolerance?" by Vexen Crabtree (2020).

Amnesty International's 2023-23 summary on human rights in UAE stated:

“The United Arab Emirates (UAE) put into effect new laws that significantly curtail freedom of expression and assembly. The authorities extended the arbitrary detention of tens of mass trial victims past the end of their prison terms, and subjected one human rights defender and one dissident to extended ill-treatment. The government renewed its stance against recognizing the rights of refugees.”

"The State of the World's Human Rights 2022/23" by Amnesty International (2023)₁₆

“UAE authorities have launched a sustained assault on freedom of expression and association since 2011. UAE residents who have spoken about human rights issues are at serious risk of arbitrary detention, imprisonment, and torture. Many are serving long prison terms or have left the country under pressure.

The UAE´s 2014 counterterrorism law provides for the death penalty for people whose activities “undermine national unity or social peace,” neither of which the law defines.

In March [2017], the UAE detained Ahmed Mansoor, an award-winning human rights defender, who is facing speech-related charges that include using social media websites to “publish false information that harms national unity.” Before his arrest, Mansoor had called for the release of Osama al-Najjar, who remains in prison despite having completed a three-year prison sentence on charges related to his peaceful activities on Twitter.”

"World Report 2018" by Human Rights Watch (2018)₁₂

2. Human Rights & Tolerance Data Sets

2.1. Human Rights Watch Comments

#human_rights

Human Rights Watch comments concentrate mostly on negative issues, however, they also make positive comments for those countries that engage in human rights defence around the world, or who make improvements at home. By adding up positive and negative comments (including double-points for negatives that involve large scales and crimes against humanity), the Social and Moral Index turns HRW commentary into quantified values. Some countries may be unfairly penalized because HRW have not examined them, and, some countries "get away" with abuses if they manage to hide it, or if it goes unnoticed - a negative point has been given for those countries in which HRW specifically state that access to investigators has been barred. The points were limited to a minimum of -10 because there are some points at which things are so bad, with abuses affecting so many, it is difficult to be more specific about the depths of the issues.

2.2. Nominal Commitment to HR

#human_rights

There are many international agreements on human rights, and, many mechanisms by which countries can be brought to account for their actions. Together, these have been the biggest historical movement in the fight against oppression and inhumanity. Or, putting it another way: these are rejected mostly by those who wish to oppress inhumanely. None of them are perfect and many people object to various components and wordings, but, no-one has come up with, and enforced, better methods of controlling the occasional desires that states and peoples have of causing angst for other states and peoples in a violent, unjust or inhumane way. Points are awarded for the number of human rights agreements ratified by the country, plus the acceptance of the petition mechanisms for disputes. The maximum possible score in 2009 was 24.

2.3. HR Treaties Lag

#human_rights #international_law #micronesia #politics #small_islands

Human Rights (HR) Treaties Lag is a count of how long it took each country to sign each of 11 key HR treaties. From the date of the first signatory of each treaty, all other countries have one point added to their score for each day they delayed in signing. Results are presented as average time in years to sign each one. The lower a country's score, the more enthusiastically it has taken on international Human Rights Treaties - which are, of course, minimal standards of good governance. The slowest are the countries of Micronesia, Melanesia, Australasia and Polynesia all lagged by over 12 years per treaty. The best regions are The Americas, Scandinavia and the Mediterranean.

For more, see:

• "Which are the Best Countries for Human Rights, Equality and Tolerance?" by Vexen Crabtree (2020).

2.4. Personal, Civil & Economic Freedom

#freedom #politics

The Human Freedom Index published by the Fraser Institute is...

“... a broad measure of human freedom, understood as the absence of coercive constraint. It uses 79 distinct indicators of personal and economic freedom in the following areas: Rule of Law, Security and Safety, Movement, Religion, Association, Assembly, and Civil Society, Expression, Relationships, Size of Government, Legal System and Property Rights, Access to Sound Money, Freedom to Trade Internationally, Regulation of Credit, Labor, and Business. [...]

The highest levels of freedom are in Western Europe, Northern Europe, and North America (Canada and the United States. The lowest levels are in the Middle East and North Africa, South Asia, and sub-Saharan Africa. [...]

Countries in the top quartile of freedom enjoy a significant higher per capita income ($37,147) [compared with] the least-free quartile [at] $8,700). The HFI finds a strong correlation between human freedom and democracy.”

"The Human Freedom Index" by The Fraser Institute (2016)₁₇

2.5. Press Freedom

#democracy #freedom #Freedom_of_Speech #Good_Governance #mass_media #politics #UK

The freedom to investigate, publish information, and have access to others' opinion is a fundamental part of today's information-driven world, and is linked with Freedom of Speech and Good Governance. Scores on the Press Freedom Index are calculated according to indicators including pluralism - the degree to which opinions are represented in the media, media independence of authorities, self-censorship, legislation, transparency and the infrastructure that supports news and information, and, the level of violence against journalists which includes lengths of imprisonments. The index "does not take direct account of the kind of political system but it is clear that democracies provide better protection for the freedom to produce and circulate accurate news and information than countries where human rights are flouted". The rankings are used as one of the datasets of the Social and Moral Development Index₁₈

It must be noted that press freedom is not an indicator of press quality and the press itself can be abusive; the UK suffers in particular from a popular brand of nasty reporting that infuses several of its newspapers who are particularly prone to running destructive and often untrue campaigns against victims. The Press Freedom Index notes that "the index should in no way be taken as an indicator of the quality of the media in the countries concerned".

2.6. Slavery

#burundi #eritrea #france #human_rights #indonesia #slavery

The taking of slaves has been an unwholesome feature of Human cultures since prehistory₂₀. Private households and national endeavours have frequently been augmented with the use of slaves. The Egyptian and Roman empires both thrived on them for both purposes. Aside from labourers they are often abused sexually by their owners and their owners' friends₂₁. The era of colonialism and the beginnings of globalisation changed nothing: the imprisonment and forced movements of labour continued to destroy many lives except that new justifications were invented based on Christian doctrine and the effort to convert non-Christians. By 1786 over 12 million slaves had been extracted from Africa and sent to colonial labour camps, with a truly atrocious condition of life₂₂. But they were not the only ones to blame; in Africa internal nations such as the Asantes sold and bought tens of thousands of slaves₂₃.

The abolition of the slave trade was a long and slow process. Until a relatively modern time, even philosophers, religious leaders and those concerned with ethics justified, or ignored, the problem of slavery₂₄. The first abolitionists were always the slaves themselves. Their protests and rebellions caused the industry to become too expensive to continue. After that, it was the economic costs of maintain slave colonies that led the British to reject and then oppose the slave trade globally. Finally, the enlightenment-era thinkers of France encouraged moral and ethical thinking including the declaration of the inherent value of human life and human dignity₂₅. A long-overdue wave of compassionate and conscientious movements swept across the West, eliminating public support for slavery, until the industries and churches that supported it had no choice but to back down.

'Modern slavery' includes forced labour (often of the under-age), debt bondage (especially generational), sexual slavery, chattel slavery and other forms of abuse, some of which can be surprisingly difficult to detect, but often target those fleeing from warzones and the vulnerable.₂₆. Some industries (diamond, clothing, coal) from some countries (Burundi₂₇, Eritrea₂₇, Indonesia₂₈) are a particular concern. The Walk Free Foundation, say that in 2016, 40.3 million people were living in modern slavery₂₉.

For more, see:

• "The Historical Slave Trade and Modern Slavery" by Vexen Crabtree (2018).

“Foreign nationals account for more than 88.5 percent of the UAE´s population, according to 2011 government statistics. Many low-paid migrant workers remain acutely vulnerable to forced labor, despite some reforms. [...] Domestic workers [face] a range of abuses,from unpaid wages, confinement to the house, workdays up to 21 hours with no breaks, to physical or sexual assault by employers. [...]

The UAE has made some reforms to increase domestic worker protection. In September, the president signed a bill on domestic workers that guarantees domestic workers labor rights for the first time including a weekly rest day, 30 days of paid annual leave, sick leave, and 12 hours of rest a day. In some cases, the law allows for inspections of recruitment agency offices, workplaces, and residences, and sets out penalties for violations. But, the 2017 law does not prohibit employers from charging reimbursement for recruitment expenses and requires that workers who terminate employment without a breach of contract compensate their employers with one month´s salary and pay for their own tickets home.”

"World Report 2018" by Human Rights Watch (2018)₁₂

3. Gender Equality Data Sets

The UAE is on the way towards ending gender inequality but women are still in an unfavourable position much of the time.

UAE's 2015 anti-discrimination law does not tackle discrimination based on gender, domestic violence is not illegal, and the legal itself is inherently biased against women, using Islamic law as its basis.₁₂.

“. For a woman to marry, her male guardian must conclude her marriage contract; men have the right to unilaterally divorce their wives, whereas a woman must apply for a court order to obtain a divorce; a woman can lose her right to maintenance if, for example, she refuses to have sexual relations with her husband without a lawful excuse; and women are required to “obey” their husbands.”

"World Report 2018" by Human Rights Watch (2018)₁₂

See:

• "Religion Versus Womankind" by Vexen Crabtree (2007)

3.1. Gender Inequality

#gender #gender_equality #human_rights #misogyny #women

The UN Human Development Reports include statistics on gender equality which take into account things like maternal mortality, access to political power (seats in parliament) and differences between male and female education rates. Gender inequality is not a necessary part of early human development. Although a separation of roles is almost universal due to different strengths between the genders, this does not have to mean that women are subdued, and, such patriarchalism is not universal in ancient history. Those cultures and peoples who shed, or never developed, the idea that mankind ought to dominate womankind, are better cultures and peoples than those who, even today, cling violently to those mores.

For more, see:

• "Gender Equality" by Vexen Crabtree (2023).

4. Prejudice Data Sets

4.1. Anti-Semite Opinions

#antisemitism #christianity #germany #indonesia #israel #jordan #judaism #laos #morocco #netherlands #pakistan #philippines #religion #religious_violence #saudi_arabia #spain #sweden #turkey #UK #vietnam

Anti-Semitism is the world given to irrational racism against Jews. It is not the same as anti-Judaism (involving arguments against the religion) nor the same as anti-Zionism (arguments against Israel). In history, influential Christian theologians concocted the arguments against Jews that led, very early on, to widespread Christian action against Jews_30,31,32,33. As Christianity rose to power in the West and presided over the Dark Ages, there were widespread violent outbursts against Jews of the most persistent and horrible kind. The Crusades were frequently aimed at them and the feared Spanish Inquisition paid Jews particular attention. The horror of the holocaust instigated by German Nazis in the 1940s was followed (finally) by the era of European human rights and a movement against racism in general.

The places that are the least anti-Semitical are a few countries of south-east Asia (Laos, the Philippines and Vietnam) and some of the secular liberal democracies of Europe (Sweden, the Netherlands and the UK). The worst countries for antisemitism are Islamic states of the Middle East₃₄, which are undergoing their own Dark Age. Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Morocco, Indonesia, Pakistan and Turkey see the most oppressive and violent actions towards Jews_35,36. Jews in Muslim countries face a host of restrictions and "ceaseless humiliation and regular pogroms"₃₇. In 2004 the European Union Monitoring Center on Racism and Xenophobia reported on violent anti-Jew crimes in the EU and found that that largest group of perpetrators were young Muslim males₃₈.

For more, see:

• "Anti-Semitism" by Vexen Crabtree (2017).

4.2. LGBT Equality

#equality #homosexuality #human_rights #intolerance #sexuality #tolerance

Some states (emirates) in UAE directly outlaw homosexuality, wrongly calling it "unnatural sex"₁₂ despite the fact that homosexuality is documented in a great number of natural animals in the wild, and in other states generic laws on "indecency" and sex outside of marriage are used to persecute anyone involved in same-sex relations₁₂.

Discrimination against Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) folk is rife across the world. Legal restrictions co-exist alongside social stigmatisation and physical violence₃₉. LGBT tolerance and equal rights have been fought for country-by-country across the world, often against tightly entrenched cultural and religious opposition. Adult consensual sexual activity is a Human Right, protected by privacy laws₄₀. Despite this, homosexual activity is outlawed in around 80 countries₃₉. The Social & Moral LGBT Equality Index was created to compare countries and regions, granting points to each country for a variety of factors including how long gay sex has been criminalized and the extent of LGBT legal rights. Graded negative points are given for criminality of homosexuality, unequal ages of consent, legal punishments and for not signing international accords on LGBT tolerance. The signs in many developed countries are positive, and things are gradually improving. Europe is by far the least prejudiced region (Scandinavia in particular being exemplary). The Middle East and then Africa are the least morally developed, where cultural bias goes hand-in-hand with state intolerance, all too often including physical violence.

For more, see:

• "LGBT Rights Across the World: Which are the Best and Worst Countries?" by Vexen Crabtree (2017).

4.3. Freedom of Thought

#europe #freedom_of_belief #freethought #human_rights #netherlands #religion #religious_tolerance #secularism #the_enlightenment

Freedom of Religion and Freedom of Belief are upheld in Article 18 the United Nation's Universal Declaration of Human Rights₄₁. It affirms that it is a basic human right that all people are free to change their beliefs and religion as they wish₄₂. No countries voted against this (although eight abstained). This right was first recognized clearly in the policies of religious toleration of the Netherlands and elsewhere in Europe in the post-enlightenment era₄₃ of the 19th century. In democratic countries, freedom of belief and religion is now taken for granted₄₄. In 2016 a study found that over 180 countries in the world had come to guarantee freedom of religion and belief₄₅. The best countries at doing so are Taiwan, Belgium and The Netherlands_11,46 and the worst: Afghanistan, N. Korea, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia_11,47.

Long-term studies have shown that religious violence and persecution both decrease in cultures where religious freedom is guaranteed₄₈. Despite this, there still are many who are strongly against freedom of belief₄₂, including entire cultures and many individual communities of religious believers. Their alternative is that you are not free to believe what you want and they often state that you cannot change religion without being punished (often including the death penalty): this is bemoaned as one of the most dangerous elements of religion₄₉ and "the denial of religious freedoms is inevitably intertwined with the denial of other freedoms"₅₀ and the solution is, everywhere, to allow religious freedom and the freedom of belief.

For more, see:

• "Freethought - Freedom of Belief and Freedom of Religion" by Vexen Crabtree (2022).