I read the article, it was so shocking and pathetic, wait a minute I thought the grass is always greener at the other side

Article is crap jare.
I don't know why Europeans and Americans want to have it all their way in every country they go to.
Dubai is cool. Just go there, take a chill pill, enjoy the efizi, and hightail it back home. Arabs generally are not the best people to work for, but they're okay so long as you understand them and ride out their excesses.
If you're in doubt, just try working with some Asians (Indians/Chinese). Then  you go learn say Jim Reeves once sang fuji

^True. As I said the article is a hatchet job by the journo Johann Hari who perhaps has an axe to grind.

AjanleKoko:

Article is crap jare.
I don't know why Europeans and Americans want to have it all their way in every country they go to.
Dubai is cool. Just go there, take a chill pill, enjoy the efizi, and hightail it back home. Arabs generally are not the best people to work for, but they're okay so long as you understand them and ride out their excesses.
If you're in doubt, just try working with some Asians (Indians/Chinese). Then  you go learn say Jim Reeves once sang fuji

Dubai is cool in the short term(now) especially for the visitor who comes and goes and the Emirate has done above well for her citizenry, but the challenge of sustaining the growing populace from within a very hostile environment ( water resource) will test the will of the builders of this once arid land.

atleast they take care of their citizens well .

Dubai has built its wealth on thousands of poorly paid immigrants workers, its one life for the rich in there villa`s and another life for the workers who live in camps outside the city. The crisis has shown that its not sustainable, nowhere can survive on tourists, because when there money dries up everything empties.

The question we have to wonder is this the best form of development. Secondly, is Nigeria going this route, look what is happening with clearances for the megacity projects, banning of okada, registration of those who live in lagos,  abuja`s satelite towns, road clearances in Ibadan, kano new city projects. Every govenor says they want to turn there state into the nect dubai, two worlds  living very close by!

Oh noooo!! I read the whole article and it reeks of typical western bias against any progress made outside the west.
The same way they would rather focus on the slums of Lagos and paint pictures as though all Lagosians live on garbage heaps.

I've been in Dubai,. . . . . and yes, the city is cold and reeks of extremist consumerism and as such could pass for an eyesore to the morally inclined. However the tales described in the article are are very false exaggerations propagated for reasons I would ascribe to only to white supremacism.

For crying out loud, where is the moral authority for any European Journalist to speak on Dubai or China or other evolving countries??

Europe and America were built on the worst kind of slavery ever known to man such that the scars obtained haven't healed after almost 200 years of abolition of slavery. While in the case of Dubai the workers are "deceived" into building the city, in the case of Europe and America, the slaves were captured, taken away on chains and never again got to see their families. Now, thats in the past.

Lets look at the present.
Do you know how many homeless people are in America?? There were 3.5 million homeless people in US in 2008. Thats more that a full percent of the U.S population. If you've been in New York or any of the major cities in the U.S, you would be appalled by the sad story of homelessness that ravages these cities. Imagine the dastardly winter cold these homeless people have to put up with??

Now ask yourself this question?? How come you haven't seen any documentaries or read any write-ups on the problem of homelessness that have existed for ages in European and American cities??
Ok.Another question. Sex trafficking in Europe. Why are there so much trafficked girls prostituting in Europe. Do you really think it is so hard to stop?? Why hasn't the writer focused on these plagues ravaging his own continent

Abeg joor! All these westerners!! Their focus is now on China. Wait until Africa begins to develop . . . . . .

The lessons I've learnt from all these is that infrastructure development is done by cheap labour. Egypt did it with the Jews, Europe and America did it with Africans, Dubai is doing it with indians and the like and so on and so fault. . . . . .

Question is who will Africans use when our time comes??

PapaBrowne:

b]The lessons I've learnt[/b] from all these is that infrastructure development is done by cheap labour. Egypt did it with the Jews, Europe and America did it with Africans, Dubai is doing it with indians and the like and so on and so fault. . . . . .

Question is who will Africans use when our time comes??

I generally do not advocate what is going on in Dubai (if that article is correct), but this part of your post has got me thinking.
And your question does ask for an answer.

This article is an eye opener,for those who wants to go and sign up for a life of slavery,just go for holidays biz trips and come bk.Arabs,asians whatever are not tolerant

heewuu!!! dudai is eldorado!!!!!!!!

Abeg joor! All these westerners!! Their focus is now on China. Wait until Africa begins to develop . . . . . .

The lessons I've learnt from all these is that infrastructure development is done by cheap labour. Egypt did it with the Jews, Europe and America did it with Africans, Dubai is doing it with indians and the like and so on and so fault. . . . . .

Question is who will Africans use when our time comes??

[quote][/quote]

Nigeria once had it in sight but missed the mark due to tribal sentiments. If we get another chance our cheap labour will be from within us cos we got the population and unskilled manpower unlike the Emirate has never been in short supply. We have a blueprint already of this-the NLNG project in Bonny during its first 3 trains employed alot of unskilled manpower and gave jobs to the many unemployed! If we can set aside nepotism and greed for once we can have a set timeline and plan to replicate the Dubai feat with an even less hostile environment unlike the Emirati desert.  
Its doable and by us.

PapaBrowne:

Oh noooo!! I read the whole article and it reeks of typical western bias against any progress made outside the west.
The same way they would rather focus on the slums of Lagos and paint pictures as though all Lagosians live on  garbage heaps.

I've been in Dubai,. . . . .  and yes, the city is cold and reeks of extremist consumerism and as such could pass for an eyesore to the morally inclined. However the tales described in the article are are very false exaggerations propagated for reasons I would ascribe to only to white supremacism.

For crying out loud, where is the moral authority for any European Journalist to speak on Dubai or China or other evolving countries??

Europe and America were built on the worst kind of slavery ever known to man such that the scars obtained haven't healed after almost 200 years of abolition of slavery. While in the case of Dubai the workers are "deceived" into building the city, in the case of Europe and America, the slaves were captured, taken away on chains and never again got to see their families. Now, thats in the past.

Lets look at the present.
Do you know how many homeless people are in America?? There were 3.5 million homeless people in US in 2008. Thats more that a full percent of the U.S  population. If you've been in New York or any of the major cities in the U.S, you would be appalled by the sad story of homelessness that ravages these cities.[color=#006600] Imagine the dastardly  winter cold these homeless people have to put up with??
[/color]
Now ask yourself this question?? How come you haven't seen any documentaries or read any write-ups on the problem of homelessness that have existed for ages in European and American cities??
Ok.Another question. Sex trafficking in Europe. Why are there so much trafficked girls prostituting in Europe. Do you really think it is so hard to stop?? Why hasn't the writer focused on these plagues ravaging his own continent

Abeg joor! All these westerners!! Their focus is now on China. Wait until Africa begins to develop . . . . . .

The lessons I've learnt from all these is that infrastructure development is done by cheap labour. Egypt did it with the Jews, Europe and America did it with Africans, Dubai is doing it with indians and the like and so on and so fault. . . . . .

Question is who will Africans use when our time comes??

on point. i am with you bruh. bruh, last winter in chicago, a homeless man went to sleep under the bridge at night, by morning time he had turned into ice block. true story. RIP dude

links http://articles.chicagotribune.com/1993-01-11/news/9303160902_1_hypothermia-homeless-man-medical-examiner-s-office

http://www.usatoday.com/weather/storms/winter/2010-01-06-cold-snap_N.htm

http://eightiesclub.tripod.com/id343.htm

http://www.wsws.org/articles/2002/feb2002/wash-f11.shtml

birdman:

You still aren't getting it.   There are native blacks in every one of those countries I mentioned. They are not immigrants. They were born there. And they don't even have the opportunity to make enough to emigrate, This is not about you: as crappy as Nigeria is, you are still lucky. This is about the condition blacks in most countries of the world find themselves.

absolute bollocks.
absolute hogwash. you are confusing an issue of education with an issue of skin color. the black people who are educated in dubai all have good jobs. alot of nigerian nurses work in dubai. also a lot of black doctors and IT personnel. same goes for britain and america and australia and canada. the black people with education are making a honest living. the people at the bottom of the barrel are the uneducated and unskilled, and they come in all colors. in britain they are called chavs (the white ones that is), in america they are called hillbillies or rednecks or hicks (they are at the bottom of the barrel in america), in dubai they are the indians and bangladeshi, in the southern parts of america they are the mexicans, in germany they are the turkish, in canada they are the indians, in australia they are the indonesians. these are the bottom of the barrel in these countries. it is an education issue not a color issue. get ya mind right son

Why dont the useless" British Broadcasting Corporation" alias BBC make a documentary about this (other side of dubai) for the western TV audience ? , When it comes to poor living and suffering they only see Africa.

buzugee:

absolute bollocks.
absolute hogwash. you are confusing an issue of education with an issue of skin color. the black people who are educated in dubai all have good jobs. alot of nigerian nurses work in dubai. also a lot of black doctors and IT personnel. same goes for britain and america and australia and canada. the black people with education are making a honest living. the people at the bottom of the barrel are the uneducated and unskilled, and they come in all colors. in britain they are called chavs (the white ones that is), in america they are called hillbillies or rednecks or hicks (they are at the bottom of the barrel in america), in dubai they are the indians and bangladeshi, in the southern parts of america they are the mexicans, in germany they are the turkish, in canada they are the indians, in australia they are the indonesians. these are the bottom of the barrel in these countries. it is an education issue not a color issue. get ya mind right son

TELL THEM. IT IS ABOUT EDUCATION EDUCATION EDUCATION!!!! How does  someone without even a high -school certificate to his name talk less of relevant work-related skills hope to secure a well-paid job in the hi-tech West ? By default the person is stuck with minimum wage portering or cleaning jobs.
It has nothing to do with colour or creed.

tensor777:

TELL THEM. IT IS ABOUT EDUCATION EDUCATION EDUCATION!!!! How does  someone without even a high -school certificate to his name talk less of relevant work-related skills hope to secure a well-paid job in the technologically advanced West ? By default the person is stuck with minimum wage portering or cleaning jobs.
It has nothing to do with colour or creed.

fa shizzy ma nizzy. edumacation opens the doors to a lot of things

There are always two sides to a coin. People never seem to realise this!

Reading the article made me sad but the response from fellow Nigerians attacking the writer makes me even more sad. Where is the humanity in us, have we lost the ability to reason? Someone writes a report on man`s injustice to man and all some of us can think of is the writers ethnicity.

Social critics bring about change by writing about the ills and evils of society. The issue here isn`t about white or black but about getting to our conscience, if some of us still have any left, to make this World a better place.

"Literature written about the Atlantic trade in African slaves by white British and American authors and by former captives contributed to the debate about slavery and eventual abolition of the institution.
the first British work of imaginative literature written specifically about slavery and the slave trade was Aphra Behn's Oroonoko; Or The Royall Slave (1688)Oroonoko has been seen by many critics as a pioneering antislavery work"

"After Oronooko, depictions of or comments on slavery and the slave trade appeared at least incidentally in the works of many major British writers of the eighteenth century, including Samuel Johnson, William Cowper, and Samuel Taylor Coleridge, all of whom denounced slavery. Less well-known British opponents of slavery include the poets James Thomson, William Roscoe, and Richard Savage, they pointed out the hypocrisy inherent in the practice of enslaving human beings conducted by citizens of a nation that prided itself on its high civilization and devotion to the principles of liberty—and antislavery works laid the foundation for the abolitionist movement by opening up public debate about the morality of slavery. , the intellectual and social climate created by British antislavery writers in the 1700s did a great deal to make possible the abolition of slavery in Britiain in the early nineteenth century"

It`s obvious white society have a long history of writing about injustice where ever they see it, even if it`s by their own people, as in the case of the slave trade, something we Nigerians need to learn from. Anyone without bias or prejudice nows they not only write about the ills of other society they also write about theirs too. But the sad bit is we find it difficult to take honest potrayal of our society that is negative but true. How do we expect change when we are always in denial. It`s no wonder the country as been regressing ever since independence. Only the truth will set us free.

Getting back to the topic, I have heard from so many victims here in London of how Arabs especially from the Gulf maltreat domestic workers from the poorer Nations of the World. I just wish more people will speak up for these voiceless people, like the writer of this article.

okunoba:

Reading the article made me sad but the response from fellow Nigerians attacking the writer makes me even more sad. Where is the humanity in us, have we lost the ability to reason? Someone writes a report on man`s injustice to man and all some of us can think of is the writers ethnicity. 

Social critics bring about change by writing about the ills and evils of society. The issue here isn`t about white or black but about getting to our conscience, if some of us still have any left, to make this World a better place.

"Literature written about the Atlantic trade in African slaves by white British and American authors and by former captives contributed to the debate about slavery and eventual abolition of the institution. 
the first British work of imaginative literature written specifically about slavery and the slave trade was Aphra Behn's Oroonoko; Or The Royall Slave (1688)Oroonoko has been seen by many critics as a pioneering antislavery work"

"After Oronooko, depictions of or comments on slavery and the slave trade appeared at least incidentally in the works of many major British writers of the eighteenth century, including Samuel Johnson, William Cowper, and Samuel Taylor Coleridge, all of whom denounced slavery. Less well-known British opponents of slavery include the poets James Thomson, William Roscoe, and Richard Savage, they pointed out the hypocrisy inherent in the practice of enslaving human beings conducted by citizens of a nation that prided itself on its high civilization and devotion to the principles of liberty—and antislavery works laid the foundation for the abolitionist movement by opening up public debate about the morality of slavery. , the intellectual and social climate created by British antislavery writers in the 1700s did a great deal to make possible the abolition of slavery in Britiain in the early nineteenth century"

It`s obvious white society have a long history of writing about injustice where ever they see it, even if it`s by their own people, as in the case of the slave trade, something we Nigerians need to learn from. Anyone without bias or prejudice nows they not only write about the ills of other society they also write about theirs too. But the sad bit is we find it difficult to take honest potrayal of our society that is negative but true. How do we expect change when we are always in denial. It`s no wonder the country as been regressing ever since independence. Only the truth will set us free.

Getting back to the topic, I have heard from so many victims here in London of how Arabs especially from the Gulf maltreat domestic workers from the poorer Nations of the World. I just wish more people will speak up for these voiceless people, like the writer of this article.

@ okunoba

i agree with your you and share your sadness at the justification some of our people use for the injustices in the world around us. I mailed the article to my uncle who replied. Here are his comments below:

Thanks for the very interesting article. Here are my thoughts after reading the story.



I read the long write-up about the dark side of Dubai. It is probably the most detailed panoramio of life in that country. I took time to read it for 2 reasons: 1)The upscale and larger than life image that Dubai has managed to acquire over the past decade, especially with Nigeria starching billions of their stolen wealth out there., and 2) My curiosity and desire to know the ugly side of that country.



I am not too surprised by the authors’ findings, though it surprised me that the level of inhuman treatment been meted out to foreign Workers.



Simply put, the Arabs are following in the footstep of the older empires. Remember, much of the wealth of Britain and to the European powers are known for their exploitation and inhuman treatment of other nations - African, SE Asian countries to mention a few. Much of America as we know it today was build on foreign workers - Irish, African slaves especially.


The history of the world is riled with one nation (or people) oppressing another nation or people. Egyptians oppressed Jews, the British oppressed Africans and SE Asians, the Belgians oppressed Congolese, Dutch oppressed South African blacks, the whites oppressed blacks in America. Japanese oppressed Koreans and Chinese. Sadly, it is a long list of oppressions and inhuman treatments everywhere you look in human history.


The Arabs are particularly notorious for inhuman treatment of Blacks. Up till today, the Arabs in Mauritania are still keeping Blacks in that country as slaves. Yes! Slaves in this 21st century. Check out Sudan. You have had the opportunity of living and traveling in the Arabian Gulf, so you probably know first hand how Arabs treat other humans, especially Blacks, Indians and SE Asians. Arabs don't consider blacks or Indians as humans or if at all they do, the Arabs do not believe that these fellows are equal to them. What is the human right and human dignity of a black man or an Indian to an Arab?



Note this from history., every empire, people or nation that treat other humans (awesome creations of God) in less than human form has been brought down and low. Dubai and the Arabs will not be an exception in world history. Dubai is just another mirage, another human illusion, without substance or reality. It will likely disappear the way it has suddenly appeared.


Any structure build on a shaky (sandy/desert) foundation will not last. Give Dubai 100 years. Somebody says that is a long time. Yes, most of us won’t be around, but in human history a 100 years is nothing but like a day!


Thanks for sending this to me. Love.

^^^^^^
Quite unfortunate but It has been the way of the world like you rightly pointed out. Empires are forged from human strength. Strength of the weak. Barbaric slavery has been replaced with an even more receptive civilized slavery. Knowledge gives power and wealth, parameters that define who's captive and who's free. While I don't agree with the medium of development achievement by the Emirate I do understand that at every point in time in human history there will always be people, the weak who'd be preyed upon because of their lack of knowledge_{that which makes us free men} and a predisposition to survival first.
Let us not cry too much for the bereaved cos if we looked closer to home we'd see a replication of the ''Dubaiesque treatment'' if not by us, then by our kinsmen in the manner we treat our househelps.

Any wise person knows that no society is perfect.The west is only trying to discredit the efforts of the oil sheiks.If the sheik al makthoum(and his family) had embezzled all the money used to develop dubai,these same people would have still cried out.
I have been to dubai and can boldly say i prefer such a situation(it s not as bad as the story goes) to what obtains in my beloved country where only politicians enjoy the country's wealth.Every modern infrastructure u can think of is in dubai,all u have to do is to earn a living to live a comfortable life.Wealth distribution in dubai is even better than what obtains in the uk so what are these people talking about.

hmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

I honestly do not see anything shocking about Dubai. Great nations of the world are today going through hard times. Even in America, there are homeless people looking for food and shelter. All the same, Dubai is far ahead of nigeria. Lets think of how to save Nigeria.

I honestly do not see anything shocking about Dubai. Great nations of the world are today going through hard times. Even in America, there are homeless people looking for food and shelter. All the same, Dubai is far ahead of nigeria. Lets think of how to save Nigeria.

@okunoba,
Words and actions should be judged based on the intentions behind them. Remember the story of Jesus and Judas?

Quote (John 12:4-6)
4  Then saith one of his disciples, Judas Iscariot, Simon's son, which should betray him, 
5  Why was not this ointment sold for three hundred pence, and given to the poor? 
6  This he said, not that he cared for the poor; but because he was a thief, and had the bag, and bare what was put therein. 
Unquote.

The leaders in Dubai should be praised. There citizens are living in comfort. If we had such leaders in 9ja, our country would have by now become the greener pastures for others. That a few of the whites spoke against slavery should not be taken to mean that the white society in general was humane (just like saying all 9jarians are 419ers). On the contrary, the Confederates attempted to secede from the US in order to hold on to their slaves. All those belly aching to see the downfall of Dubai are in a state of self delusion. Look at the history of Japan's industrialisation and you would know that it is very possible to move from zero to hero in no time. And who's talking of about life being fair? Take a look at the so called 'villains' of World War II (Germany, Japan and Italy). Their economies are doing much better than those of the majority of their victims - natural justice indeed.

PS: This article is history, not news!

I think we as Nigerians should learn from this. The Leadership of Dubai (Democratic or not) do care for their people. Imagine them paying to whatever educational level their children are prepared to attain. Here in Nigeria; the leadership is only willing to make things even more difficult for their masses and make it a heaven for foreigners especially Asians. They collect taxes from us and still expect us to pay for road constructions through toll payments (for those of us in the Lekki - Epe axis. IT IS FRANKLY DIS-HEARTNING

@chongaiman the believer, check this out.

How the Bible was used to justify slavery:

"The Christian church's main justification of the concept of slavery is based on Genesis 9:25-27. According to the Bible, the worldwide flood had concluded and there were only 8 humans alive on earth: Noah, his wife, their six sons and daughters in law. Noah's son Ham had seen "the unclothedness of his father." So, Noah laid a curse -- not on Ham, who was guilty of some type of indiscretion. The sin was transferred to Noah's grandson Canaan. Such transference of sin from a guilty to an innocent person or persons is unusual in the world's religious and secular moral codes. It is normally considered highly unethical. However, it appears in many biblical passages. The curse extended to all of Canaan's descendants:

Genesis 9:25-27: "Cursed be Canaan! The lowest of slaves will he be to his brothers. He also said, 'Blessed be the Lord, the God of Shem! May Canaan be the slave of Shem. May God extend the territory of Japheth; may Japeth live in the tents of Shem and may Canaan be his slave'. "
Christians traditionally believed that Canaan had settled in Africa. The dark skin of Africans became associated with this "curse of Ham." Thus slavery of Africans became religiously justifiable"


By today's secular and religious standards:

slavery is immoral.
cursing all of an individual's descendents into perpetual slavery because of an inappropriate act by an ancestor is immoral.
laying a curse on the son of the person who committed the act is immoral.

@ixxlaw/chongman
By your reasoning Apartheid in South Africa and The American slave trade should be praised because these systems while treating blacks as slaves ensured that their fellow white citizens were well looked after. Nigeria should emulate Dubai? U mean practice injustice to your fellow human brother so u can live a better life, that is already Nigeria, with People like u who care less about people around them as long as u and your family are fine.  Where is the empathy, the human compassion and the love for your fellow human being, regardless of where they are from.

The problem of Nigeria is the people and the way they think.

Never been outside the shore of my country NIGERIA but i love it here the major problem i(personal opinion) see in this issue is the pranks this is the 21st Century you can't come and deceive ppl and fink no one i meant nobody dare comfront you abou i. If you promise someone a pay of $5000 i think the contract should remain, not tricking ppl into your country and enslaving them.
I've got families in europe and whenever they call home they still talk about african doing dirty, unheard sort of work in EUROPE but they willingly agreed to that and are paid by their employer there are still people doing absurd things but at their leisure for an agreed fee, not anymore we should discourage this and not applaud nitwitiness. African were enslaved thoughly but should that blind our sense of reasoning.

Stupid ARABIANS, HISSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS

Rolls out.

@okunoba

Canaan and his descendants (Sidonians, Amorites, Jebusites -Jebus was the original name of Jerusalem - etc) are known to have settled in the general area of Israel and Palestine. Genesis 10:19 gives the borders of the Canaanites. The children of Ham known to have settled in Africa included Mizraim (Egypt) and Cush (Ethiopia) so there is no justification in it for the slavery of Africans. By the way, Christ's death and resurrection have broken the power of sin, death, curses etc.

I also agree with you that slavery is immoral (and ungodly). Everything is about perspective and perception. The author was looking at the Dubai situation as a glass half empty while I saw it as glass half full. He saw the slavery of foreigners while I saw the emancipation of Dubai citizens from the rat race. My praising of Dubai leaders is for the positive aspect of their development. As for the negative aspects, the situation is even much worse in 9ja - go ask those working for Lebanese/Indian companies. Are you aware that such allegations of maltreatment have being levelled against Mike Adenuga by foreigners who had worked for him? Yes Nigerian leaders should emulate those of Dubai. Life would be much easier for us all then.

Even good things came out of Apartheid - South Africa is the most developed black nation. She's not your usual tinpot African country. We all know those behind her development - the whites. And with all our empathy and sympathy for our fellow blacks, what did we get in return after the fall of Apartheid? Xenophobia! That other Africans are taking over their jobs - jobs enabled by the foresight of the whites. Even when Lucky Dube was killed, didn't the killers said they thought he was a Nigerian? So much for our empathy and love for fellow human beings.

You are right - The problem of Nigeria is the people and the way they think. Our charity usually begins abroad! Reminds me of Prof. Iwuruwuru after Obama's election, saying the US had a lot to learn from Nigeria's electoral practices?

titominty:


Never been outside the shore of my country NIGERIA but i love it here the major problem i(personal opinion) see in this issue is the pranks this is the 21st Century you can't come and deceive ppl and fink no one i meant nobody dare comfront you abou i. If you promise someone a pay of $5000 i think the contract should remain, not tricking ppl into your country and enslaving them.
I've got families in europe and whenever they call home they still talk about african doing dirty, unheard sort of work in EUROPE but they willingly agreed to that and are paid by their employer there are still people doing absurd things but at their leisure for an agreed fee, not anymore we should discourage this and not applaud nitwitiness. African were enslaved thoughly but should that blind our sense of reasoning.

silly ARABIANS, HISSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS

Rolls out.

Unfortunately Dubai use agencies o recruit workers for outside their country- it is the agencies-often owned by Asians- that exploit people
British and American workers get better pay due to the nature of their work and agency that have pretty much standards that are equal to that of their country of origin

I wonder why journalists are always accused of have ulterior motives, if this was written by a nigerian would it still be a case of trying to paint the country bad?