Archive: uae
8th March 2015
Last week brought more embarrassment for the UAE-linked Global Network for Rights and Development (GNRD) following the revelation a few months ago that its founder/president had previously run a fake university in Norway. On Thursday, a court in Belgium gave GNRD's extravagantly-titled "High… Read more
26th February 2015
As regular readers will know, some odd things have been happening since I raised questions about the Global Network for Rights and Development (GNRD), an organisation registered in Norway which has links to the United Arab Emirates and takes an unusually favourable view of the UAE's human rights… Read more
23rd February 2015
Fake Twitter accounts which have been used to promote a controversial human rights organisation are now being used to target me after I criticised the organisation in blog posts.
A series of tweets posted over the weekend claimed that I was being paid $50,000 a year by the Qatari government and had… Read more
22nd February 2015
In a blog post earlier this month I wrote critically about the Global Network for Rights and Development (GNRD) and raised some questions about a conference on human rights and counterterrorism that it was organising in Geneva.
Some of those who attended the Geneva conference seem to have been… Read more
21st February 2015
Mansoor Lootah: attacked Human Rights Watch
Human Rights Watch has recently come under attack from a mysterious Swiss-based organisation objecting to a section of its annual World Report which discusses the United Arab Emirates.
Summarising the human rights situation in the Emirates, HRW's report … Read more
12th February 2015
A gay American wrestler has been barred from performing in the UAE – not by the Emirati authorities but by the company promoting the tour, World Wrestling Entertainment Inc (WWE).
In 2013, Darren Young was the first professional wrestler to come out as gay while signed-up with WWE. Although WWE… Read more
9th February 2015
Last November various Yemeni political figures were flown to Brussels for a conference which had been hailed by its organisers as "a real opportunity to achieve an all-inclusive national reconciliation".
Since then, of course, the situation in Yemen has gone from bad to worse and it's difficult… Read more
30th October 2014
A controversial NGO headed by a man who once ran a fake university in Norway is playing a central role in efforts to solve Yemen's political crisis.
The Global Network for Rights and Development (GNRD), together with Yemen's National Center for Human Rights and Democratic Development (NCHRDD),… Read more
25th October 2014
A report on migrant domestic workers in the United Arab Emirates, issued by Human Rights Watch earlier this week, tells a story which is all too familiar throughout the Gulf:
"Domestic workers told Human Rights Watch about not being paid, not having rest periods or time off, being confined in the… Read more
22nd October 2014
The other day I got into a discussion with a friend who works in the United Arab Emirates. The UAE, he told me, is making a useful contribution to the international battle against ISIS – and not just militarily: its government promotes a "moderate" version of Islam and controls religious activity… Read more
ARAB ART ONLINE: Susan Hefuna: Al Sabr Gamil (Patience is Beautiful) 2007. Ink stained on wood 140 x 170 cm. More information | Click to enlarge
