WestMeetsEast

I’ve been here for nearly five months now and already feel very settled. The shiny bling bling of Dubai has faded and left in its place a pretty decent place. It could be the cooler weather talking (it’s as low as 68 degrees sometimes!), but I am enjoying it. Dubai has proven to be a sporty city, something I was not expecting. Rugby is quickly becoming my new favorite sport. My teammates are all from New Zealand, Australia and South Africa. They are amazing athletes and a lot of fun. My team, the Dubai Dragons, came in first place among the Gulf region teams in a big tournament last month. I am still playing soccer, but the level of competition here is pretty low. There are 18 teams in the local women’s league, which itself is only a couple years old. The majority of the women are Irish. Each team has at least one Arab however, which is very encouraging.

The contradictions in Dubai are still vast, however. It boasts “Dubai Internet City” and “Dubai Media City” yet very few people have internet access in their homes. It has a massive number of English-language magazines, yet none of them are political or cultural in nature. A couple of months ago when a wall collapsed on top of construction workers, the police arrested our company photographer for taking pictures of the accident. My magazine is forbidden to refer to Israel as a ‘nation.’ Oh, and the one telecom company doesn’t put calls through to Israel.

In some ways the censorship is worse than it was in Cairo. The government blocks all websites having anything to do with sex, even innocuous dating websites, yet the streets in my neighborhood are crawling with Eastern European prostitutes being cruised by Arabs. I was searching once for “trailer trash” on Google Images because a British guy wanted to know what that term meant. Each time I tried to open a website, the message “This website contains images or words that do not meet the religious or moral values of the United Arab Emirates” blocked access.

Many of the stereotypes that Egyptians have of the Gulf Arabs have rung true. But I think it has more to do with the nature of “new money” than anything else though. Name brands are more important than style. This is true in all cases — clothing, cars, sunglasses, cigarettes, purses, shoes, and wallets. The amount of money spent on these items is simply amazing. And it’s really all thanks to Americans. The rise in the price of oil (and yes, the US is still the biggest consumer of oil, with China coming fast in second) has created an enormous economic boom. Not that I am complaining — this boom is the reason I am here. It translates into jobs, ones that don’t exist in the US.

The Gulf Arabs are a smart group. They realized a long time ago what they needed to modernize. They want what Americans have — big houses, big cars, a good education and safe place for their kids — but they don’t want the urban problems like crime, immorality, garbage and drugs.

So, because they do not have democracies here, their leaders can decide what to keep out. Therefore, the laws are very strict. In addition to any type of sex scene (even kissing) being cut out of all TV shows and movies, anyone who has AIDS is not allowed to live in the country (yes they test you); driving drunk will land you in jail for six months; gatherings of more than 15 or so people in an apartment will land the owner in jail; alcohol is not permitted in anyone’s home without a license; rude gestures to drivers will land you in jail; hanging your clothes outside your balcony is illegal; washing your car on the street is illegal; newspaper stands are illegal (they look too trashy); and in some areas, shorts are illegal.

So what you end up with is very safe, clean neighborhoods and no such thing as ‘road rage.’

The other smart thing the Arabs did was to import brains. Most of the Gulf states have made it very easy for Westerners to come and open businesses and ‘live the dream’ — cheap luxury cars, beach views, and non-stop entertainment. All for the very little cost of basic human rights. I recently read an article that stated it this way — “In Dubai, foreigners have one right: The right to make money.”

There are a couple of effects of this mandate. One, the type of Westerner that this attracts represents some of the worst the West creates: materialistic, near-alcoholic, workaholic, shopaholic, racist and shallow. They are mostly British, white South African, Australian or New Zealanders. Two, the other type of foreigner the Gulf attracts are those from countries where the economies are so bad they have no choice but to immigrate. And the abuse these people experience is some of the worst I’ve seen. They are mostly sub-Continentals (Indians, Sri Lankans, Pakistanis, Bangladeshis); Eastern European (Russians, Bulgarians, Hungarians, Ukrainians); and Asians (Filipinos, Chinese, Korean). The Eastern Europeans are either waitresses or prostitutes. The sub-Continentals are construction workers. The Asians work in the service industry or as prostitutes. And despite the government’s many laws that exist to protect foreign workers, the truth is that these people make slave wages and are treated as such. The construction workers are usually put up in labor camps many miles outside the city and are bussed in each day for more than two hours in some cases. There is no such thing as a 9-to-5-work day for the construction workers. They work seven days a week and they work through the night to build Dubai’s rapidly expanding skyline. Dubai has one of the fastest-growing populations anywhere (7% last year) and to keep up with the demand for housing, there are hundreds of housing and road projects going on at once.

I have seen photos of these labor camps from local journalists who have them but are not allowed to publish them. They truly resemble refugee camps or shantytowns. And the construction doesn’t slow in the summer when temperatures reach 120 F for weeks on end. I read a story some weeks ago about one Indian construction worker who hung himself after not receiving his salary for six months and being told it was rude to ask for it. Yes these workers make more money here than they would at home, but barely.

Another effect of such a young, new money culture is a dearth of arts or cultural creativity. There are two Virgin bookstores and a bookstore chain called MacGrudy’s, but it offers about a quarter of what you could find at a Waldenbooks, which itself is not a good chain. There are zero independent film theaters. There are no off-the-beaten-path art galleries. There are no local alternative musicians. There are two Western radio stations, but they only play Beyonce, Justin Timberlake and Britney Spears.

Having said all this, I do believe Dubai is heading in the right direction. The more the spotlight is placed on this emirate, the more improvements it will have to make. The more businesses that come here, the more the laws will have to be followed. And eventually, the cultural aspect will come. And censorship will have to be eased, etc. That’s just how cities grow.

I can’t end this diary entry without expressing my sadness about the state of affairs in my country. When the historic US presidential vote was announced I was at a party with a group of Britons. The comments were brutal and devastating, including this one: “If the American people were once excused for the bad actions of their government, this vote says that they approve of those actions. They have just lost any shred of sympathy they had. They deserve whatever they get now.”

I am asked over and over to explain the actions of fellow Americans. I have simply succumbed to shaking my head and letting people vent their anger. Recently, a South African friend asked a New Zealander and a Briton to stop bashing America in front of me.

It was one thing to hear anger against Americans expressed by Arabs and Muslims in Cairo, but trust me, the hatred by Europeans and other Westerners is far more bitter and unrelenting than anything I’ve heard from an Arab’s mouth.

Anyway, you all knew that.