The Dark Side of Dubai

by Dean Esmay on April 15, 2009

{ 3 comments }

1 Aziz Poonawalla April 16, 2009 at 11:10 am: I’ve been harsh on Dubai for a while – I saw this essay by Hari too and couldn’t resist a comment.

http://blog.beliefnet.com/cityofbrass/2009/04/dubai-city-of-the-pharoah-will.html

also check out the ongoing coverage at Talk Islam. Weve really been thorough over there.
2 Dean Esmay April 16, 2009 at 4:11 pm: We’re basically looking at a slave economy here–or indentured servitude of a type nearly inescapable.

It’s not just Dubai where we see this. In much of the world it’s going on. There are even slaves smuggled into this economy. I’ve been writing on this periodically for years and what I usually find is that most people don’t believe it or just don’t give a damn. It’s depressing.
3 zach April 16, 2009 at 4:35 pm: Dean,

that’s actually what I found most disturbing about the article. I mean yes of course the heart of the problem is the Dubai government but that on many levels is a problem out of the hands of ordinary dudes. But the blind-eye-turning by American and other expats there on the ground, up to and including their active participation in the slave labor market was wholly appalling. It should be a crime for any American anywhere in the world to participate in slave labor. Loved the comment about how Dubai is where the bottom of the barrel wash out to feel good about themselves.

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