Dubai metro: Great achievement

Congratulations and best wishes to the Dubai government, Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed and to the thousands of workers who toiled to make the metro a reality in just four years. This is a great entrepreneurial and management achievement.

To metamorphose the dream of a metro, from paper to reality between 2005 and 2009 is a significant feat. All the more so when you realize that 2009 was a year of recession, with liquidity constraints.

I have been living in Dubai for the last four years. That throughout the construction of the metro, there was minimum disruption/disturbance of normal traffic/life has impressed me very much. This is brilliant urban infrastructure management. In many countries, the roads/traffic of the city goes into a standstill mode, when the metro is being built.

It will be a great day for UAE, when all the seven emirates are linked by metro or a train system.

So while we compliment the leadership of the prime minister, let us also thank the thousands of workers from China, India, Pakistan, Nepal, and Bangladesh etc., who labored four years to give Dubai a beautiful metro. Well done!

Rajendra Aneja, Dubai, published 10 September 2009

Covering for the West

This refers to Seif Somalya's letter (Sept. 1) on burqa.

He says the burqa-clad women cannot become part of the European mainstream society. What about those women from European mainstream society who have embraced Islam and are wearing the full veil? Have they been expelled from Europe? There is something seriously wrong with societies that cannot accept decently dressed women and accept only those who, in the words of the Prophet (peace be upon him), are "clothed yet naked" (as narrated in a Hadith of Sahih Muslim). Somalya fears the burqa-clad women may face problems in finding jobs and will get marginalized with serious consequences for interfamily and intercommunity relations. A Muslim may face hardships for the sake of Islam. But this doesn't mean that he or she should compromise.

Burqa, according to Somalya, is viewed in the West as "a manifestation of extremism or Talebanization of Muslim women." Must we Muslims follow Islam according to the likes and dislikes of the West? Somalya further writes: "This is not the right time to discuss the issue of burqa; more pertinent and important issues confront Muslims that need to be addressed". What is a more important and serious issue for Muslims than being prevented from practicing Islam?

Nusratunnisa, India, published 10 September 2009

Fearful figure

I would like to say a few things in response to Ali Saad Al-Musa's article, "Remittances of foreigners: Fearful figure" (Sept. 8). For one thing, it is unlikely that any wise businessman/establishment will go for a high-maintenance work force if they can find a low-cost one. Managing a work force of foreign workers is not easy at all. Still we end up with so many foreign workers who remit billions to their respective countries. Why? The answer is that for every riyal sent back, the businessman saves a lot more than that. By now you should know what I am pointing to. Usually we talk about Saudizing jobs. Let us be real! It is our businessmen we need to Saudize!

Replacing foreign workers/professionals in a hurry with locals will create problems. Any businessman, you guess, will take the line of least resistance. What happens next is what we have been seeing here for the last two decades.

So my thought is there must be some way to put this positively. After all with a foreign worker, we get a pre-trained worker. Secondly, a training facility can only make a work force, not work culture. It takes time and lot of positive energy to make a work culture. That's why we are getting laborers from countries that are not as advanced or sophisticated as Saudi Arabia. Yet they come and make thing here! The problem is not that money keeps going out; it is that nothing comes in.

STA, By e-mail, published 10 September 2009

Fearful figure - 2

Interesting. It shows how you pull down the wages of expats. In fact, there are many expats who live in Saudi Arabia with much better profile than you assume (SR800 per month). I think you need to be little more generous to the expats.

Jasem, By e-mail, published 10 September 2009

Fearful figure - 3

The most illogical drivel I've had the pleasure of reading in a long time!! Thanks for a good laugh early in the morning.

Dr. Gopinath, By e-mail, published 10 September 2009

Exploiting Libya

The article, "Using Libya as cash cow" (Sept. 8) raises some valid points. Linda Heard exposes the hypocrisy of the West. I hope Arab leaders will now wake up.

Omar Rao, By e-mail, published 10 September 2009

Stranded Pakistanis

This refers to Ayesha Hamood’ letter on stranded Pakistanis (Sept. 9). She calls on Pakistani and Bangladesh prime ministers to include the repatriation of these people on their upcoming meeting’s agenda. But given the present political and ethnic scenario, they may not be welcomed in Pakistan. In my opinion whoever is working for these unfortunate people’s repatriation — PRC, NGOs, individuals — should divert their energies and efforts for appropriate settlement of these people within Bangladesh. Even with Bangladesh granting citizenship, they need tremendous assistance in education, health care, social development and housing, if they are to stand on their own feet.

Masood Khan, Jubail, published 10 September 2009

Give credit where due!

Many letters have appeared in these columns criticizing the undue delay in handling passengers at various airports in the Kingdom. I have altogether a different story to tell you.

I was at King Khalid International Airport, Riyadh last week to pick my son and his family arriving from Colombo by Saudia Flight SV 781. The flight was scheduled to arrive at 14.20 but it landed five minutes ahead of schedule. It also gave me extreme pleasure to see my son and his family out with their baggage within 25 minutes of the flight’s arrival! All credits to the airport staff. Let’s give them credit when it is really due. I wish others would have this luxury too. Well done KKIA staff.

S.H. Moulana, Riyadh, published 10 September 2009

Mideast peace

Your editorial on Middle East peace was great (Sept. 4). I hope President Barack Obama reads it! Yes, he can go in history as the greatest US leader if he brought peace to the Middle East.

Ahmad Zahir Khan, By e-mail, published 10 September 2009

Quit Afghanistan

The BBC’s security correspondence has gone on record with a clear admission that the US/NATO operations in Afghanistan have nothing to do, directly or indirectly, with their avowed claim to be fighting Al-Qaeda terrorism in Afghanistan. None of the terror attacks in the West that Frank Gardner rattles off in his BBC broadcast, according to him, has any remote connection with Taleban in Afghanistan or Pakistan. Daily aerial bombings are war crimes committed against civilians in Afghanistan and Pakistan. Al-Qaeda is not necessarily based in these areas. They can operate from Yemen, Somalia and in future from North Africa. With each incident of wanton massacre of civilians, US President Barack Obama, British Prime Minister Gordon Brown and NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen go on TV and fool their people back home, that their bloody mission in Afghanistan is necessary to protect their homeland from terrorism emanating from Afghanistan and Pakistan.

This is a patent lie. They cannot fool all the people all the time. Time has come for the US/UK/NATO to quit Afghanistan forthwith.

The NATO forces Friday shot an oil tanker, hijacked by Taleban in Kunduz province. The tanker was stuck while crossing a river and Taleban had asked local people to empty the tanker, by taking away the fuel for their private use. NATO did not find it necessary to see if the crowd collected around the hijacked tanker was that of civilians or Taleban. Reconnaissance could have easily found out. However, the NATO forces blew up the tanker, killing over 90 people.

BBC in its first report clearly mentioned that all were civilians. But to the NATO chief all those killed were Taleban. Such carnage has been going on by the hour and the world seems to be sanitized to one of the most blatant and wanton criminal wars inflicted on a UN member country.

Though India at some level seems to be involved in the conspiracy being played out in Afghanistan and Pakistan, the Indian people are unaware of what is going on in Afghanistan.

New Delhi should gather moral courage and come out with an open notice to the US and NATO forces to quit Afghanistan. India owes it to its people to oppose such horrendous carnage in its neighborhood. Needless to say, the fire could spread into India’s own territory, in one form or other.

Ghulam Muhammed, Mumbai, published 10 September 2009