The Whole World is Watching :: UAE community blog

Posting at the team blog, UAE community blog, i, Bobo provides a nice roundup on the latest Human Rights Watch report on labor abuses in the United Arab Emirates, "Building Towers, Cheating Workers". See also the comments to his post.

I tend to see this more as an equilibrium where the low-wage workers in the UAE know in advance that cheating occurs in the sector so, in effect, they are not cheated. All that happens is the UAE perpetuates its earned reputation for lack of enforcement of its own laws and for shifting the blame to authorities in source countries. Frankly, this has a corrosive effect throughout the society, stymieing trust and promoting cynicism -- which in turn makes all laws difficult to enforce. The cycle of life, such as it is, is complete. It's not a healthy economic atmosphere.

i, Bobo blogs at Bobo of Arabia.