Canon Andy Thompson is one of the faces of the UAE's proud tradition of religious tolerance. Silvia Razgova / The National
Canon Andy Thompson is one of the faces of the UAE's proud tradition of religious tolerance. Silvia Razgova / The National

It’s time the world heard the real story of this country



Last week, an audience of British Members of Parliament had the opportunity to hear, at first-hand, about an aspect of the UAE that is well-known here but which receives little attention overseas – the country’s firm commitment to the principle of religious tolerance.

The occasion was a talk by Reverend Andrew Thompson, vicar of St Andrew’s Church in Abu Dhabi, who had been invited by the UAE Embassy in London to meet political and other opinion leaders to talk on the topic.

It’s one he is well-equipped to address. Author of Jesus of Arabia, a look at the Christian gospels through the prism of Arab culture, as well as of Christianity in the UAE, Mr Thompson has long worked to promote interfaith dialogue and better understanding between Christians and Muslims.

The MPs, I gather, were somewhat surprised to hear of the UAE’s approach to tolerance. When so much current media coverage of Muslim-Christian relations in the Arab world is focused on the attacks by terrorist groups such as ISIL on the native Arab-Christian inhabitants of Iraq and Syria, their surprise is understandable.

We need more initiatives such as that taken by the embassy in London to arrange for people like Mr Thompson to be invited to talk about the reality of life in the UAE. Perhaps that will help to dispel some of the illusions held about the country abroad, not only in Britain but also elsewhere. The UAE is not just a somewhat exotic holiday destination for millions of tourists to come and soak up a bit of sun and to gawp at landmarks such as the Burj Khalifa – impressive though it is – or to goggle at faux-cultural events such as belly-dancing shows in the desert. (Since when, I might ask, was belly-dancing part of UAE culture?)

Nor is the UAE merely a country whose main feature of interest is the difficulties, often troubling though they may be, that are faced by those at the lower levels of the economic pecking order, be they construction workers or housemaids.

The real picture, of course, is one that’s more diverse, one of a country that has witnessed remarkable economic and social development. At the same time, it has gone through, and continues to go through, a process of huge demographic upheaval, yet has preserved its stability.

It’s a country that has taken on the responsibility of playing a role in the wider world: helping to bring the conflict in the former Yugoslavia to an end, supporting the fight against terrorism in Afghanistan and now in Syria and Iraq, and, at the same time, contributing huge sums to humanitarian relief and to promoting economic development around the world.

The current focus on the Yemen conflict is of enormous significance, but it’s important, too, to ensure other aspects of the UAE’s long record of international engagement are not forgotten.

All this, and more, like the UAE’s support for religious tolerance in a region where this is in short supply, needs, and deserves, more recognition overseas.

That’s not to say that every­thing in the UAE is perfect. Of course it isn’t: as I’ve noted before, the UAE is a work in progress, continually striving to improve.

There remains much to be done, for example, in addressing labour issues, though a lot has already been achieved, with more on the way. I personally would like to see a change in the way in which the judicial system addresses cases of rape, so that women, whether domestic servants or others, no longer feel afraid to report attacks, in case they are accused of consensual sex outside marriage.

It’s evident though that, for the vast majority of people, the positives far outweigh the negatives. It’s time, perhaps, for a bit more effort in promoting international awareness of those positives, to ensure that the image of the country held abroad better reflects the actual situation at home.

Peter Hellyer is a consultant specialising in the UAE’s history and culture

FROM%20THE%20ASHES
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Thank You for Banking with Us

Director: Laila Abbas

Starring: Yasmine Al Massri, Clara Khoury, Kamel El Basha, Ashraf Barhoum

Rating: 4/5

COMPANY PROFILE
Name: HyperSpace
 
Started: 2020
 
Founders: Alexander Heller, Rama Allen and Desi Gonzalez
 
Based: Dubai, UAE
 
Sector: Entertainment 
 
Number of staff: 210 
 
Investment raised: $75 million from investors including Galaxy Interactive, Riyadh Season, Sega Ventures and Apis Venture Partners
BUNDESLIGA FIXTURES

Saturday

Borussia Dortmund v Eintracht Frankfurt (5.30pm kick-off UAE)

Bayer Leverkusen v Schalke (5.30pm)

Wolfsburg v Cologne (5.30pm)

Mainz v Arminia Bielefeld (5.30pm)

Augsburg v Hoffenheim (5.30pm)

RB Leipzig v Bayern Munich (8.30pm)

Borussia Monchengladbach v Freiburg (10.30pm)

Sunday

VfB Stuttgart v Werder Bremen  (5.30pm)

Union Berlin v Hertha Berlin (8pm)

Company%20profile
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The specs
 
Engine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbo
Power: 398hp from 5,250rpm
Torque: 580Nm at 1,900-4,800rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Fuel economy, combined: 6.5L/100km
On sale: December
Price: From Dh330,000 (estimate)
The%20Caine%20Mutiny%20Court-Martial%20
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EWilliam%20Friedkin%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStars%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EKiefer%20Sutherland%2C%20Jason%20Clarke%2C%20Jake%20Lacy%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E3%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Company Profile

Founders: Tamara Hachem and Yazid Erman
Based: Dubai
Launched: September 2019
Sector: health technology
Stage: seed
Investors: Oman Technology Fund, angel investor and grants from Sharjah's Sheraa and Ma'an Abu Dhabi

Super%20Mario%20Bros%20Wonder
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDeveloper%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ENintendo%20EPD%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPublisher%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ENintendo%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EConsole%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ENintendo%20Switch%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E4%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Cricket World Cup League 2

UAE squad

Rahul Chopra (captain), Aayan Afzal Khan, Ali Naseer, Aryansh Sharma, Basil Hameed, Dhruv Parashar, Junaid Siddique, Muhammad Farooq, Muhammad Jawadullah, Muhammad Waseem, Omid Rahman, Rahul Bhatia, Tanish Suri, Vishnu Sukumaran, Vriitya Aravind

Fixtures

Friday, November 1 – Oman v UAE
Sunday, November 3 – UAE v Netherlands
Thursday, November 7 – UAE v Oman
Saturday, November 9 – Netherlands v UAE

Company%20Profile
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECompany%20name%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Cargoz%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EDate%20started%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20January%202022%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounders%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Premlal%20Pullisserry%20and%20Lijo%20Antony%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Dubai%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ENumber%20of%20staff%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2030%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestment%20stage%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Seed%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
WISH
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PROFILE OF SWVL

Started: April 2017

Founders: Mostafa Kandil, Ahmed Sabbah and Mahmoud Nouh

Based: Cairo, Egypt

Sector: transport

Size: 450 employees

Investment: approximately $80 million

Investors include: Dubai’s Beco Capital, US’s Endeavor Catalyst, China’s MSA, Egypt’s Sawari Ventures, Sweden’s Vostok New Ventures, Property Finder CEO Michael Lahyani