Wednesday, September 24, 2008

'Clarification' of the evictions...

So now we have the official word on what the eviction of families is all about, with an advertisement from Dubai Municipality.

Inevitably it's in the strange language understood only by bureaucrats so the precise meaning is a bit vague.

It begins:

"To all concerned with the establishments and companies, nationals, residents, and owners of the residences and buildings utilized for accommodating labourers, bachelors and multi-families in the residential districts in different areas of the Emirate of Dubai."

'The residential districts in different areas' is a very unspecific; does it mean, as it implies, all residential areas?

And it doesn't specify only families in villas as yesterday's reports said in reference to the 'one villa one family' campaign. It now includes 'labourers, bachelors and multi-families' and says 'residences and buildings' so it's much more wide-ranging.

The announcement goes on:

"...it is obligatory to vacate the above mentioned categories from these accommodations..."

So it's saying that labourers, bachelors (meaning single people of either sex) and multi-families cannot live in Dubai's residential areas.

I find that astonishing.

It continues:

"...and remove the establishments that were added in violation to the original licensed activities..."

That presumably means partitioning, temporary structures on roofs etc. which break the building regulations and cause overcrowding, which the Municipality is quite right to crack down on. As I said yesterday, overcrowding is a major problem that needs to be stamped out.

But a blanket ban on sharing accommodation and even worse a ban on single people living in residential areas, or a ban on families sharing without overcrowding, which is what the announcement says, that's a whole different thing.

I assume the original announcement was in Arabic so I suppose there could be something lost in the translation. Or maybe I'm reading its meaning incorrectly.

Or maybe they do actually mean exactly what it says. Here it is in full (click on it to enlarge it):


21 comments:

Em said...

sucks to be an expat...

Anonymous said...

Anyone know the Arabic word for codification?...

Anonymous said...

Lovely. Makes it all so clear and encourages people to make their neighbours homeless as well. What a great sense of community this place is creating.

LDU said...

Are single people allowed to share accomodation in Dubai?

In terms of accomodation, what options are available for single men/women?

Seabee said...

LDU, although many singles (bachelors, they're all called regardless of gender) do share, just as they do in cities around the world, it's officially not allowed. In the past the usual Dubai blind eye has been turned on it but now it seems that's going to change.

Or more likely, as so often in the past, some thought will be given to the announcement some days after it was made and we'll get a new announcement.

Watch this space.

Sharing apartments or villas has been the standard practice - very few can afford to live on their own. If the announcement stands, their options will be to move out of Dubai.

Anonymous said...

Quite right I dont want poor families as my neighbours and no single people either i mean they must get up to all sorts of evil and dont get me started on labourers ...
hmmm why not build some shacks far away from us decent, civilised people and put these "categories of people" there - i know we could call them ghettos! Worked in Nazi germany didnt it???!!!

caz said...

Wow,

Everlasting consruction, development, re developtment, RTA problems, maniac drivers, oppressive heat, now add monumental accommodation problems.

What next one wonders, sure makes for interesting blogs.

Caz.

Anonymous said...

imagine if this was the city that didn't care !

Anonymous said...

dear anonymous(the one who doesnt want poor families or singles next to him) so if the labourers are kicked out i guess you (in all your richness and glory would be constructing the "shacks" with your own hands) that would be worth watching!!
so typical exploit them to build up the country through unbearable heat and then kick them out once the works done!! that dubai for you!!

Seabee said...

Caz, you could do a blog posting about the same in Sydney - the 'rental crisis' as it's been called for well over two years!

One quote, from the Sydney Morning Herald, of many about it: "The situation is now so grave that we are unfortunately experiencing incidents of rental rage with the real-estate agents saying they are being abused and threatened."

Anonymous said...

in simple words they just want to kick out people who cant afford to pay the rent of a decent apartment by justifying themselves that they care about "resedential environment". they exploited the middle class till their country was built so now bye bye we dont need them anymore. they just cause "traffic" so i guess we should find someplace else. how decieving "no taxes?" but you are ripped off in many other ways to compensate for it! cheers

Anonymous said...

and by the way they can and very well are capable of building overnight and have homes for eveyone (and oh my must i mention the vast lands they have to do so). but if they do the real estate which is booming will fall and they dont want that to happen now do they? they have a lot of buildings and projects that are vacant but they dont have permission to rent them out why??

Anonymous said...

and oh yeah the cheapest housing for the middle class is international city which needs 2 payments yearly and commission deposit dewa etc just so you can get a place which has no drainage that every few days the whole place is full of **** till they come and clear it and if not that theres always the stinking garbage dump beside it. is that what they mean by "resedential environment" ??

dubaibilly said...

Am I being thick, or is this saying that a single person living by themselves in their one bedroom apartment has to leave?

Seabee said...

Billy that's how I read it too. It may be that they're not explaining it properly and they actually are only talking about overcrowding - but that's not what it says.

Seabee said...

Billy that's how I read it too. It may be that they're not explaining it properly and they actually are only talking about overcrowding - but that's not what it says.

caz said...

Who ever heard of a property owner selling his property for less than it was worth, or less than market value, just to give some poor sod a chance of a home. Who ever heard of a prospect offering to pay more than the property is worth just to take into considertation the poor property owner and his return on his 'investmenmt', or help pay his mortgage.

Who ever heard of a landlord renting his property for less than than market value, and who ever heard of a renter offering to pay more rent than he has to.

The seller wants as much as he can get for his property. and the buyer wants to pay as little as he can.

Its been this way for about 1000 years. its called haggling.

Twas ever thus.

Caz.

Seabee said...

Indeed Caz but I'm at a loss to see the relevance to this post.

Anonymous said...

Locals... They love to be served like a lords - filling up gas without leaving a car, packing groceries by dedicated staff etc. It's FOR FREE.
But still they did forgot that someone is doing it for them. Maybe not for long.

Price hikes, new salik gates, one villa-one family extravaganza, upcoming "taxes" on private cars, $200 per visit visa.... Looks like only fancy people can live in Dubai now. Who will be filling up simple jobs then? Uneducated locals?

And hey Abdulla, it looks like you have to provide your maid an accommodation. She cannot live with you. One villa-one family, remember?

caz said...

Seebee,

You asked me to post a blog abut the accommodation problem in Sydney.

I did.

It's question of supply and demand,
Not mention of course the avarice of the seller and the buyer, no matter what the product is.

Caz.

Seabee said...

Ah Caz, in response to your comment about Dubai's 'monumental accommodation problems' I suggested you post about Sydney's 'rental crisis' - on your blog, not as a comment here. And I meant a post about the whole accommodation problem there, not just a comment about rents. I know it's a subject you feel strongly about.