The Rulers of Dubai

Every now and then, one is reminded of the rulers of the emirates' key role.

And not just because you see their pictures on certain buildings or on posters, or on the front page of Gulf News - which is, by the way, owned by a ruling family; and it is only recently that a law was passed according to which you don't go to prison anymore if you publish a story against the governments' opinion in that paper. However, I've been told, you would be fined 1,000,000 Dhs. And if you can't pay that, you go to prison anyway. That's at least what I heard, I have no confirmation for this and I am not judging here, I have to emphasize. This, after all, IS a different culture even though one might easily forget this when we marvel at the latest record-breaking projects in Dubai or enjoy ourselves in the countless bars, malls, or beaches of this city.

One powerful reflection of the rulers' importance which I saw just recently: A company, celebrating its 50th anniversary, had booked a full page advertisement in a major daily paper. Half of that page showed all the emirates' rulers. And the text below praised their leadership and vision at length, making the anniversary itself an apparently secondary thing. This told me just how important it is to be liked by those people.

Another example: The other day, when I was zapping through the TV channels in the evening, I saw the screen you see in the picture on City7 - Dubai's local TV channel. Apparently, a member of the ruling family had died. So the program was interrupted, and, along with the freeze image, a prayer was broadcast in Arabic and English.

By the way, if you want to know: Dubai's government operates within the framework of a constitutional monarchy. It has been ruled by the Al Maktoum family since 1833. The current ruler, Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, is also the Prime Minister of the United Arab Emirates and member of the Supreme Council of the Union (SCU).