Because of their incredible growth, diverse population and friendly, pro-West attitudes, it’s easy to forget that the UAE is not a democracy. The government – more specifically, the ruling Al Nahyan family – has final say in all matters, and is a highly respected authority.
This is evidenced from time to time, like in “Gulf News” – one of the UAE’s main local newspapers. Most articles have a very pro-government spin…sometimes being so sugary sweet, the article reads like something found in a high school newspaper.
I wanted to showcase this article about Dubai’s “car-free day”. From the article, it sounds great. A lot of warm and fuzzies, and everyone was so involved. However, the point they barely touch on is that the entire parking lot for municipality employees was closed! There was no other way to work except public transportation.
If link to article no longer works, here is a cached version. Gulf News Article