Dubai, born of the dream to create a Middle Eastern Shangri-la, was ‘built from nothing in just a few wild decades on credit and ecocide, suppression and slavery.’ Today, there are half-finished buildings and new establishments that look plush and posh but with ceilings that leak rainwater and tiles falling off. Some of the infrastructure pieces are under collapse. The biggest showcase of Arab enterprise and western capitalism, where one can find artificial islands and air-conditioned beaches, has a decidedly dark side.

The seemingly sleek modern city is actually governed by some sort of medieval dictatorship. There is no political freedom in Dubai, the most populous of the seven emirates of the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Practically everything is political propaganda, beginning with its motto of ‘Open doors, open minds.’

The quick and vast growth of the metropolis is largely attributed to its royal leadership when the place was actually built by slaves, and continues to be built by modern slaves called overseas contract workers living in poor working conditions, dealing with worker abuse, and discovering fake worker’s contracts.

Like Singapore, Dubai is a city of malls. Consumerism is the name of the game. Like Singapore, Dubai’s economy is largely fueled by expats and tourists. It is an economic hub and melting pot of deep pockets and wallets full of credit cards.

Dubai citizens can hardly complain about the flooding of foreigners because these are the ones that have transformed an old desert place similar to any of those in barren Africa to an oasis of wealth where a typical per capita annual income is $120,000, enough to make a bunch of lazy and overweight people dependent on the so-called ‘servant class.’

In reality, Dubai is a ‘Creditopolis,’ a city built entirely on debt, owing 107 percent of its entire GDP. The royal family thinks they own the country and everyone is their servant. Dubai, the Middle East’s eye candy, does not export oil but hope.

Image

Via The Independent