NEWS FROM THE UAE
Excerpts from UAE Dailies

School Teacher Suspended for Abusing Students

Dubai - Jan. 10:A Dubai school has suspended a teacher following allegations she disciplined pupils by tying them to chairs and gagging them.

Parents at the GEMS Winchester School in Jebel Ali say they are furious after their seven-year-old child became scared to go to school after witnessing one incident, alleging he was told not to repeat what had happened in class. The dad said: “My child came home, scared to go to class the next day because of what had happened to another pupil. I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. We don’t have any proof, but I believe my son.”

He added: “We are entrusting the teachers with the wellbeing and safety - physically and mentally - of our children, unconditionally. “How dare they abuse that trust and how dare they abuse the mantle of the profession of teacher.”

The grade three teacher is alleged to have tied a child to a chair with rope, and gagged them across their face and mouth, as punishment for misbehaving. The incident is not believed to be isolated and similar punishments are alleged to have had occurred on other occasions.

Raminder Veg, principal of the Winchester School, said while neither GEMS nor the school received a formal complaint from the parent of the child allegedly involved, the head of primary at the school was told of the incident by another parent and, as a result, the teacher has been suspended pending the outcome of a full investigation.

He said: “Physical engagement of teachers with students and/or any action that degrades or ridicules students in any manner, is not tolerated in our schools.”
Confirming a music teacher was recently dismissed from the school for rapping the knuckles of pupils, he said if the allegations are proven to be true, it would be dealt with appropriately.

He said: “Should an investigation result in the finding a teacher, or any member of school staff, has violated policy and used inappropriate force or physical interaction, they will have their school contract terminated.”

SEVEN DAYS

India R-Day celebrations

ABU DHABI — Jan. 10: The Embassy of India in Abu Dhabi is gearing up to celebrate the anniversary of the Indian Republic Day on January 26, according to a source in the embassy.

The celebration will include get-togethers and will witness a flag-hoisting ceremony. The ambassador will hoist the Indian flag in the embassy on January 26. Also, it will hold an official reception on January 28 at Indian Official Centre.  The Indian Social and Cultural Club in Abu Dhabi too will hold celebrations on the occasion.

KHALEEJ TIMES

RTA safety drive targets pedestrians

DUBAI — Jan. 10:Engineer Maitha bin Adai, CEO of the Traffic and Roads Agency in the Roads and Transport Authority (RTA), has said that the authority has launched a campaign for safety of pedestrians and motorcyclists in collaboration with Dubai Police and have prepared a comprehensive programme for this year’s campaigns.

She expressed satisfaction with the success of the campaign on the students’ safety during exams in which 30 public and private schools participated.

Eng. Bader Mattar Al Siri, Director of the Traffic Department commended participation of Dubai Police in supporting the programme of the Traffic Safety Team.

Al Mae’tasim Bellah Mohammad Rauf, Traffic Awareness Manager said that there was no contradiction between the work of the Traffic Department in Dubai Police and the Traffic Department in the RTA because of their integrated approach for the public, revealing that the joint campaigns for this year will start with the pedestrian safety campaign and motorcycles from 14 to 25 this month, followed by the aggressive driving campaign during the month of February and the traffic week in March.

He said that next April, a campaign on exceeding speed limit will be launched.

KHALEEJ TIMES

Committee warns landlords against power disconnection

ABU DHABI — Jan. 10:The Rent Disputes Settlement Committee in the capital has warned landlords against disconnecting power supply of buildings in case of disputes with the tenants.

Khamis Al Hosani, Head of Rent Disputes Section at the Committee, has said that stern action would be taken against landlords indulging in such illegal act. The committee has also restored power supply to the 10 buildings where the landlords had got it disconnected, leaving the tenants without electricity.

Al Hosani has said that cutting power badly affects the families residing in these units.

“We want the parties to reach amicable settlements as per the new tenancy law in Abu Dhabi, in effect from 9 November, 2006,” he emphasized.

Khaleej Times was present at the venue where the Committee was listening to the complaints of both landlords and tenants.

One such complainant was a woman, who had come to the Committee with her daughter. She had charged her landlord with demanding a rent hike of 150 per cent. Asking her to submit an official complaint, Al Hosani affirmed that the “landlord has no right to raise rent at whimsical rate which runs counter to the new tenancy law, which has fixed the rent cap at 7 per cent a year.”

The irony, said Al Hosani, is that even the previous law didn’t allow an increase in rent by over 20 per cent. The committee, which commenced it mission on 11 December 2006, has so far received over 800 complaints, which are slated to be settled in three months. Al Hosani said the committee had already settled four complaints between landlords and tenants through reconciliation. It will give its ruling in another four disputes next Sunday.

KHALEEJ TIMES

Dubai - RTA silent on Gardens

Dubai - Jan. 10: The RTA was tight-lipped yesterday about the controversy surrounding the West Parallel Road project that may affect 12 buildings in The Gardens and force hundreds to leave their homes.

RTA officials have conducted meetings to discuss the issue but have refused to give out any information to the media.

A 7DAYS reporter was told yesterday that an official statement would be made by the RTA before the end of the week.

SEVEN DAYS

Cell to resolve visa issues of housemaids

ABU DHABI — Jan. 09:The Minister of Interior, Lt General Shaikh Saif bin Zayed Al Nahyan, has issued a decree to bring about some changes in the naturalisation and residency departments across the country, including setting up a section to settle disputes between domestic workers and their sponsors.

The decree called for the formation of dispute settlement branches and a department to deal with people breaching residency laws.

As per the decree, a dispute settlement branch will receive complaints from housemaids, other domestic workers and those who fall under the same category (such as farm workers, drivers, cooks and others) against their sponsors and help them reach a reasonable settlement.

The branches will also coordinate with entry permits and residency departments at the General Directorate regarding issues related to domestic servants that need to be forwarded to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Shaikh Saif entrusted the naturalisation investigation section with probing and gathering information about citizenship applicants. It had also been asked to refer people violating residency laws to the authorities concerned and ensure implementation of naturalisation and passports laws.

KHALEEJ TIMES