NEWS FROM THE UAE
Excerpts from UAE Dailies
Dubai the next hot location for Hollywood
DUBAI -MAY 27: More and more filmmakers are showing interest in shooting their productions in Dubai, movie festival boss Abdul Hamid Juma said yesterday. The trend began with the filming of the 2005 release Syriana, a thriller starring George Clooney.
“After Syriana, Dubai is now on the map in Hollywood,” said Juma, chairman of the Dubai International Film Festival.
“I am very confident we’ll have a major Hollywood film shot in the emirate in the next two years. We’ve already had a lot of interest.” Juma, who is also Deputy Director-General of Dubai Technology and Media Free Zone Authority, has been at the Cannes Film Festival over the past few days.
He said the number of enquiries received at a stand pro moting the Dubai festival and Dubai Studio City – the production complex being built next to Arabian Ranches – was proof of the emirate’s growing appeal.
Producers and directors have been able to obtain information on the special arrangements in place for filming in Dubai and the location management department that will facilitate shoots.
Juma said the recently announced location management co-operation agreement would ease the path of camera crews.
“We have now come to the point where we can feasibly shut down Sheikh Zayed Road for a few hours for a shoot,” said Juma. “Before, that would have been difficult. But now the police, customs, everyone has shown their support.” He added: “Dubai will be a leading movie-making destination for the whole world. We’re building the facilities and capacity for this today.”
EMIRATES TODAY
Officials suspected foul play in job offers
DUBAI - MAY 27: Officials at the Indian Counsulate in Dubai feared they were being targeted by fraudsters when they received documents from the Roads and Transport Authority. The papers, authorising an agency in Mumbai to hire 300 taxi drivers, arrived days after conmen posing as RTA officials swindled agencies in Kerala out of cash. But checks proved the documents were genuine.
“With the letter coming on the heels of the fraudulent activity we thought it best to crosscheck with the RTA,”said a consulate official. Fouzia Ahmad Zuma, RTA Human Resources Manager,confirmed the recruit ment offers were genuine. One of the Kerala conmen posed as Essa Al Dossari, CEO of the RTA’s marine agency in a planned operation. Police in India are continuing to search for the gang, who have cheated up to 20 agents into handing over money.
EMIRATES TODAY
Pedestrian deaths rise due to lack of facilities
DUBAI, SHARJAH —MAY 27: Lack of pedestrian crossings, overhead bridges and underpasses on a number of roads in residential and commercial areas and highways in Dubai and Sharjah have led to 50 per cent increase in pedestrian deaths in the past five months, according to statistics compiled by police departments in Dubai and Sharjah.
In the wake of high number of pedestrian deaths, police departments in both the emirates have urged the departments concerned to address the problem quickly in the interest of public safety.
According to Dubai Traffic Police, 227 pedestrian accidents were reported from January 1 until May 23, 2007, in which 45 people lost their lives while crossing highways. Besides, 36 people suffered severe injuries, 79 moderate and 89 minor injuries.
Issa Aman, deputy director of Traffic Department in Dubai, said the majority of pedestrians involved in traffic accidents were labourers who tried crossing the roads at non-specified areas.
He said besides organising traffic safety awareness campaigns, Dubai Police will intensify police patrolling to prevent people from crossing roads at a number of accident-prone spots.
Aman said fencing along the city’s most dangerous roads could prevent pedestrians from crossing the road and thus reduce traffic accidents.
He added that The Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) has started implementing a project to reduce accidents involving pedestrians, but failed to give details of the new project.
According to Aman, pedestrian accidents in Dubai represent 19 per cent of the total number of traffic accidents. In most cases, the accidents were caused by motorists’ lack of attention to road users and pedestrians crossing the roads at non-specified areas, or jumping over fences.
The roads which registered highest number of pedestrian accidents include Shaikh Zayed Road, Emirates Ring Road, Khaled bin Al Waleed Road and Al Rashid Road.
In Sharjah, according to Traffic Department, 24 people were killed in accidents involving speeding vehicles and inattentive road-crossing by pedestrians. Apart from causing serious injuries, the accidents also partly disabled 78 people during the last three months.
The statistics also indicated that the number of pedestrian accidents increased by 50 per cent during the last three months.
A high-ranking official of Sharjah Police said the main factor in accidents involving pedestrians was lack of walkways, subways and underpasses in many parts of the emirate.
KHALEEJ TIMES