NEWS FROM THE UAE
SOURCE : THE NATIONAL

Visa chaos floods Buraimi hotels

BURAIMI, OMAN - OCT 01: When Lydia left for the Omani border town of Buraimi to renew her visit visa, she expected to make it back for dinner at her sister’s house in Abu Dhabi the next day.

Now, nearly five weeks later, she is living in a hotel room with five other people in the town straddling Al Ain and is still waiting to return to the UAE – just one of the thousands of people believed to have been stranded outside the country after attempting so-called visa runs that have recently been banned for many nationalities.

“We are suffering too much,” said Lydia, 52, who declined to give her surname. Like many others, she said she had been promised her visas would eventually come through, “but nothing is happening”.

Before the new rules took effect in July, people whose visit visas expired were able to renew them by making short trips to easily accessible neighbouring countries. The new procedures prevent visitors from all but 33 countries from re-entering the country immediately.

Officials advise they should return to their home countries for at least one month before returning to the Emirates. Some travel agencies admit they do not fully understand the revamped procedures and are still offering customers the short visa-renewal trips.

As a result, thousands are thought to be stuck in a sort of bureaucratic limbo in places such as Buraimi and Kish Island in Iran and some do not have the funds to return to their home countries. It is estimated that more than 6,000 Filipinos alone have been stranded outside the UAE.

Like many of the people stuck in Buraimi, Lydia arrived in Oman on a package deal offered by a travel agency, which included transportation by bus, a one-night hotel stay and assistance with visa procedures.

“I came to the UAE to be with my sister who works in Abu Dhabi, to find a job,” Lydia said. “Now, I have no money to pay for the ticket if I have to go back to the Philippines. I don’t want to have to go back.”

Yesterday, scores of people, mostly Filipinos, crowded into the lobbies of several Buraimi hotels, waiting to find out whether they would be allowed to return to the UAE.

Others said they were simply taking respite from cramped hotel rooms. In some cases up to eight people are living in one room. Gaye, 22, has been in Buraimi for more than three weeks, paying Dh50 a night to stay in a hotel room with five other women. She was due to start work as a secretary with a company in Abu Dhabi.

“I don’t even know if I have a job to go back to now. I am very frustrated. Nobody would be happy in this situation,” she said. “Hopefully I’ll be able to go back after Eid.”

Her travel agency maintains that she will be able to return to the UAE.

Outside the hotel, dozens gathered as dusk fell on another day in Buraimi. They were simply waiting, sitting on plastic chairs outside the hotels, jostling for space on couches in the lobbies. Some already had their luggage by their side in case a call came that their visa applications had been approved.

After eight days in Buraimi, Ronald, 30, a graphic designer from Manila, was told that his application was rejected, but no one told him why. It was his first visa run after living in Dubai for six years.

The travel agent “didn’t give us a reason”, he said, surrounded by several friends in similar predicaments. “They said they don’t know, but won’t give us the evidence or any documents to prove it. We don’t know what’s happening. Maybe my application is still pending.”

Some said they were on visit visas on the advice of their employers pending the completion of probationary periods. Others were employed “off the books” due to rules that allow their previous employers to ban them from working for another company for six months or were simply living in the UAE on visit visas.

While there was frustration at travel agents for giving out false information, some criticised the rule change itself. “I trust my agency. They’re Filipinos so they should help me,” said Vinecia, 35, one of a large group that had congregated on the front lawn of the Buraimi Hotel.

Her friend, Christina, 31, who had been looking for a job in sales in the UAE, has been staying at the hotel for the past 20 days, since she was informed by her travel agency that her visa renewal application had been rejected on the basis that she had entered the country too many times.

“I feel so bad,” she said. “Why is this happening? I am spending so much money and I don’t know what is going on.”

Also among the crowd was Mona, 30, an Iranian pianist who had been in Buraimi since Saturday and was supposed to have performed at a recital in Dubai this week.

“I am not working in Dubai. I just wanted to stay for one more month and couldn’t find a seat on a plane back to Iran, so I came here,” she said. “My family in Iran don’t know what’s happening. They would be too worried.”

Local hotel managers said they were negotiating with Omani authorities to allow the stranded passengers to stay longer in Buraimi to resolve their visa problems.

“Most of these people are staying here for over one month, without a salary, so we are doing what we can to help,” said Jamal al Safar, general manager of Al Salam Hotel. “If they have no money, maybe some will turn to doing something wrong. This is a very bad situation for them.”

However, another manager, who declined to be identified, disputed that anyone was “stranded”. They were free to return to their home countries, he said.

“They are just waiting for their time here to elapse, but they are not stranded,” he said from behind the front desk of his hotel, while dozens of people clamoured for information about their visas.

Some of those stuck in Buraimi said they were lucky enough to have friends or family in the UAE who were able to send them some money. Others are not as fortunate. “If my visa gets rejected again, I will have to borrow more money to get home as I don’t have enough. I am so worried,” said Richard, 32, from Manila.

“I came to the UAE to work and earn money. Instead I am spending all my money. It’s the opposite.”

Office spaces planned for women only

DUBAI - OCT 01:A 20-storey tower is being built as part of the Business Bay project that will sell offices to women only, developers Hydra Properties announced.

“We have conceptualised the building as a tribute to the nurturing spirit of womanhood,” said Sulaiman al Fahim, the company’s chief executive officer, a high-profile figure in the UAE business and sporting worlds who is well-known for hosting the reality television show Hydra Executives.

“I’m confident that the tower will lead to a new awakening and unleash the latent entrepreneurial talent of UAE women, and contribute to the overall growth of the nation and region.”

A spokesman for Hydra Properties said that the excavation work had been completed at the site, and that the building was expected to be completed in 2010.

Women on the streets of Dubai said they had mixed feelings about the project.

“I think it’s a good idea; most of the bosses I have worked for are men and anything that gives businesswomen a boost should be applauded,” said Neena Khan, 30, who is originally from Pakistan and works in the IT sector.

However, Jayne Sherry, 34, from the UK, said: “It sounds like a bit of a gimmick. What will happen if they cannot find enough women to buy all the office space?”

“Also, would they only be allowed to sell to another woman? It all sounds a bit strange.”

Naif Souk seeks Eid revival

DUBAI - OCT. 01: The municipality is trying to promote the temporary Naif Souk during Eid al Fitr, following complaints by shopkeepers of poor business during the festival season.

The new market was set up in July to temporarily house some 200 shopkeepers who lost their properties in a blaze that destroyed the original souk, built in the 1980s. However, shop owners say that very few customers turn up at the new market because no one knows where it is.

“The Naif Souk is famous for Ramadan and Eid shopping. It’s that time of the year when we make huge profits. However, this year we have seen few customers as regular customers can’t find the new souk and others are just discouraged from coming here,” said Majeed Theruvath, who owns a cosmetics and accessories shop.

“Tourists come looking for the souk all through the year and especially during Eid. The designs and products we have here are not available even in big malls.”

Other shop owners said the location of the old souk near the old Naif Fort, as well as its antique design, attracted many visitors, including from other GCC counries.

“They all enjoyed shopping here. It was not just the variety and the cost, but also the way the souk was designed,” said a trader.

However, the new location is not very popular, say traders, forcing them to close much earlier than before.

“Last year, we were open up to 4am some days due to the number of customers. This Ramadan many shops have been closing early.”

The municipality now plans to raise a giant balloon above the temporary souk during Eid to help visitors locate it. It has also set up signboards at the location of the old souk directing people to the new one.

“The signboards have helped us and we have seen more customers in the last few days. However, it is still nothing compared to the old days,” said Mr Theruvath.

On April 2, the 60,000 square foot Naif Souk was gutted in a fire that destroyed the shops and property worth millions of dirhams – and left many shopkeepers jobless.

The municipality acted quickly and set up a temporary souk in a parking area 500 metres from the original one.

The officials urged traders to continue business at the temporary location while they built a new, air-conditioned souk at the original spot.

The new market is expected to be ready by the end of the year.

Traders said that many of them had been holding off closing their businesses in the hope that sales during the festival season would help them cover their losses.

“We were looking forward to the Eid season for some respite. It looks like we will have to wait for the new souk to be ready for us to get back on track,” said another trader.

Snake bite victim in danger
 

RAS AL KHAIMAH - UAE: OCT 01:A man bitten by a viper in a rare incident in Ras al Khaimah remains seriously ill in hospital, with doctors describing his case as the most complex they have seen.

Reg Furlong, a commodore at the Ras al Khaimah Sailing Club, is undergoing dialysis at Obaid Allah Hospital, where medical staff have warned his family that his survival is not guaranteed.

“He is in a lot of pain right now,” said his wife, Jo Furlong. “They said this is the most complicated case they’ve ever had.”

Mr Furlong, 61, is suffering from circulation problems in addition to kidney complications.

He was bitten by the saw-scaled viper at the sailing club after he attempted to remove it from a storeroom. Experts have described the species as the most dangerous snake in the Arab world.

He was referred for specialist treatment to the Obaid Allah Hospital after initially attending two other hospitals.

Mrs Furlong said doctors were working extremely hard to ensure that her husband lived.

“These public hospitals haven’t got as much money but the doctors are extremely dedicated.”

Dr Osama Bedawi, a nephrologist at Obaid Allah Hospital, said that while snake bites were a “fairly common problem”, ones by vipers of this sort were rare.

“We get between 15 to 20 patients per year, mainly in summer months,” he said. “Of those, maybe 25 per cent are complicated. The rest come, take the antivenin and improve within 48 or 72 hours.

“When people go camping they should ask the local people if there are snakes in the area and they should always be on the lookout.”

If attacked, Dr Bedawi said, “come to hospital straight away, without any delay, because the earlier the treatment is given the more effective it is”.

A Civil Defence spokesman said it was usually notified of about five cases each year, most often from July to September.