An article published in the Guardian by Frank Kane, Sunday 23 November 2008 titled A bridge over the journalistic gulf in the Emirates triggered my pain, and opened my old wound while I was working in a media establishment in UAE wide open.

It is a well known fact that Journalism in the United Arab Emirates is strictly controlled by the government. The journalism group Reporters without Borders explained that the UAE constitution guarantees press freedom, but the content and political line of newspapers is closely monitored. English-language media has a greater leeway than strictly Arab periodicals. A similar study affirming information monitoring in UAE was conducted by the University of Toronto, in Ontario, Canada, the Harvard Law School in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and the University of Cambridge in Great Britain, and many more.
The argument is still valid. Frank Kane reported about the former Telegraph editor Martin Newland’s new position as editor-in-chief of the English Abu Dhabi-based and government-owned newspaper the National. He confessed ‘it's not easy to launch a newspaper in the United Arab Emirates. The government licenses all new publications and approves editors. Newland admitted that he ' had serious backing’, and he was clear that this backing was from the government because it is the controlling authority, he said ‘if the government believes in something and has a clear vision of how it will work, they can make it happen pretty quickly. I benefited from that vision’. I can’t agree more, if the government want anything there it make it happen, they can even buy the conscience of some people including journalists not to report on certain incidents. He also admitted that the media laws are hindering journalism, ‘even with the media laws here, there is a lot you can do.' I wonder what else a real journalist can do other than sunbathing.

Newland explains the basic philosophy of his title: 'we are telling our story through an Emirates focus, and even if we are telling somebody else's story in the foreign pages, we make sure it is our people telling it, not the wire agencies or syndicated copy’. Is this something to brag about and be proud of?. Newland you are officially declared a puppet now. Since it is the state that regulates what should be said and what should not in a country the locals constitute only 15 % of the population, the rest are expatriate workers, the people who make the fame of UAE through their hard work, those are not represented through the media or any other platform for that matter, including the foreign journalists who are denied membership of the Journalist’s Association on personal preference and have no Union to belong to. I am waiting to see how you can handle human rights preaches in UAE, and how you are going to defend the less fortunate while you ‘ tell the story through an Emirate focus’?.
Newland said 'We could have made the basic mistake of patronizing the Emirates, assuming that we could apply western liberal privileges to a place very different from ourselves. The default mode in western media is criticism’. Now what’s wrong with criticism Newland?, isn’t it part of democracy and setting things straight? Isn’t it about the right of free expression?, You were appointed to bring the readers something better than what they have already got, not to strip yourself from the little good you have.
Newland says. If you try to apply Western standards in UAE you get in trouble, with the readers, as much as the rulers.'..
So, what do you suggest?..What about your journalism ethics Newland? You have been educated in a democracy that respects freedom of speech and defending those who have no platform, it seems the minute you were offered the big cheque you flushed all your life time schooling and achievements down the toilet.
The article says ‘So far, the establishment has been as good as its word, allowing Newland more editorial freedom than perhaps any other Emirati publication’. So.. isn’t that a clear indication of bias, have you stopped for a minute to ask yourself why you are granted such extra special treatment. I dare Newland to explain his point of view since he mentioned that he has been able to approach subjects such as Israel and Palestine, religious and social issues, previously regarded as out-of-bounds by many UAE journalists, And still is. Can he tell us why he thinks that the state in UAE would not want to discuss such issues, especially the Israel and Palestine issues since it would help me understand why an Arab state would not want to upset Israel? And why he has been granted a freedom other colleagues who happen to be local citizens have not?
Newland claims that ‘We have a stable of talented Emirati writers who I think give the paper a unique voice, and I'm quite proud of that’. If that so why we never heard of them before? Almost all English writing journalists in UAE are Asians and Europeans with few Arab expatriates who came from more oppressing poor states like Syria, and clinching to their work regardless what, and are assigned to report from courts mainly on crimes of the expatriates and the burden they brought to the wealthy Gulf country. I am eager to see those you claim are excellent local journalists setting for tests in any foreign independent committee of journalism; it would be a great opportunity to examine your claim and count their numbers. You are contradicting yourself in the next line Newland by confessing ‘The world image of the UAE was being determined by the international press, If so.Why those talented UAE English writing journalists did not do something about it before you arrived at their door step? why did you have to hire most of the 200-odd staff from UK and North America if you had local staff to do the job? Oops ....I did not notice that you have said ‘employment legislation makes poaching and bidding for talent difficult. We had to look abroad.'
Newland obviously is not happy with international press for he says it ‘concentrated on issues like labor and trafficking’, Ok ..it seems you do not have much time for reading now, I can understand that with the load of work you have to bare. I would like to volunteer and tell you that these are not the only subjects international journalism was focusing on, as a matter of fact they were focusing on wealth and extravagant life styles, and on stars and their properties in UAE, and sometimes on the occasional preaches of local laws by expatriates, but most of all on trade and real estates promotion.
Now we can skim the butter of Newland’s mission, he refuses the fact that NGO’s and Amnesty are keeping an eye on the arena, he says ‘we can't continue to be defined by the NGOs and Amnesty International. We have to set a different agenda.’ Well...then you are one of them now and you are their new mouthpiece and that gave you the right to use the WE expression. But you are obviously not vigilant enough to hide the fact that there is an agenda and that this agenda have NGOs and Amnesty on the list and that you are one of the people who are working on implementing that agenda.
Newland’s leaked e mail ahead of the launch in April warned National journalists off investigative journalism on sensitive UAE issues such as labour conditions, business corruption or trading relations with other Islamic countries, but he is unapologetic. 'You have to pick your shots, we have done that by applying international benchmarks to domestic issues that affect the quality of life here, such as housing, education, and transport’.
Well, one has to say that Newland tackled the quality of life for the locals only but not for the majority of people living in UAE and who are not locals.
He said ‘We have been critical on some of these issues when criticism has been justified’, For God’s sake how big is the ‘some’ you are talking about, and who decided what has been justified.
Talking about ethics and credibility, you have to remember that sooner or later you are coming back home, and your own credibility will be under scrutiny...that’s if you wanted to come back after savouring the life of the people who are sheltered by the UAE wealthy umbrella.