The life sentence in the UAE for spying on behalf of the UK government handed out to Durham University student Matthew Hedges came as an unpleasant shock. And is all the more peculiar given the close ties between the UK and UAE (United Arab Emirates), both economically and militarily.
He spent five months in solitary confinement during the first six weeks of which he was interrogated without a lawyer or consular access and signed a document in Arabic which has described as a confession, despite neither speaking nor writing Arabic. Middle Eastern justice systems are back in the dark ages and should give people serious thought before they jaunt off for exotic holidays and/or fun work experience.
The UAE, a former UK protectorate home to around 100,000 Britons, is the UK’s largest export market in the Middle East. And the UAE is a major investor in the British economy and London with many of its leaders being Sandhurst trained.
Jeremy Hunt, the Foreign Secretary, issued a blunt statement saying it “is not what we expect from a friend and trusted partner of the United Kingdom and runs contrary to earlier assurances”.
The UAE was formed 2 December 1971. The relationship chart with the UK looks stressed over the next few weeks into early 2019 with tr Saturn square the composite Jupiter Uranus and Mars, putting a damper on good feelings and raising aggravation; and will limp on through 2019/2020. There must be a leverage behind this – perhaps Saudi pressure in a sulk over UK criticism of the Khashoggi murder? Though Hedges was detained way before. Who knows? It will no doubt emerge at some point.
The UAE is not looking too chipper and hasn’t been for a while with tr Neptune squaring its Sun Jupiter in Sagittarius square Mars in Pisces, running on till late 2019.
Jeremy Hunt (thank heavens it isn’t still Boris as FCO chef) looks undermined and less than pleased with the UAE until the New Year.
Add on: More is emerging about possible reasons behind Hedges’ conviction. He may have been naïve in exploring security issues for his doctoral thesis, however openly, in a country which has become, like others in the region, increasingly averse to any questioning by outsiders.
The Emirati crown prince Prince Mohammed, known as MbZ, the defacto ruler, 11 March 1961, it is thought has a ‘scratchy’ relationship with the present British government, despite being trained at the UK Sandhurst Military Academy. He has acted as a mentor for Saudi’s Mohammed bin Salman. Donald Trump’s explicit statement that ME allies would no longer hear US officials complaining about human rights, governance or corruption has been warmly received. And equally Emirati and Saudi leaders have bristled at allies, like Theresa May, who have not followed Trump’s lead.
MbZ is a Pisces sextile Jupiter Saturn in Capricorn; with his Mars in Cancer square Theresa May’s Sun. Their relationship chart has a cold composite Sun Saturn being rattled till early March 2019; and a mutually unsupportive, volatile and uncompromising (on both sides) composite Mars opposition Neptune square Uranus.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/nov/23/hedges-case-a-sign-of-uae-kickback-against-western-criticism
Several EU countries, including Denmark and Finland, have suspended arms sales to UEA and Saudi Arabia due to Khashoggi murder and/or Yemeni war today. Germany did this earlier, and I’m fairly certain Sweden (who are big arms importeeörs), too. I don’t think timing is casual – it’s Thanksgiving in The US, and WH and Pentagon have minimal staffing (I’m fairly certain most generals in Pentagon don’t like seeing children starving to death in Yemen either, but they are dealing with a POTUS ready to shoot at civilian).
Something is definitely moving now.
A letter on the The Gulf Centre for Human Rights website to drivers in the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix on November 25.
‘Dear friends,
As you ready yourselves to hold the limelight on the stages and tracks of the final Formula One race of the season, we the undersigned NGOs, wish to draw your attention to the reality of the human rights situation in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), which is a far cry from the glitz and glamour the country intends to project to the world.
Since 2011, the UAE authorities have embarked on a crackdown to silence their critics including human rights defenders, judges, lawyers, academics, students and journalists. They have been harassed, arbitrarily detained, subjected to enforced disappearance, tortured and otherwise ill-treated, and convicted following trials that failed to meet international standards of fairness. Critics and dissidents in the UAE are serving lengthy prison sentences simply for peacefully exercising their right to freedom of expression and we consider them to be prisoners of conscience who should be released immediately and unconditionally.
The UAE authorities have tightened and amended their already repressive laws to further suppress human rights and particularly to silence peaceful dissent and other expression on public issues. As a result, human rights defenders and other critics of the government have been sentenced to lengthy prison terms.
The UAE is listed as ‘closed’ on the CIVICUS Monitor which is the lowest and most oppressive category as far as protection of civic freedoms of expression, association and peaceful assembly is concerned.
Today we are launching a campaign to call for the release of prisoners of conscience in the UAE and we urge you to lend us your support.
We call upon you, drivers, teams and performers to be the champions of human rights on the circuit and on stage; to be the voices of those who have been silenced and unfairly detained. We urge you to use your celebrity status to call on the UAE authorities to immediately and unconditionally release all prisoners of conscience who have been detained solely for peacefully criticizing the authorities, or for calling or advocating for the respect and protection of human rights.’
The governments of Britain and the US have a “blind eye” attitude to our tyrannical “friends” in the ME. We hand wring and make statements but in the end it always boils down to trade and money. Trump is the most egregious example re KSA and Yemen. Israel can slaughter women and kids every day of the week and we say and do nothing really. Qatar can enslave, literally, large numbers of immigrants to build stadia for the WC and we in the west do not a thing. The poor sod in Dubai is “ collateral damage “ to use their charming phrase
I remember when Dubai, and to some extend, other Gulf States, were “all that” among my Pluto in Libra generation friends just prior to and after Credit Crunch. Holidays, but quite a few were actually offered job there too, and some accepted. As someone with a long history of human rights watch and some times activism I was, frankly speaking, horrified.
Therefore, I’m reliefed by this Pluto in Capricorn manifestation – (some) Western Governments realizing that just because certain countries operate at 21st Century financially, doesn’t mean they aren’t essentially tribal societies.