UAE | Crime
Authorities vow to crack down on violent protests
UAE authorities will not tolerate acts of vandalism. violation of its laws and attempts to destabilise the country, said the chief of Sharjah police.
- By Sunita Menon, Staff Reporter
- Published: 11:06 March 19, 2008
- Workers went on the rampage in Sharjah, torching a number of vehicles and offices in their accommodation compound.
- Image Credit: WAM
Sharjah: UAE authorities will not tolerate acts of vandalism. violation of its laws and attempts to destabilise the country, said the chief of Sharjah police.
Brigadier Humaid Mohammad Al Hudaidi, director general of Sharjah police, was reacting to vandalism perpetrated by 1,500 workers of Electro Mechanical company in the Al Sajaa area of Sharjah yesterday.
Brigadier Al Hudaidi said that the striking workers became violent in their accommodation. They broke the glass facades of offices and set fire to the ground floor of the accommodation management office, endangering the lives of 20 employees who were trapped in the building.
He said that the workers also went into the company car park and burnt five cars, destroyed 40 others and 28 buses by pelting them with rocks and metal objects. They also tried to assault police and labour officials who rushed to the scene.
Sharjah police arrived at the scene with Civil Defence and anti-riot police teams and cordoned off the area to prevent the vandalism from spreading, while the firefighting team extinguished the blazing cars and offices.
Brigadier Al Hudaidi was accompanied by Humaid Bin Deemas, Undersecretary in the Ministry of Labour, and Colonel Abdullah Mubarak Al Dokhan, Deputy Director General of Sharjah police.
"There is a legitimate means to asking for your demands by approaching the concerned authorities, discussing your problems and finding solutions," said Brigadier Al Hudaidi.
He urged the workers not to resort to acts of violence and vandalism. He asked the workers to appoint representatives and specify their demands and present them to the labour ministry offices, either directly or with the help of the police.
He also asked company owners to tackle the legitimate demands of their workers and find proper solutions by coordinating with the labour ministry.
According to Brigadier Al Hudaidi, the rioting workers were already engaged in salary discussions with the labour ministry.
"A fortnight ago, the workers had appointed a representative to speak with the labour office about a salary increase. Their demands were being discussed by the labour officials with the company management but before an outcome could be achieved, the workers resorted to violence," he said.
He said they protested despite being given a salary increase two months ago. He added although the workers were violent, police officers and labour officials dealt with them gently and in a humanitarian way.
"A group of workers was involved in provoking the rest to go on strike and take to vandalism. Those who were not willing to get involved in the vandalism were threatened."
The police chief said that a joint investigation by Sharjah police, the labour ministry and company officials is underway to identify those who provoked the workers to go on strike and to assess the damage. He said legal action will be taken.
Venu Rajamony, the Indian consul general, said that the mission strongly condemned the events.
"We are shocked to hear what happened. The presence of Indian workers is very nominal - the strength of Indian workers is about 800. We have sent a strong and clear message to our Indian workers that such violence will not be tolerated. Our labour consuls... are in touch with Ministry of Labour officials and Sharjah police. We will be following up the matter with local authorities."
Workers who spoke to Gulf News said that a handful were involved in instigating the protest.
"There was a group of workers who were visiting every room in the accommodation on Monday and asking everyone to join them in the protest. They were threatening those who refused to cooperate," said a worker.
"The instigating workers were forcing everyone to sign a piece of paper on which the demands were listed," he added.
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