When the founding fathers of the UAE sat down around a table in Union House 45 years ago and decided to come together to create a new nation, they mindfully set about building a society that would be inclusive, tolerant and respectful, building on the traditions and faiths, peoples and tribes, drawing on the strength of many rather than the views of a few.
Fast forward four-and-a-half decades later and the UAE is now ranked as the most tolerant and inclusive nation in the Arab world. Consider too that this has been achieved in a region that has been ripped apart in swathes by political divisions, religious intolerance, economic disparities and geopolitical tensions.
Today, it is the first country in the world to have formally enshrined the principle of tolerance rooted in its administration and governance, with the establishment of a Ministry of Tolerance. That ministry has been charged with strictly implementing the UAE’s Anti-Discrimination Law, applying its provisions across all sections of UAE society and ensuring that its enforcement is also effected on social media.
The principles of the Anti-Discrimination Law are clear: All are to be treated equally, regardless of sex, age, religion, colour or social background. All of us who make the UAE home are equal, treated as one and the same and the process of governance and administration, in business and across all aspects of society, is blind to our colour, or beliefs, or faiths and our traditions. And the Anti-Discrimination law gives protection to ensure that we are all treated fairly.
While the law affords legal remedies, there is a reality that a culture of tolerance cannot be nurtured under the provisions of a legal framework alone. The principle of tolerance is far greater and more fundamental than any word in a law. Tolerance begins at home, when parents and children gather over meals and share the events of the day. It is nurtured in classrooms and schools, where children of different backgrounds play and learn together, experiencing the joy of commonality rather than the pains of division.
Tolerance blossoms in the workplace, where people of different backgrounds and experiences come together to pool talents, offer solutions, see different points of view and grow and progress. It thrives when governments and officials commit themselves to uniting and moving forward on a common goal, progressing on the principles of harmony and equality.
