November 22, 2009

Don't let violence triumph

The people, politicians, educators and social activists within Pakistan need to come together to fight the ongoing crisis ("Bombing at police station in Pakistan kills 3", Gulf News, November 16). Every day I hear of an attack in Pakistan. It kills a handful, a dozen or even hundreds of people and sends a shiver down my spine. The news has become so regular that it is almost losing its gravity in people's minds. I may be unable to understand the fear and terror Pakistanis live with every day of their lives, but I do urge well-wishing human beings to come forward and extend every possible assistance.
From Ms Amnah
Dubai
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Priority

This is in reference to the letter by Ms Priyamvadhe V. regarding working mothers ("Limited", Gulf News, November 16). I do agree with her that many women are not able to work after giving birth. I have two sons, aged four and seven, and my four-year-old son is asthmatic. I have a post-graduate degree and was a banker before my first child was born.

Now the question is, what next? As written by the reader, day care centres are expensive. Due to these issues, I have to stay at home and take care of my family, which is my priority. Most office buildings in the West have day care centres on the premises so mothers can continue working while their child is in the vicinity. Another solution could be flexible hours for working mothers.
From Ms Sophy Aqeel
Sharjah

Tough life

I strongly agree with the plight of hairdressers ("No such thing as beauty treatment for salon staff", Gulf News, November 16). This was an issue that I have been meaning to raise for quite some time. The working conditions of many salons are horrible. The employees work 12 hours a day, seven days a week — some do not even get a weekend. They don't get overtime pay, either. The worst part of it is that they are given only 30 days as annual leave and are only allowed to utilise their leave once in three years. I actually stopped visiting one salon to reduce the burden on the employees.
From Ms Gracy Dcruz 
Dubai
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Just a word

I personally don't think peace talks will lead anywhere, because Israelis will not stop building [colonies] on Palestinian grounds ("Palestinians threaten to declare independence, seek UN recognition", Gulf News, November 16). Without that peace is nothing but a word. So I completely support the move for independence.
From A Reader
UAE
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No right to veto

The situation is so lopsided! Palestinians have been suffering for years, and the one body — the United Nations — which claims to be a neutral party, actually supports one side in a conflict. I never understood the concept of giving veto rights, as it adds to unjust systems in the world. 
From Ms Aisha
Sharjah
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Priorities

Until Israel stops building colonies on Palestinian land, no peace talks would be possible. There must be a clear boundary between these two countries prior to any talks.
From Mr S. Mohammad Ayoub
Dubai
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Not noticed

I wonder if the rules on Dubai Metro are applicable to all users as I am a regular commuter and find that a lot of passengers — especially teenagers — violate the rules without any repercussions ("Metro inspectors intensify campaign against violators", Gulf News, November 17). I believe 75 per cent of the rules are being broken by teenagers. Sometimes, they even force women to vacate seats for them. Perhaps this is not being noticed, as there may be a shortage of inspectors.
From A Reader
Dubai
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Connecting cities

I used the Metro regularly for a couple of weeks and it was a very pleasant experience overall. I think the measures taken by the authorities are to be commended. Just one suggestion — instead of limiting the feeder buses to Dubai, why not start a bus service to Sharjah? For example, a feeder bus could go from Rashidiya Station to a set destination in Sharjah. It would enable many more passengers to utilise this excellent Metro system.
From Ms Sharmin
Dubai
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Bookworm's glory

Books have always fascinated me and I was very excited when I got a chance to visit the Sharjah International Book Fair. Though the prospect of being amid the sea of books
was very appealing, I was a bit sceptical about the variety of books on offer. Once there, I was spellbound by the sheer number of stalls and genres. There were various sections
catering to different types of people — management, science and technology, art and culture and literature.

My mother was delighted to skim through the large number of cookery books. But, the best was
yet to come. There was a stall with a collection of stories from the golden age by the science fiction author L. Ron Hubbard. The publisher was very helpful. In fact, he made me listen to the audio tapes and I took a liking to the series immediately.
From Mr Vaishnav Rajkumar
Dubai