Are You Being Served?

Rarely a day goes by when people, mainly but not only of Asian origin, do not write to local newspapers claiming they have been a victim of 'discriminatory door policies' at Dubai night spots.

XPRESS put all the accusations to the test and devised a plan to check if there really was an unfair bar at the door.

Four young men were picked for the job – two of Indian origin (Elton and Vikram) and two of Scottish descent (Dale and Austyn).

All four were under strict instructions to dress smartly and be exceptionally polite during the operation.

Then we picked ten popular night spots from different parts of Dubai for the ultimate colour blindness test. We selected the days and times: between 11pm to 2am on a weekend.

The modus operandi: go to the selected clubs/bars in a group of three, two Indians and one Scot. We then would try to enter the club, one man at a time, while the other two waited for their turn away from the sight of the doormen.
At the end of the mission, we found there was blatant discrimination against men of colour at 50 per cent of the places visited.

At these places access was denied to these young men citing couples or prior reservation policies while minutes later our white friends were allowed in without much ado. Two of these places were hosting their weekly exclusive Indian Bollywood theme nights.

At other places discrimination was partial to somewhat veiled. Here, Indians met with considerable resistance from the doormen before one of the two was allowed in while the other was turned away. At the same places our white mate walked straight in.

There were, however, two exceptions. One of them stood out for being consistent in the implementation of their door policies.

It denied access to all three under the 'strictly couples' policy. And at another place none of the three men was stopped as they walked in.

+ THE CLUBS WHICH TREATED OUR INVESTIGATORS FAIRLY

Double Decker
HOTEL: AL MUROOJ ROTANA HOTEL
DATE: THURSDAY, MARCH 8
TIME: 12.30AM
ELTON: No one stopped me or asked any questions. I walked straight in. No problems.
VIKRAM: No one stopped me. Just a polite ‘good evening' from the doorman and I was in.
DALE: I was asked to take off my Dick Tracey hat at the entrance but apart from that they didn't have any objections. I walked straight in.
MANAGEMENT RESPONSE: Assistant Manager Barry Connell said: “Double Decker does not have a strict couples only policy. One must be over 21 years of age and smartly dressed. It also has a 'no national dress' policy.''

Long's Bar
HOTEL: TOWERS ROTANA HOTEL DUBAI
DATE: THURSDAY, MARCH 8
TIME: 11.30PM
ELTON: I was stopped at the entrance and told they were operating a ‘couples only' policy. But when I told them I had a mixed group of friends joining me at the bar, I was later allowed to enter the bar.
VIKRAM: I was stopped and told 'couples only'. Then the doorman asked if I was a regular at the bar as he sized me up. I said I wasn't but told him I was there to meet a friend who was due to join me later with a few of his friends. I was asked if there were women in the group. I said I did not know. At this point he allowed me to enter the bar.
DALE: I walked straight in. No one stopped me or asked me any questions. The doorman just nodded and said, “Good evening.''
MANAGEMENT RESPONSE: Felix Cemmell, Long's Bar manager, said, “Access to the discotheque and dance club is forbidden to individuals wearing national dress, entry is at the discretion of the management, and priority admission is given to members.''

Zinc
HOTEL: CROWNE PLAZA DUBAI
DATE: THURSDAY, MARCH 15
TIME: 11.40PM
ELTON: I was turned down and told they followed a ‘couples only' policy. I told them I was going to be joined by a few friends both male and female soon and asked if I could wait for them at the bar. I was still not allowed.
VIKRAM: I was denied access on the same grounds as Elton but when I told them I just wanted to check if my friends were already inside the manager was called. He was patient and polite and after listening to me he said they followed a strict couples only policy, but if I wanted to go to the bar to look for my friends I was welcome to buy an entry ticket. Which was quite reasonable considering it was a special night with a cover charge applicable to every guest.
AUSTYN: I was not allowed citing couples only policy. The decision remained unchanged even when I told them I was going to be joined by a mixed group of people later on.
MANAGEMENT RESPONSE: Elsa Roodt, public relations executive, Crowne Plaza Dubai, said, “Zinc's door policy is clearly displayed at the entrance to the club. We have nothing more to add to that.''

- THE CLUBS WHICH DISCRIMINATED

Waxy O'Conner's
HOTEL: ASCOT HOTEL
DATE: THURSDAY, MARCH 8
TIME: 1.30AM
ELTON: I was turned down at the entrance, the bouncer told me it was a reservations only evening after which he did not even listen to me.
VIKRAM: I was asked if I had a reservation and when I said I did not I was told I could not get in. When I tried talking to the doorman, he told me I was wasting my time because the place was ‘strictly by reservation only' on Thursdays and Fridays.
DALE: No one bothered to stop me. I walked in and out of the pub with no difficulty at all.
MANAGEMENT RESPONSE: Manager Daniel Yantin told us they “have a lot of media pressure at the moment. For now the response is ‘no comment'.''

Jimmy Dix
HOTEL: MOVENPICK HOTEL
DATE: SATURDAY, MARCH 10
TIME: MIDNIGHT
ELTON: Jimmy Dix on Saturday night is largely an Indian affair as they play Bollywood music on that night. I was told I could either go in with a female partner or would have to buy a Dh150 entry ticket. When I said I would soon be joined by a mixed group of friends, I was asked to wait outside until the group arrived.
VIKRAM: I was denied entry for not being with a female companion. I was asked to buy a Dh150 ticket. When I told him there were women in the group which was due to join me later, I was asked to wait outside for them. Just then I saw a lone white guy walk into the club unstopped. The doorman said he was a hotel resident.
AUSTYN: I was stopped and asked to buy a Dh150 ticket. I told him I was due to be joined by a mixed group of people shortly. Unlike Vikram and Elton I was allowed to walk into the club.
MANAGEMENT RESPONSE: Club Manager Danny Castelino said: “A Dh150 entry fee is applicable for stags; free entry for couples and ladies. We do not discriminate. This is the first case I have heard of in four years.''

Trilogy
PLACE: MADINAT JUMEIRAH
DATE: THURSDAY, MARCH 15
TIME: 12.45AM
ELTON: I was turned down. They told me only couples, those with a prior reservation and hotel residents were allowed. I tried to persuade them by saying I was going to meet up with a few friends later inside the club. But I was still not allowed.
VIKRAM: I was stopped at the entrance. Given the same door policies. It took a few minutes of persuasion and the ‘meeting a few friends later' story and they let me in.
AUSTYN: I was stopped and told about the ‘couples only and prior reservation' policy. But when I told them I was going to be joined by a mixed group of people a little later, they let me in.
MANAGEMENT RESPONSE: XPRESS did not get a response despite several attempts.

Sho-Cho
HOTEL: DUBAI MARINE BEACH RESORT & SPA
DATE: SATURDAY, MARCH 10
TIME: 1AM
ELTON: The doorman told me I could not be allowed in as I did not have a reservation or a female companion. I told him I was with a mixed group of friends who were to join me shortly and asked him if I could wait for them at the bar. I was turned down again and asked to wait for my friends outside.
VIKRAM: I was not allowed to enter citing the reservations and couples only policy. I tried to reason with the doorman by telling him I merely wanted to join a group of friends at the bar for a colleague's send off party. The response was negative.
AUSTYN: I was stopped at the entrance and asked if I had a reservation. I said I didn't have one but he eventually let me in after I told him friends were joining me at the bar.
MANAGEMENT RESPONSE: Operations manager Silva Kendimian, said: “We try to keep a balance of 50-50 ratio between men and women. If a woman walks in alone, then a man can be allowed on his own so as to keep a 50-50 ratio."

Rock Bottom
HOTEL: REGENT PALACE HOTEL
DATE: THURSDAY, MARCH 8
TIME: 1AM
ELTON: I was stopped at the entrance and was told I could not enter unless I bought a Dh100 ticket.
VIKRAM: I was stopped and asked to buy a ticket. I was sternly told no ticket, no entry. Just then I saw four white men walk straight in without being asked to buy a ticket. When I pointed that out to the attendant, I was told hotel guests and regulars were exempt.
DALE: No one bothered to stop me or asked me to buy any tickets. I walked in and out of the bar without any problems. On my way out though I noticed three Indians were stopped and asked to buy tickets.
MANAGEMENT RESPONSE: Manager Chris Van Dijken said, “Every man has to buy a ticket at the entrance. Even when accompanied by a woman. Only members are allowed free.''

Boudoir
HOTEL: DUBAI MARINE BEACH RESORT & SPA
DATE: SATURDAY, MARCH 10
TIME: 12.40AM
ELTON: I was told ‘couples only' and turned down. I told them I was with a mixed group which was going to join me shortly. I asked them if I could wait for them inside the club. I was told to step aside and wait.
VIKRAM: I too was asked to wait for the group outside. When I asked the doorman to call the manager he said that the manager could not be called for something like that and that his was the final word in that situation. I watched the proceedings for a while and observed a few others, mostly Indians, were turned down under the ‘couples only' policy.
AUSTYN: I was casually told by the doorman that the ‘couples only' policy was in effect but when I told him a mixed group of friends were on the way to join me, I was allowed in immediately.
MANAGEMENT RESPONSE: Bilal Hamadeh, public relations manager, said: “We have been having lots of complaints about the issue. We are not racist. The doormen have no right to stop anyone at the door unless the guest is misbehaving.''

The Apartment
HOTEL: JUMEIRAH BEACH HOTEL
DATE: THURSDAY, MARCH 15
TIME: 12.20AM
ELTON: I was turned down at the entrance. Couples only policy. I was not allowed to enter even when I told them I was with a mixed group of friends who were on their way.
VIKRAM: I was initially stopped and told only couples were allowed. I then told the doorman I was with a group of friends who were on their way. The doorman asked me if there were girls in my group, I said yes. He then asked me to wait for a minute and soon allowed me to enter with a couple of girls accompanied by a man.
AUSTYN: I was stopped and told only couples were allowed. Then I told him I was soon to be joined by a few friends but I didn't want to wait outside. The doorman asked me to wait for a few minutes and said he'd set me up with a girl to get inside the club.
MANAGEMENT RESPONSE: XPRESS did not get a response despite several attempts.

How the authorities deal with complaints

“When we get complaints about discrimination at night clubs we contact the establishment and ask them for their response,'' said Mohammad Abdul Mannan, media relations executive at the Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing.

“If we find the establishment to be in the wrong we give them a warning. In some cases the establishment offers an apology to the customer. When the hotels apply for the renewal of their license these issues are taken into consideration.

“This year we have received two complaints of discrimination so far. In 2006, we received 15 complaints about alleged discriminatory entry policy to nightclubs.

“Of course, not all the allegations turn out to be valid. Actually, in some cases, the hotels can prove that the guest was denied entry because he was a trouble maker.''

People can lodge complaints on the DTCM website (www.dubaitourism.ae) or at the visitor information bureau at the airport.