Letters to the editor 25/06

Name and shame ‘unfit' restaurants

I am deeply sorry for the loss of the two children who died due to suspected food poisoning (Chelsea, Nathan To Be Buried In France). It seems not a day goes by without another horror story in the newspapers about contaminated food. Rotten food can be as deadly as poison used to kill animals.

I know the authorities are doing their best to prevent cases like this, but the work is obviously much bigger than expected. A list of restaurants inspected by health authorities is perhaps as important as the list of schools rated as “outstanding, good... unacceptable'' etc.

I've personally witnessed appalling conditions at restaurants which should not be tolerated at all. I have therefore chosen not to eat out until the health authorities list the restaurants based on the quality of food served.

Nadia Al Kabani, Dubai

Case taken lightly

This is with regard to the story about the two children who died due to suspected food poisoning (Chelsea, Nathan To Be Buried In France). They had only eaten Chinese fried rice. The point is the hospital where they were rushed took the case lightly.

People back home in India have survived snake bites and here a hospital has failed to treat food poisoning. What a shame! This is the same hospital that refused to admit a pregnant Filipina recently, resulting in the woman delivering her baby in the back seat of her car.

Rajesh Advani, Dubai

The pain of it all

I couldn't help writing a short e-mail expressing my heartfelt appreciation for your write-up on the Editor's Blog (Celestial Mediators). You have touched my heart and I really feel sorry about the loss of the two little angels. I understand the pain.

Nerry Toledo, Dubai

Has my child reached safely?

Thank you for highlighting the issue of child safety in the context of transport services provided by schools in Dubai (Are School Buses Safe). It has been a contentious matter for all parties involved: parents, school management and the authorities. Sometimes we hear of fee hikes and at other times we hear of the service being outsourced. And while there are arguments galore about the pros and cons of any step introduced by schools, the most important issue often gets sidelined, which is the safety of the children.

But we wake up to it only when disaster strikes. The death of four-year-old Aiman Zeeshan in May was due to sheer carelessness on the part of the bus driver, all right, but the school could have prevented the tragedy if it had a system in place to check on any child missing from class.

No wonder parents are now asking schools to confirm if their child has reached safely.

Suneeta, Dubai

Extortion racket

You say it's business, I say it's extortion – what these greedy schools are doing nowadays (Cartel or Lobby Group). With this syndication, the once noble profession will now become a glorified extortion racket and nothing more.

Name withheld, Dubai

Affordable education

The concept of running educational institutions for profit is an Indian phenomenon. They are profit centres created by Indian brains. Earlier, educational institutions focused their efforts on social welfare. In fact, many schools in India were started by Christian missionaries and they had highly motivated managements and teachers with high credentials and were run very successfully. Now, schools have become money-making factories and this trend has to stop otherwise we will have more notorious businesses in future. The point is education should be affordable throughout the world.

Bangra Dehiem, Dubai

Seat of learning

One shouldn't be too surprised about schools or groups of schools declaring that they are primarily a business establishment. That's the name of the game in the times we live in. The purpose of a school is to make money, everything else is secondary. Some parents have no complaints against the system and follow whatever trend there is, while there are those who take extra pains to find a school that is really a seat of learning.

Sanjay Gupta, Dubai

Weight of wisdom

Children in Indian schools are made to carry heavy loads every day which not only affect their health but could also cause injuries. The bags are very heavy with eight to nine text books plus the note books inside.

At times the children are asked to carry books that are not part of the day's time-table in the school's attempt to cover incomplete portions during proxy periods.

My child's bag is quite heavy even for me to carry. If I tell the child to reduce the number of books in the bag, he gets scared about being punished in school.

I request the authorities to develop a simpler system that would reduce the load on the students. I have raised the matter with the school management on many occasions but no action has been taken yet.

Chandrika Jangla, Dubai

A different tongue

Your article on a school introducing more than one language to children was very interesting. Young children should be encouraged to learn different languages and it is a lot easier to learn a new language when one is young. I wish more schools would adopt similar programmes and encourage conversations in a foreign language rather than having an hour set aside to learn the same.

Deepika, Dubai

Hilton who?

Who on earth is Paris Hilton? Who cares what she does and where she goes? Is she somebody we should be so exhilarated about to have in Dubai and have all the media hover above her? All the major TV channels in Dubai are interviewing her. This is ridiculous. In the United States, she is a laughing stock, a butt of all jokes... among other things.

Name withheld, Dubai

Give credit where it's due

It is indeed amusing that Sarah Belhasa seems to have had “no time'' for clarifying that a design she took credit for “on stage'' was not hers (Controversy Over Paris Hilton's Dubai Dress). Copyright and intellectual rights are critical to a boutique owner. How can she inspire trust when she takes credit for creativity which is not hers? Emirati designer Zahra Karmostaji has brought honours to Dubai twice over. First at the Miami Fashion Week last year and, secondly, when Paris Hilton selected her ensemble over those by established designers like Manish Malhotra, Priya Kataria Puri or Chitra Amarni, all Studio 8 [Sarah Belhasa's boutique] designers.

Name withheld, Dubai

For the baby's sake

With regard to the issuance of passports for newborn babies, it seems that a change in policy is required. I was asked to bring my baby to the Indian Consulate but this turned out to be a very difficult ordeal. My child kept on crying in the noisy surrounding inside the consulate during the long wait. Besides, my wife (lactating mother) had great difficulty in feeding the newborn. I request the authorities to reconsider this policy.

R.A. Dubai

India's T20 debacle

The pitiable hammering of the Indian cricket team by South Africa in the Twenty20 game underscores the poor form of the team. It also brought to the fore poor captaincy and the lack of depth in the batting line-up. The Indian team desperately needs to get back to the nets to practise instead of squandering their time at superficial celebrity and Bollywood shows or product-launch events.

R.K.A., Dubai

Left to naught

I bought two units at Zero Five Zero Waterfront project. They have closed all their offices while the legal firm representing them is not ready to speak to investors. If anyone has got any information, please contact me (shah10london@yahoo.co.uk).

S. Shah, UK

Rent check

The rent for a normal one-bedroom apartment in Dubai should be Dh25,000 and Dh30,000 for a two-bedroom one. Here people are paying 600 to 700 per cent more for fewer facilities than what people pay in New York City. So, it's high time the rent came down in Dubai.

John Lukose, Dubai

No medicine sans approval

I am writing this after being extremely frustrated with the services provided by Neuron, a medical insurance service provider. I visited Al Mousa Medical Clinic, Jumeirah, on June 9 as I felt fatigued. After getting approval for the blood test from Neuron I was diagnosed with acute anaemia as well as iron deficiency.

I was advised to take medication for a month. I went to a pharmacy near the clinic but I was turned away as they did not come under the Neuron network. Then I went to Wisam Pharmacy in Sharjah, which is close to where I live, as per the list provided by Neuron. The pharmacy said that they no longer dealt with the insurance firm.

On June 12, I went to Life Pharmacy in Karama where the salesman informed me that they couldn't give the medicines without Neuron's approval. When he called the Neuron emergency number, the phone was found to be switched off. In the afternoon, I visited Hussain Pharmacy in Sharjah. The salesman there, after calling Neuron, said the company refused to approve the medicines as the doctor had not mentioned that my condition was not a pre-existing one.

I visited the doctor again but I was denied vitamin C tablets which the doctor had prescribed because the claim form did not mention that I lacked vitamin C.

Name withheld, Dubai

Neuron replies: As we are duty-bound to observe strict confidentiality regarding a member's medical history and conditions, we are not at liberty to discuss such matters in the public domain. We are, however, extremely sorry to hear of [our client's] experiences and will be contacting her to clarify aspects of the terms and conditions of the policy.

A network list, appropriate to the policy purchased, is provided to all our members. If a pharmacy named in our network list refuses to offer services, we request our clients to contact us immediately.

Not too many insurers in the local market offer individual medical insurance policies and those that do usually exclude pre-existing conditions.

Iran is crying

Truly, the civil unrest in Iran has become a volatile movement. The people of Iran are seeking augmented economic opportunities, more freedom, greater rights for women and integration with the international community. The results of the presidential elections were merely a trigger to the current unrest. The real issues are deeper – more freedom and economic progress.

The supreme leader of Iran, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, should take cognisance of the aspirations of the common Iranians. The time has come for Iran to shed its isolationism. The Iranians have a rich culture and history. They are one of the few nations that gave Greek conqueror Alexander a tough time in his march towards Asia.

As for the rest of the world, a major lesson from Iran's current happenings has been the leading and dynamic role played by women. Even prior to the elections, women were leading the campaign for more freedom. After the results too it's the women in the country and abroad who are again at the forefront of agitations and street protests, leading and showing the way forward for change and fighting for it.

Rajendra K. Aneja, Dubai