The UN has painted a grim picture of the human rights situation in the United Arab Emirates, raising concern over the torture of prisoners, injustice against foreign workers and discrimination of women in the Persian Gulf state.
A report by the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) has shed light on the suppression of freedom of expression and the undue influence of executive authorities and security services on the judiciary in the Emirati state, Al Jazeera reported.
The 13-page report was prepared on January 5 and is expected to be presented at the 29th session of the Human Rights Council, which will run from January 15 to 26.
“UAE authorities regularly subject those that violate their restrictions to torture, enforced disappearance, arbitrary detention, and unfair trial procedures,” the UK-based Emirate Centre for Human Rights, wrote on its Twitter page.
In its report, the UN body expressed regret over the UAE’s failure to establish a national human rights institution in accordance with international standards.
The report argued that the justice system in the UAE is complex and impedes migrant workers and the stateless from bringing their grievances to justice.
On free speech, the UN body cited imprisonment and trials for people who had simply expressed their views or criticized institutions.
The commission also condemned arrests and forced disappearances outside the legal framework and the transfer of people to secret prisons under the pretext of being accused of “terrorism”.
UAE authorities have used torture to force defendants to confess to the charges against them and deprive them of healthcare, the report said.
In the case of women, the committee was concerned that it was still possible for a husband to prohibit his wife from working and to limit her freedom of movement.
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