Bikinigate in Dubai

It seems like a adolescent male dream - criticize a woman for wearing revealing clothing and she gets her kit off down to her bikini. It didn't quite happen like that. According to the Mail:

'The British woman was wearing a very low top and most of her legs were on display.'The Arabic woman stopped to criticise her and that's when she stripped off. That's when things started to get out of hand.'We ended up questioning both women after receiving a call from the mall security staff.'



And that's when the British tourist was arrested. But it beggars belief that one would do such a thing. Each country has its rules. If you choose to play in a country other than your own, then play by their rules.

More PR for Dubai Mall, the biggest mall in the world. Yes, you heard it right: THE BIGGEST MALL IN THE WORLD (where the woman got arrested for taking her clothes off)

This will be cited as another example of a clash of cultures:

1. Charlotte Adams, 26, was jailed for a month earlier this year for allegedly kissing Ayman Najafi in public
2. In 2008, Michelle Palmer and Vince Acors were jailed and deported for having "sex on the beach".
3. And now bikinigate.

The Brits will no doubt complain that if the reverse were to happen in the UK, they would be accused of being racist. I ask you to consider the opposite: Imagine a British woman in Westfield Shopping Centre telling a Shayla clad woman that she's too covered up. And that woman covering up to a full niqab/burqa levels in defiance.

Moral of the story: If you can't stand the heat, get out of the sun. Don't get hotheaded and get your kit off. It's just silly.

I call on Noel Coward:



Sparse detail thusfar, but we await to hear more. Good job this didn't happen in Iran or Saudi Arabia.

Briton held for wearing a bikini in Dubai shopping mall after fight with Arabic woman

UPDATE Charges are now dropped - according to the Sun:

Bikini Tourist Nabbed in Dubai

Dubai Aquarium's Sea Zoo

Fancy being a p-p-p-p-penguin?

Blackberry and the UAE

Fruit and phones, eh? First there was Orange, Blackberry, then Apple entered the market. If you have been asleep all day, the news is that the TRA (Telecoms Regulatory Authority) will suspend some RIM services from October, meaning that having a blackberry for anything other than using it as a phone device will be a waste of time. This is no surprise - as there were rumblings and grumblings a few days ago. And while the UAE and RIM are supposedly in discussions, it is our belief that this will go nowhere. Saudi Arabia and the UAE will not use back down over their beliefs. And RIM are certainly not going to back down over what their whole business model has been based on. Research in Motion has built it's reputation on its security and while usage has started to slip away from corporates away towards the teen market, it is still the device of choice amongst corporate execs.

Is the UAE ban of these blackberry services justifiable? The UAE government or specifically the TRA can essentially do as they please. The UAE is an autocracy, not a democracy. They have banned numerous websites, and services including Skype and other voip related services. But their reason for banning services are to do with national security - the same reasons that the west point fingers at the Arab states when the radicals do their heinous deeds. And while some residents moan about the state of the telecoms industry in Dubai, Abu Dhabi and the UAE, the prying eye of the law makes Dubai and Abu Dhabi some of the safest cities in the world to live.

Does the UAE ban of blackberry services matter? Not really. The UAE will continue to operate. There will be some way of cracking the security that some hacker will figure out - and RIM won't really lose their stranglehold on this part of the market. Essentially, they are a small overall player - and do they really care. The UAE is a small market for them in real terms. I'm afraid the global economy will continue to be about the BRIC+USA. It's a bit of a dent in RIM's armour, but to keep their reputation on security, they need to stand their ground. And now that RIM have looked to sidestep a potential blackberry ban in India, this blip will not worry them in the short term. RIM have more to worry about, namely how to survive in an overly competitive marketplace.

What will happen now with regard of the blackberry ban in the UAE? Not much. It will be in the news for a bit and will be cited as anti democratic every time the UAE is referred to in the negative. But ultimately, less blackberry phones will be bought in the UAE. And more business execs travelling through the UAE will be using hotel Internet generating money for Etisalat, Du and the TRA. I jest - the end result is a pain for those investors in the UAE who hoped there wasn't another thing to remember when travelling through Dubai or Abu Dhabi.

Right, I'm off to create a fruit branded telecoms company and court controversy to get some PR.