UNITED ARAB EMIRATES

UNITED ARAB EMIRATES

Khaleej Times, Dubai, Oct. 8: Dubai drives at only one speed: full throttle. That it continues to do so amidst the widening global financial turmoil speaks volumes for the city’s ambition to become the tourism, financial and logistics centrum for the Middle East, North Africa and South Asia region.

But to many among the mosaic of nationalities living here, there are concerns of rising costs across the board fuelled by inflation and the acute lack of affordable middle-income homes.

Turbo-charged ambition

To accelerate its turbo-charged ambition, Dubai will need a whole lot more than just architectural marvels that reach for the skies. True, there’s an agile administration in place, a first-rate infrastructure — that’s now groaning under its own weight — and an enviable services industry, but the strains are clearly beginning to show. The traffic chaos triggered by Cityscape, the region’s biggest property show, is an indication that the frightening pace at which the city is growing could have a serious impact on transportation and this is one critical area that will have to be looked into.

Another would be power. Both are essential for the exponential growth of this city as massive changes continue to take place. ... Dubai is going to have to cope with multiple responsibilities and rapid change. According to reports, $35 billion will be required to fund the much-needed power projects in the Gulf.

BRITAIN

The Times, London, Oct. 8: Iceland’s wealth has long been a mystery. For centuries the volcanic, windswept island clung to the edge of Europe, scraping a hard living from the barren land and the cold seas.

By the start of the millennium, however, Iceland had become extraordinarily rich, with a living standard measured in 2007 by the United Nations Development Report as the world’s highest.

Catches of cod

The wealth, however, was built not simply on hard work, initiative and valuable catches of cod. It was also built on a massive inflow of funds into the country’s banks and highly leveraged raids on the riches of Western Europe. By the start of this year, Iceland’s three banks had foreign liabilities of more than $100 billion — dwarfing the country’s gross domestic product of $14 billion. Now, suddenly, everything may be gone, the economy wiped out with the same cataclysmic devastation that was regularly visited on the land by the eruptions and plagues of earlier centuries.

SOUTH KOREA

Korea Times, Seoul, Oct. 8: Amid the financial turmoil sweeping the world, the candlelight vigils that protested against U.S. beef imports here seem almost forgotten.

Amnesty International’s report on this matter ... is therefore a timely reminder of how the law enforcement officers of a self-claimed advanced democracy should have acted in those situations — and how the Korean police failed to do so.

International standards

The report called for police to “refrain from excessive use of force” and improve rules regarding the riot police’s allocation, training and use of force to meet international standards.

This seems to be a correct observation, considering there have been controversies on the police’s use of water cannons, liquefied tear gas and undue physical force, which led to the fractured bones and broken noses of demonstrators, including women.

Government officials are refuting, not without reasons, the AI report as one-sided and favoring protesters, while failing to look at the harm caused on ordinary citizens and police. But justice in this regard has already been fully meted — if not overly done — with the police and prosecution investigating all organizations and individuals.