DEMOGRAPHIC imbalance is plaguing many Gulf countries that rely heavily on expatriate workers. The United Arab Emirates and Qatar top the list where there is an increasing danger of natives becoming a minority in their own respective countries. The growing concern of Emiratis in this regard came to light again last week with a senior official warning that if the trend was not checked immediately and urgent remedial measures are not taken, it would have dire consequences for the security situation in the Emirates. “I'm afraid we are building towers but losing the Emirates,” outspoken police chief General Dhahi Khalfan Tamim said this week, referring to a construction boom in the Emirate, fueled by foreigners buying property there. Tamim also proposed establishing a union of Gulf Arab states that would grant a common citizenship, putting a ceiling on the size of expatriate communities and restricting foreign ownership of property. In order to drive home his point, the official also showed video footage of cars torched and shops damaged during recent riots by foreign workers, as well as clips of streets in Dubai packed with Asian expatriates. Dubai is one of the seven members of the oil-rich United Arab Emirates, the number of whose citizens dwindled to just 15.4 percent of the 5.6 million population at the end of 2006, according to a recent study by the government advisory body, the Federal National Council. Other parts of the UAE - Abu Dhabi and Sharjah in particular - face the same problem as expatriates overwhelmingly outnumber the natives, filling in the void of the absent local workforce in the booming construction work. Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah Bin Zayed Al-Nahayan underscored the point that the UAE is “a tolerant, open and wealthy country” which should not shut out foreigners. But while acknowledging that the imbalance is dangerous, he said the Emiratis cannot live in “isolated islands” under the banner of “preserving their national identity.” While it cannot be denied that the expatriate workforce is essential to sustain the economy of the Gulf countries, it would be more beneficial if respective Gulf countries put a tab on the foreigners working in their countries. The Gulf Cooperation Council at its last summit wisely authorized its member states to chalk out their own strategies to stem the flow of foreigners. The Gulf states need to formulate feasible strategies to protect their culture increasingly threatened by the presence of vast number of foreigners in many countries. __
