EU report on human rights ignores number of UAE violations

The European Union has published its report on human rights and democracy in the world in 2014, failing to address a number of serious human rights violations in the Unites Arab Emirates.

The EU continued to closely monitor the human rights situation in the United Arab Emirates, noting the recent positive steps taken in the fields of migrant labour rights, women’s rights and gender equality, and in the fight against human trafficking.

The EU report failed to draw attention to the numerous concerns of human rights violations in the UAE. Despite representations to the European Union and a resolution of 2012, the EU’s most recent report did not even reference the lack of free speech, the torture of prisoners, the targetting of prisoners families amongst  a host of other concerns.

The EU did hold a human rights working group meeting with the UAE 3 times over the course of the report, and have been urged by NGOs to urge the UAE to respect international law and release all prisoners of conscience.

The report did however note that the EU

continued to encourage the UAE authorities to ensure follow-up to the 2012 UN UPR