Sunday, December 03, 2006

'20% of the population ' celebration day!

Happy belated National day to all…

The development this country has made is astonishing and unprecedented. Congratulations to all the citizens of this land( whether you have the papers to prove it or not).

I wish I could also celebrate this festive occasion…but then again how many ‘expats’ do you see waving a UAE flag, have their cars covered in the national colours or taking part in the festivities? ‘Its not your country’!

15 comments:

B.D. said...

So true. It is hard to get excited about the day, even when one appreciates the opportunity he/she has to be here. An extra effort should be made by government to include the expat population in commemorative events. A country is much more than a group of people who hold the same passports. All who spend a few years together in any place become, in common, a part of that place to some extent or other.

Flicking through some of the local TV stations I saw all the images of the sheikhs and the wearers of white and black gowns. I saw very little of the multitude of garment wearers who populate this country--their contributions no less than any of the wearers of the white and black.

Anonymous said...

Perhaps true BD - but then, I've taken an approach that I shall celeberate the day, in my own way, appreciating what thousands of expat souls, like my parents, brothers and I have contributed to the UAE over the past 30 plus years, even if there is zero acknowledgement from wearers of the white and black.

I had a mid size UAE flag off my balcony in my NYC apartment, I wished all folks a happy national day, infact went from blog to blog of each Emirati and local expats I know off and wished them too. As for the flag outside my apartment balcony, I could care less what rest of the world thinks.

B.D. said...

Come to think of it, National Day should not be so much about celebrating the heritage of the Emirati, however old that might be, but about celebrating the founding and development of the nation, which goes back only 35 years. In this sense the expat contribution has been overwhelming.

LocalExpat said...

i wonder blogrosh if you did that in dubai people would think
a) you love the land
b) you ridiculing/mockin the locals
c) you lost sight of your heritage
d) you lost your min

Wonder what people would think?? hmmm..

Anonymous said...

"Wonder what people would think"

Short answer - don't know, don't care. Will try and give a more extensive response tomorrow, tired and sleepy now :)

btw - I like the intriguing thoughts & debates you bring up, it's hardly spoken about, when these are the very topics people should debate about.

clayfuture said...

Love the title of your post! It's true, but cracked me up!!

LocalExpat said...

Blessing,

The question is not whether I will be able to physically wave a flag around the street but what that action symbolises. I am officially and legally not a native of this country. Will the government and people find it acceptable for all the expats to celebrate a national day which is legally not theirs?

How does it look when a NATIONAL day, a day celebrating the ENTIRE Nation is celebrated by a minority?

Bring in the expats into the official celebrations!

Then how would it look when an outright majority of the participants of the NATIONAL day celebrations are not officially natives of this land?

marwan said...

An expat who celebrates UAE National Day is like being Employee of the Month at Burger King.

Arabized said...

i celebrated it. i waved that flag. i organzied national day events.

and no im not from the uae, im american.

its a great day, why not celebrate it?

Anonymous said...

LE, there are 2 points in ur arguement that should not be mixed up.

Firstly, you, not getting the citizenship of the uae is a matter of government policy. This should not in any way prevent u from participating in the celebration of the national day.

Secondly, the participation of expats in the celebration. Anyone taking a drive through AD corniche or its varoius parks that notice that most people celebrating are expats. And they do celebrate like if they were home.

Anonymous said...

LocalExpact: And u wont stop talking about minority?? U love that topic don't u...U want to celebrate? go ahead, who cares if u do or dont and as u said, they are ONLY a minority and would NOT notice so dont worry...

As for celebrations, let the MINORITY celebrate their national day as the EXPATS celebrate their Christmas, diwali and Everything...Did the MINORITY refuse, hell NO they accepted with open arms....

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