Democracy in the UAE

UAE President Khalifa's announcement of limited elections to the Federal National Council is a very, very small step in the right direction. Half of the 40 members of the FNC will be elected. The rest will continue to be appointed by the various emirates. The composition of the electorate is peculiar to say the least. The Ruler of each Emirate will appoint a local 'council' equal to 100 members for each FNC seat.

The FNC itself seems to be a rubber-stamp for legislation created elsewhere - it does not have the power to introduce its own laws.

And the composition of the FNC is surprising. The two largest Emirates, Abu Dhabi and Dubai, have eight seats each, Sharjah and Ras Al Khaimah each have six seats, while the remainder (Umm Al Quwain, Ajman and Fujairah) each have four seats. This composition bears absolutely no relationship to the population of the 'constituencies'. So, tiny Umm Al Quwain, population about 40,000, has one FNC seat for every 10,000 residents. Dubai, population about 1.3 million, has one FNC member for every 162,500 residents.

But Khalifa has said that this is the first of many steps. He promises to revise the constitution to allow a greater role for the FNC. And no doubt eventually ALL nationals will get a vote.