27 Oct 2008

Dubai Slaves: The Misery Behind Dubai's Architectural Splendor

As you know, we always wonder at the grandeur of Dubai's buildings: the tallest buildings in the world, the longest bridges, and the weirdest architecture imaginable. When Addy and I were there last year, we marveled at this explosion of concrete, glass, and steel with our own eyes. But we never saw the other side, the misery behind the splendour, the 300,000 illegal almost-slaves who live crammed into labor camps, working—and often dying or getting injured—for a few dollars a day. Fortunately, the Guardian's correspondant Ghaith Abdul-Ahad reminds us about it.  gizmodo.com


Workers washing in a labor camp on the outskirts of Abu Dhabi. July, 16th, 2008