Parents hide son's identity for 16 years who was born out of wedlock

 

Looking grim and timid, a woman enters the Legal Affairs Office of the Judicial Department of Abu Dhabi, with her appearance indicating that she has come with a purpose to meet someone.

“How can I help you,” asks an official of the Department. Without responding to him, she sits down in front of him.

“Her clothes and the way she looked indicated that she is an upscale educated woman. When she sat down, she started talking about happy days with her husband. But suddenly she asked about the possibility of including her 16-year-old son in the official records,” said the official.

Before the Judicial Department official could ask her to explain what does she mean by the inclusion of her son in the official record, she started narrating her story again.

Published by Arabic daily Al Bayan and shared by an official of the Judicial Department, this is story of a woman who was involved in extra-marital affair with a man – who later became her husband – and gave birth to a  boy out of wedlock.

Feeling ashamed, the woman told him she she was involved in a relationship with a man who later became her husband. During her extra-marital affair, she became pregnant.

“The young man then proposed the woman, but pregnancy months were passing quickly, and she delivered a baby only two months after the wedding.

“Fearing adultery charges, the couple decided to give birth at home; they kept the child birth secret and didn’t not registered him in the official records,” said the official while narrating her story.

“Years passed and the couple had more children; the couple registered all of them except the eldest son. So he didn’t go to school, did not have identity or health card, never travelled with his parents and siblings because he didn’t have a passport. The family was hiding this secret for 16 long years,” said the Judicial Department official.

“What kind of parents are you both?” questioned the official angrily who was shocked to hear the story.

“My sister, who said that you’ve to go to jail if you haven’t registered your child in the official records. This is a personal custody case, and will not go to the penal authorities. All you have to do is to file a case to prove lineage to your husband; he must acknowledge in the court that he’s his child to obtain official papers,” the official told the woman.

But the woman said her husband will not accept this and rather be upset if the case goes to the court. “This will cause a big problem between us,” she said.

“This young man is your son. It was your mistake not his. He deserves to live his life full just like other children,” the official replied to the woman.

Then the woman took the official’s permission to leave but her facial expressions indicated that she had not made up her mind yet about what she is going to do with the future of her son.

http://www.emirates247.com/news/emirates/parents-hide-son-s-identity-for-16-years-who-was-born-out-of-wedlock-2015-10-13-1.606652

Sharjah Al Nasser tower fire: Homeless residents sleeping in parking lots

 

Sharjah Al Nasser tower fire victims are homeless and without water and electricity, after the expiry of accommodation offered by Red Crescent, reported Arabic daily Emarat Al Youm.

Residents say they are forced to sleep in parking lots as they cannot return to their homes and cannot afford alternative houses, either.

Sharjah Municipality has said that the detailed report about the cause of fire is expected today and will take steps to help affected residents.

Brigadier Abdullah Al Suwaidi, Director, Civil Defense Department of Sharjah, said initial investigations have confirmed that fire safety and security system was not working in the building.

He added that the Civil Defence Department is awaiting an agreement between the owner and maintenance company to enable Sewa to restore electricity to the building.

Meanwhile, Khamis Al Suwaidi, Director, Red Crescent Authority, Sharjah, confirmed that emergency housing was provided by the body for three days. But it was extended to 12 days and families were given shelter in hotels. They were notified two days ago that their hotel accommodation would terminate today.

The maintenance company official has now appealed to Red Crescent to extend accommodation to affected residents until they undertake maintenance of the tower. He added that only 20 per cent of the building was damaged.

He added that the building is insured and that the insurance company is awaiting the investigation report.

Meanwhile, he added that the owner will not collect rents for the affected period and cheques collected for October will be returned. More than 150 families are affected.

http://www.emirates247.com/news/emirates/sharjah-al-nasser-tower-fire-homeless-residents-sleeping-in-parking-lots-2015-10-13-1.606607

6 days eating ants, Man survives in desert

A man missing for six days in a remote Australian desert in searing heat without water was found Tuesday after surviving by eating black ants, police said.

Reg Foggerdy, 62, disappeared on October 7 heading to the Shooter's Shack camp near Laverton in the West Australian Goldfields, some 950 kilometres (600 miles) northeast of Perth, on a hunting trip.

When he failed to return, family members raised the alarm and a search by police trackers finally found him 15 kilometres from where he went missing.

Goldfields Police superintendent Andy Greatwood said Foggerdy had been sitting under the same tree for the last two days, with no water during his ordeal.

"He was eating black ants, that's how he survived, so fantastic survival skills by him, and fantastic skills by our trackers who found him in an extremely remote location," he told the West Australian newspaper.

"He was extremely dehydrated, a bit delusional, but we've administered first aid and rehydrated him and it's pleasing to say he is now sitting up and talking.

"It was extremely hot, extremely remote, and most people probably wouldn't have survived."
His relieved sister Christine Ogden, who said her brother was an experienced bushman, told ABC radio: "I'm going to get him to get a satellite phone."

http://www.emirates247.com/offbeat/crazy-world/man-survives-in-desert-for-6-days-eating-ants-2015-10-13-1.606555

Which is cheaper to live and work in? Dubai or Mumbai (or Singapore)

Dubai is among the cheapest cities to live and work as compared to 12 other major real estate markets, as cost of accommodation has fallen significantly in the past seven years, says a new report.

In its '12 Cities: Occupying and investing in world city real estate' report, Savills World Research said the cost of accommodation in the emirate was down 13.9 per cent to $59,426 per year as of June 2015 from $69,012 per year in December 2008.



“Cities with more availability, such as Dubai and Singapore, have seen rents fall, so live/work accommodation rents in these cities are now 14 to 17 per cent lower than they were in 2008. Dubai rents are now growing, while Singapore’s were still falling in the first half of this year by 3.7 per cent,” Yolande Barnes, Director, Savills World Research wrote in the report.

International real estate consultancies had predicted a 5 to 10 per cent decline in rentals during 2015, but local experts have pointed to lower rental percentage declines.

The Savills report puts Mumbai as the cheapest city where it costs only $29,088 to accommodate an employee despite the cost edging up by 2.4 per cent since 2008. London was the costliest ($118,425) followed by Hong Kong ($116,661) and New York ($114,208) on the list of the most expensive cities for companies to accommodate employees.

In Shanghai, the cost to accommodate an employee rose by 15.6 per cent to $38,089.
“The biggest rent rises have taken place in cities where supply is at its scarcest. A good example of this can be seen in San Francisco, where live/work costs have risen by nearly 60 per cent since 2008.

"Demand has been driven by businesses that want to be based in the top, high-performing, creative digital city, alongside households preferring urban living to suburban sprawl,” the report said.
Average cost per head across the 12 leading world cities was reported at $74,945 per year, which is 1.4 times the average city gross domestic product per head of population.

The index, which measures the combined cost of residential and office rental per person per year, found Sydney and Los Angeles to offer the best value live/work rent combination at 70 per cent and 80 per cent of per head GDP respectively.

In July 2015, Numbeo, one of the largest database of user contributed data about cities and countries worldwide, had ranked Dubai at 212 out of the 517 most expensive cities on its index, which calculates the ranking based on a range of costs, including rentals, groceries, travel, eating out and clothing, etc.

But Mercer’s 2015 Cost of Living Survey, released in June 2015, said the annual increase in cost of living had risen steeply in Dubai and Abu Dhabi in 2014, with Dubai being placed 23rd most expensive city in the world.

UBS also in its latest report said housing costs in the emirate were high compared to the 71 cities it analyses worldwide, but added that average rent were cheaper for an expatriate compared to Hong Kong, London, New York and Doha.

http://www.emirates247.com/news/emirates/dubai-vs-mumbai-or-singapore-which-is-cheaper-to-live-and-work-in-2015-10-13-1.606537