Satwa: Update

Went for a quick drive round the Satwa area last evening. Destruction continues apace but the main interest was that the villas at the Masafi Compound where we used to live are to become the site offices for the development. The fences have been pulled down, gardens tidied and all new air-con units installed.

Satwa demolition: Update 8 Aug 08

The pile of rubble in the second photo is all that remains of the mansion I wrote about previously and shown in the first photo. I've updated the gallery with photos taken earlier this morning of the ongoing demolition of Satwa. There is now only one family remaining in the Masafi villas, the demolition crews have removed the satellite dishes from the roofs and simply throwing them over the side of the houses onto the ground, all the doors of the villas are open and the floors are inches thick with dust, a real ghost town. The strangest thing is that there are no cats anywhere.

Shortsighted destruction for financial gain, supposedly in the name of progress.

Satwa: Seen with a local eye

I've posted quite a few updates on the demolition of the Satwa area of Dubai. I'm so glad to have received this email from a local lady in response to my February '08 post, "Satwa: The End is Nigh". As many people won't have read her comments on the older post I am putting her email here as a separate entry because I think its very important to hear all sides of the story and hers is a particularly powerful and relevant comment:

"This is beyond horrifying.

Expats and emirati nationals alike were told that their investments were safe in Dubai, and to this day the city attracts investors on that premise - yet go online and one finds that it is all a farce.

I am part local, residing in Abu Dhabi, my father had purchased a property in satwa some years ago.

Just last year, out of the blue, the government banned buying/selling of property in satwa. We were stuck.

Well, I received that letter that you mentioned, and promptly went to the compensation department.

But surprise, they had no system in order, in fact the chaos was bordering on extreme. No one had any idea what was going on.

I was worried, but convinced myself into thinking that my own government would take care of me!

I expected to get at least the MARKET VALUE OF MY PROPERTY!

Today, however, I was told that we were being offered 3.5 million for a property that is worth twice that amount. Moreover, the last offer we got for the house two years ago was 4.5 million!

I could NOT BELIEVE MY EARS!

And its not just me, its everyone. I have hired a lawyer, but it does not seem to be making any difference.

IT IS UNBELIEVABLE THAT THE GOVERNMENT IS CAPABLE OF CHEATING HUNDREDS OF LANDOWNERS LIKE THIS!

My father was not originally emirati... he was not born rich, he worked himself to the bone.

Had we taken out our money two years ago, and invested it elsewhere, we would have been sitting on a pretty penny instead of worrying about the rent which is our only source of income.

I cannot buy another villa with that sum, not with the current real estate boom. How am I to make ends meet?

I do not know what to do, I am not fluent in Arabic and am not aware of how I can contact the other residents.

I wish to persuade them to rally behind the cause of fighting for justice and claiming their rights.

I NEVER COULD HAVE THOUGHT THIS WOULD HAPPEN HERE!

Being a woman, I am not allowed to fight my own battles here, and my reception at government institutions is at best cold at worst shocking.

PEOPLE NEED TO KNOW!
SOMETHING MUST BE DONE!"

Satwa: Update on demolition

The scale of the demolition in Satwa is amazing/shocking. There are photos taken yesterday (Sat 12 July 08) here. You may recall that we were evicted from our great, and cheap, villa in Al Satwa (not the one in the picture above of course), and had to be out by 1st July, as that’s when the bull dozers were allegedly starting demolition. After a scout around Satwa yesterday and visiting our old compound, which is almost deserted bar only about 2 villas, we find out this morning that apparently the eviction deadline was extended through to 1st September - FREE RENT. As they say “Welcome to Dubai”!

Its worth noting however that its not just the down-at-heel part of Satwa that's going. There are huge mansions in Satwa, formerly the homes of local Emirati families, that are being flattened as well as you'll see from the photos. The Emirati national families receive financial compensation plus a gift of land from the UAE government on which to build a new home but even so, if Satwa's been your home for years and you don't want to move, its a wrench to move to somewhere new.

Satwa: The Plan

Thanks to "Concerned Emirati", a section of the plan for "Jumeirah Garden City" is here for you to have a look at. There have been some interesting reactions as people who thought they were "safe" have realised that the canal extension will be going right through their properties.

Satwa: النهاية (The End)

This aerial photo by Brian McMorrow shows a small section of the area of Satwa that is being cleared and the residents evicted.

Today we've been told by the Dubai Municipality Engineer that they will give us one month's extension to the eviction notice we received on 27 February. We now have to be out by 25 June and he says that demolition starts on 1 July. He also said that we were lucky getting that long, as other people in the area have been given just a month to move and on one occasion only a week. But, how does this work? There are tenants in our block who've recently been given new 12 months leases, some as recently as last week (ours was signed only 4 months ago) but the villas are being demolished in 3 months time. Hmmmm..........

Like it or loath it, Satwa is a part of Dubai with real character and it will be so sad to see it disappear. Not to mention that its also a top spot for some types of shopping. Last night we went round to a car accessories place opposite the "356 Philipino-all-you-can-eat-for-18-dirhams" restaurant and bought two NZ (of course) sheepskin seat covers and a complete set of Prado floor mats for 500AED total.

I'll miss Satwa and the glitter shops and Ravis and the world's best mango juices from Jabal Ohod....sigh....