Posted by Jed Lewison on Sat Apr 26, 2008 at 8:29 PM Pacific

The eighth blunder of the world

I hope you'll indulge me writing about something that doesn't have anything to do with the presidential election. (At least not directly -- there's actually a link, but it's very indirect.)

The Guardian has an article about Palm Jumeirah, the multi-billion dollar real estate development in Dubai billed as the "eighth wonder of the world." Palm Jumeirah is a completely artificial creation extending from Dubai's shore, adding 40 miles of coastline and allowing residents to live in the midst of amazing sea creatures ranging from barracudas to dolphins to sting rays.

Things aren't quite working out as planned, however. Some problems are relatively trivial. Summer temperatures hover around 118F/48C. It's not a dry heat, like here in Vegas -- it's humid. Incredibly, the homes there didn't come standard with air conditioning, despite being worth millions of U.S. dollars.

The thing that really struck me though was that Palm Jumeirah was built by laborers treated as slaves, for all practical purposes.

A typical labourer earns £25 a week, and many are in debt to agents in their home countries who paid for their passage. KV Shamsudheen, a workers' rights activist in Dubai, says interest rates can be as high as 120% a year.

One hundred migrant workers killed themselves in the Emirates in 2006, and the trend is rising, he says. Alcohol is a growing problem, with workers racking up debts to buy drink.

In Jebel Ali, a dusty camp almost 10 miles from the Palm, 30,000 male workers live up to 12 a room in prefabricated blocks. "I am not happy," says a Bangladeshi carpenter known locally as Sofiull, 52. "The company said I would earn £60 a week, but I am getting £30. They have delayed my pay two months and it's a great problem."

Mohamed Mahboub, 30, has been in Dubai for three years. He hasn't seen his daughter since she was a baby, but sends £30 of his £45-a-week supervisor's salary home. "I miss her, but I am a poor man and I owe money, so I cannot go back yet," he says.

The article notes that for many residents the condition of workers is a "nagging guilt." To which I say: as you should. If you live amidst such injustice and do nothing to stop it, you ought to feel guilty. For you are doing wrong.