Why the rich Gulf states are saying no to Syria’s refugees

[nationalize the fed]

news.com.au Sep 9, 2015

THESE countries boast an embarrassment of riches.

But as European governments face global scrutiny over their struggle to accommodate a mass exodus of refugees from war-torn Syria, what are the rich Gulf nations doing to help?

Absolutely nothing.

Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and Bahrain have offered zero resettlement places to Syrian refugees, according to new data from Amnesty International.


The Dubai skyline in the United Arab Emirates, a rich neighbour to Syria that hasn’t taken in a single war refugee.

The apparent indifference of the Gulf states is especially blunt considering they are some of the nearest neighbours to devastated Syria, where civil war and the threat of Islamic State militants have displaced millions of people.


https://twitter.com/AL_Khatteeb/status/639679539661131777
https://twitter.com/AL_Khatteeb

Thousands of refugees are risking their lives in desperate hope of finding safety and prosperity in stable nations. Many have died trying to get there...snip
MORE: http://www.news.com.au/finance/work/why-the-rich-gulf-states-are-saying-no-to-syrias-refugees/story-fn5tas5k-1227518333430

[Marrah_G]

1. Dubai has unbelievable wealth

Yet it doesn't pay most of its immigrant workers. They use indentured servants who can't get home even if they escape because their passports are held hostage and they have no money. It's fucking disgusting.

Edit: and another thing...does Saudi Arabia not understand that Isis is coming for Mecca and Medina?

[eissa]

4. ISIS won't bite the hands that feed it

Mecca and Medina will remain safe.

[Marrah_G]

5. If they take Iraq, sure they will

They are extremists who are trying to build one muslim kingdom, only sunni and only sunnis they think are holy enough, convert or die or sometimes just die. They believe god has willed them to bring all muslims under the rule of the Caliphate. They might be taking saudi money now, but they see the saudi royals as bad muslims.

[PSPS]

2. And how many has Israel taken in? It's "grayed out" on the map of "Middle Eastern" countries.

[Marrah_G]

6. Gaza and the west bank don't have room for refugees.

[alcibiades_mystery]

14. How about Tel Aviv?

[ericson00]

16. why would they wanna go to Tel Aviv?

when they can live in social cohesion, probably near-complete social cohesion in the much physically vaster neighboring countries, many of whom have a labor shortage anyway (like UAE, Qatar)?

[Marrah_G]

18. You think Israel is going to invite syrians to live in tel aviv?

[alcibiades_mystery]

19. No, I don't

But there's plenty of room and opportunity everywhere. And, quite frankly, Tel Aviv seems a better fit than Frankfurt or Copenhagen for all sorts of reasons. But yes, we know that's not going to happen. But let's not pretend it's a matter of capacity. It's not.

[Marrah_G]

20. I agree, it's not

I just watched a film about the African refugees in Israel. They are not exactly looked upon kindly.

[moondust]

13. At the time of Charlie Hebdo

wasn't Bibi inviting all the Jews in Europe to move to Israel? Now I believe he is saying Israel doesn't have room for refugees. Funny how that works.

[Snobblevitch]

17. Is it possible that the history of war between Israel and Syria could be a factor?

[eissa]

3. Even if they threw open their borders

Their own people would probably refuse the offer. Don't be fooled by the shininess of the Gulf states; underneath is a shithole of massive proportions.

Furthermore, because Syria was a rather pluralistic society, its people were less fundamentalist than their brethren in the Gulf regions. Add to that the tribalistic and elitist mentality of the Gulf, and it's no wonder they prefer Europe.

[JCMach1]

7. Currently, these 'wealthy' countries are running massive deficits due to the oil downturn

... they rely on oil revenue, not taxes... this leaves them massively in the hole. Meanwhile, these 'soft' dictatorships use their largess to keep things politically quiet. i.e. no one wants to rock the boat as long as you are getting paid. I don't see them allowing all but a handful of refugees into their countries. People are greedy, they don't want to help if it costs them out of their own pockets. Most of the wealthy have already fled there anyway as they own houses, property and businesses which can get them visas.

And, of course, the KSA is largely complicit in the rise of ISIS and Al Nusra... as are Turkey and a number of other nations which ponied up money to counter Iran's interests in Syria.

I also want to emphasize how poorly in the past a number of these countries have treated refugees... When I visited the Bekaa Valley in Lebanon in 2007, there were still Palestinians living in UN tents from the 1970's. Palestinians cannot get Lebanese passports and are legally not allowed to work in Lebanon. They are literally segregated into camps (think ghettos) and treated as third class citizens.

So ask yourself... why are so many headed to Europe? If the only option is to be treated so badly or not at all...

[riderinthestorm]

8. Here's a Kuwaiti minister who says the refugees are too different culturally

so that's why they can't take them.

Oh and they're too poor...



https://m.

[smirkymonkey]

10. Oh the poor dears. They might have to share their fantastic oil wealth with

those less fortunate. That would be unacceptable. Is compassion not a value in these societies? It would seem so.

[Igel]

9. There's a rather obvious point that's missed in the OP.

It's a simple one, to be honest.

Thousands, tens of thousands of refugees are crashing the gates, knocking down fences, to get into Europe. They charge and overwhelm police. They rely on the goodwill of the Europeans to take them in and, failing that, to allow them the opportunity to impose on those countries without fear of violence or serious penalty.


They're not doing that wrt the UAE or Saudi Arabia, now are they?

Is it because they don't want to go where they know the culture and language, or they know there's a lack of goodwill, or they fear violence or serious penalty? Or some other cause that I seem to have overlooked?

Same for Russia. Iran. These countries are often closer. But they're undesirable as places to take refuge in. If it were a matter of survival, you'd go for the closest country rather than risking the death of your offspring. But economics, well, that's worth the risk of losing a child over.

[Johnyawl]

11. They do go to the closest country..

1.8 million in Turkey, 1.2 million in Lebanon (do you realize how small Lebanon is? The whole country must be one huge refugee camp) over 600,000 in Jordan and over 250,000 in Iraq. There's an indication of how bad things are in Syria when a quarter million people flee to the war zone in Iraq to get away from the war zone in Syria.

They get stuck in refugee camps, huge sprawling dead ends where there's nothing to do but que up a couple times a day for the UNESCO food truck. No work, no safety and certainly no future while the war drags on into the next generation. And when the desperate start looking to leave the refugee camps they're looking for someplace that will improve their lot, someplace where they can raise a family in peace and security, someplace that will provide jobs for them and education and a future for their children. That's the EU. That's the US and Canada, Australia and New Zealand, although those four are much more difficult to get to. That's not Russia that can barely make a life for it's own citizens. That's not the rich bastards in the gulf who have created much of this problem, and want nothing to do with any refugee. Throughout the middle east and North Africa the countries are dominated by brutal absolute monarchies and dictatorships. And if you've fled Syria to get away from Assad and the civil war, you don't want to go someplace that resembles it.

[alcibiades_mystery]

15. UNESCO might be distributing books

Food, I doubt. (It's the World Food Program).

[Johnyawl]

21. Right you are!

One of those moments when my typing outpaced my tired brain.

[eissa]

22. Thank you for that answer

Some of my in-laws are part of the wave that made it to Germany. After literally fleeing for their lives out of Syria and into Lebanon, where they've spent three years trying to eke out a living in a country with little resources and heavily overwhelmed. Believe me, they would give anything to remain in Syria. They waited years hoping things would get better so they could return. It's clear that's not happening, and with no future possible for their children, they felt they had nothing to lose. They're not in Germany to "mooch" off anyone, or to sit back and collect welfare. They want peace and stability, and that's something no Middle Eastern country can offer.

[Johnyawl]

23. Best of luck to your in-laws!

[Snobblevitch]

12. The rich Arab states have also done nkthing to help the Palestinians.