Lawyers for the ruler of Dubai on Monday argued for dismissal of a US lawsuit blaming the emir for the enslavement of thousands of children from Asia and Africa who worked as camel jockeys.
The class action lawsuit filed in Miami by parents of child jockeys alleges Dubai ruler Sheikh Mohammad bin Rashed al-Maktoum, his brother Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashed al-Maktoum and other unnamed defendants kidnapped and enslaved children, in some cases only two years old.
Defense attorneys claimed at Monday's hearing that the federal court has no jurisdiction over the issue.
"The complaint has nothing to do with Florida or the United States," said defense attorney Anthony Coles, stressing none of the defendants or plaintiffs live in the United States.
He stressed that his clients did not have personal property or bank accounts in Florida, though the plaintiffs claimed corporations owned by the defendants do business in the southeastern states and other parts of the country.
Coles also claimed the interests of the children are best served through an existing program to send them back to their home countries and compensate them there.
The United Arab Emirates (UAE,) of which Dubai is part, has banned the use of child jockeys, sent more than 1,000 of them home, and replaced them with remote controlled robots.
http://www.africasia.com/services/news/newsitem.php?area=mideast&item=070716164240.fl25mg6q.php
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