Sad tidings
Dubai's ruler, Sheikh Maktoum, has died.
It is sad that he died at such a young age, only 62.
It is sad that he died away from home, on foreign soil, though he will be buried back here in his homeland.
It is sad to feel the grief of all the many people who knew him and greatly loved him.
Requiescat in pace.
It is sad that he died at such a young age, only 62.
It is sad that he died away from home, on foreign soil, though he will be buried back here in his homeland.
It is sad to feel the grief of all the many people who knew him and greatly loved him.
Requiescat in pace.
Labels: maktoum
69 Comments:
Oh my God! He was young, wasnt he? MBinR will now take over - who will take his place?
Who is your source? Seems like neither GN nor KT are carrying it, and 6days is down.
it is on wam and gulf-news
shk makhtoum had a heart attack and died in Australie. shk khalifa is flying back from pakistan to be back here. there will be days of mourning that will hit eid. that means this place will shut down for about 10 days.
announced on bbc now.
may his sould rest in peace.
Dubai ruler Sheikh Maktoum bin Rashed al-Maktoum dead
Agencies
Wednesday, January 04, 2006 12:10 IST
DUBAI: The Prime Minister and Vice President of the United Arab Emirates, Sheikh Maktoum bin Rashid al-Maktoum, died on Tuesday, the official WAM news agency said. Sheikh Maktoum was also the ruler of the emirate of Dubai.
"The (UAE) president Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed al-Nahayan announces the death this morning of his highness Sheikh Maktoum bin Rashed al-Maktoum, vice president of the council of ministers," the ministry of presidential affairs said in a statement carried by WAM. The statement did not indicate the cause of death nor the age of Sheikh Maktoum.
Forty days of national mourning have been declared, WAM said. Dubai's Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammad bin Rashid al-Maktoum is expected to succeed him as ruler of the emirate, one of the seven that form the UAE federation.
Sheikh Maktoum maintained a low profile, preferring to allow his younger brothers, including the globally renowned enterpreneur Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum, to run the day-to-day affairs of Dubai, the Gulf's trade and tourism hub.
Internationally, Sheikh Maktoum is best known as co-owner of Dubai's Godolphin stables which competes in major horse races.
Will all banks etc close down etc? What are the implications for daily life?
here is some information about him:
http://www.sheikhmohammed.co.ae/english/dubai/dubai_maktoum.asp
He was 62.
As for implications on daily life, remember what it was like when Sheikh Zayed died? Expect something similar in this case. 40-day mourning period with no music/etc on the radio.
Except, with Eid coming up and then the Dubai Shopping Festival, I don't know what they'll be doing with that.
may his soul rest in peace.
sad news... RIP Shaikh Makhtoum
Are they going to cancel this year's DSF or will they carry on?
what impact would it have on Dubai's economy if they cancelled?
He has done so much for Dubai and the people of Dubai. He will be sadly missed
Yes, a sad day for UAE and the region. He always kept a low profile, allowing Sheikh Mo to be in the limelight, but he was always in the background.
DSF cannot be cancelled, but I'm sure it will be postponed, probably for 7 days atleast. Also, once it starts, the celebrations will be a little low key perhaps.
www.mydsf.ae has been pulled out after the announcement, which hints that they are likely to make changes in the start date.
DSF is officially postponed and MAY be cancelled completely. They are just awaiting confirmation. Up till now the DSF staff have been told to delay all activities until Eid.
does that mean tha global village is closed today?
who is the new crown prince
Officials said Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashed al-Maktoum, the UAE's defence minister, has taken over as ruler of the emirate, one of the seven that form the UAE federation.
Some government companies are off from today til the 15th!
All government offices are closed till 14th Jan, including the Eid holidays as well. Private establishments are mourning on 5th, 6th and 7th January. Eid holidays will start on 9th and end on 11th for private sector.
Sheikh Mo will officially be the Ruler of Dubai from today, and will accept condolences for 3 days from tomorrow. DSF will not begin till 14th January atleast, and even after that, a date has not been specified as of now.
is global village the same as dsf - does that mean glocal village is closed. i am here on holiday and was told that this was the best place for information
global village is closed until saturday.
It's pathetic to see that most are more concerned about how many holidays they will get rather than mourn a decent ruler.
May his soul rest in peace.
anon @ 14:39
I have come here on holiday for the shopping festival for my 1 week holiday and now I can not go to this. I do believe he was a grewat man, and I wouldnt have been on holiday here, but this has ruined my holiday and I just wanted to find out some information
anon @ 14:46
I did not refer to you - there are many who live and work here who are just concerned about their holiday. if it werent for his highness, these people would be in a one bedroom studio in pekham rather than in a villa in the sun.
He used to spend a lot of time in London, and I was able to talk to him once. He was softly spoken and reminded me of those quiet leaders who speak only occasionally but what they spoke was of such depth that it blew you away.
May God rest his soul in peace. He was trualy a great and humble man, who laid the groundwork to help make Dubai what it is today
I hope they dont go ahead with fatboyslim
Great shame. Does anyone know if it's a dry night?
Fatboy slim is off, I checked with mirage (and no live entertainment for 40 days I heard). So I guess that rules out the bands in bars too(and also bryan adams?)
We can't really blame the tourists if they feel frustrated with the festivities on hold.
For us residents, we should mourn for the death of His Highness Sheikh Maktoum. His death is indeed a sad news.
Beautifully said. It must be frustrating for visitors who have no knowledge of our rulers, but when anyone dies it is important to act with tact and respect.
If you go to someone's house and their father - even if you never met him - has suddenly died, you are still careful what you say, offer condolences and accept that your plans must now be disrupted.
I think it is valid that people are asking for information on what is closed and cancelled (which for the next few days appears to be nearly everything) so I will leave any info up here.
Offering condolences:
Qoute // Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Ruler of Dubai, will accept condolences alongside Shaikh Hamdan Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, deputy ruler of Dubai and Minister of Finance and Industry, and the Maktoum Family, at the palace of Shaikh Mohammad in Zaabeel for three days, beginning from Thursday // Unqoute
It may be dry nights for atleast 3 nights. Live music, entertainment or music in bars/discos for the next 40 days is out. Radios may start playing after a week or ten days. For the tourists, its a hard deal. But its the same in any country when a ruler expires, I guess. Not just the UAE.
Can the common people go to the palace and offer their condolence?
About the dry nights, I checked with several places, some said they are open and hadnt received any notifications, others are only closed for one night. But better to check again tomorrow. I guess it will be like Ramadan, no live music, but the rest is business as usual.
Otherwise it is a sad day for the UAE.
Its all very sudden. I the end was peacefull and a natural.
May his soul rest in peace , he was a good man who built and added alot to Dubai .
and i`m sure Dubai will change alot to be something better with H.H.sheick Mohammed Bin Rashed ,the man with far sight .
I know it wont be easy for some to live quite nightes after getting used to hard rock !!
but we have to respect this mouring days .
I am on holiday. It is very interesting being here during such a time. will the malls be open? and can i go and see the new ruler and say sorry about his brother? is that ok?
anon @ 16:08
Malls should be open, and everything else should be open as well.
I am not sure about going to offer your condolences, not sure if us "common" folk can do that...
It's an open majlis so yes, men can go and pay their respects.
Some malls closed today, but they will probably open tomorrow.
Supermarkets will remain open at all times.
Pvt. sector closed till Saturday. They report to work on Sunday and then Mon-Wednesday off for Eid holidays.
Funeral is tomorrow at 10am at the royal burial ground in Bur Dubai.
anyone know who would be the crown prince then?
It's time for newspapers to make a big profit. Why can't they follow His Hignesses generosity and donate the profits they make from all the condolence advertising to a worthy cause? I'm sure this gesture will be accepted by the UAE people in the a spirit in which it is intended- as a mark of respect for a great man. Instead they will continue to be lead by greed and avarice.
Businesses close and events cancelled
WAM
Dubai: Private sector businesses in Dubai will be closed for three days to mourn the death of Shaikh Maktoum Bin Rashid Al Maktoum.
Businesses will be closed from Thursday, 5 January through to Saturday, 7 January.
Ministries, government departments and government organisations will be closed for seven days.
The official mourning period will last for 40 days, when all UAE flags will fly at half mast.
The Dubai Shopping Festival - for which the opening ceremony was due to take place tonight - has been postponed until further notice.
Saeed Al Nabouda, CEO of DSF told Gulf News: "Dubai Shopping Festival is on hold until further notice."
Most events scheduled for the next seven days in Dubai have been cancelled or postponed.
Global Village, which usually operates between 4pm and midnight, will also be closed for three days. A decision on whether it will re-open will be taken before Saturday afternoon.
The Fatboy Slim concert scheduled for Thursday 5th January 2006 at the Dubai International Convention Center has been officially cancelled.
Organizers of the event said there is a possibility it will be postponed to a later date, otherwise fans will receive a refund.
The Dubai Marathon has been postponed until further notice, according to a notice posted on their website.
The Ministry of Education has announced that all scheduled examinations have been postponed.
Schools will also be closed from today and open again on January 14.
Hope this answers most of the questions.
Smooth Transition For Dubai
-----
The unexpected death of Dubai’s ruler, Sheikh Maktoum bin Rashid
al-Maktoum, should not cause any long-term upheaval. Indeed, his
brother and successor, Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid
al-Maktoum has played a key role in the emirate’s policy-making for
some years, and the transition should be a smooth one. We have been
cautious on the Dubai Financial Market and the Abu Dhabi Securities
Market (ADSM) for some time in any case, but we do not view today’s
sell-off as part of a protracted decline, given a continuing buoyant
outlook for the emirate’s economy. Indeed, the only tangible
economic effects of the political changes are likely to be the
activity lost during the period of mourning (three days for the
private sector, seven for government institutions).
Personally I think as he helped to drive things forward as a modern state and city, a fitting tribute would probably have been to carry on shopping and enjoying life etc in tribute. He believed in Dubai being a go-ahead place and pulling in the visitors so what better tribute than carry on doing the things he encouraged rather than moping about with long faces and shutting everything down. Not being disrespectful, I just feel a real celebration of a life is better and more fitting sometimes than all this weeping and wailing.
I agree. Perhaps a % of the profits from dsf should be given to charity or something like that.
shk makhthume was great leader make good place of dubay. should make nice memorial in a place in dubay like a statue near burj al arab or big building of his name.
who saw the fark.com entry for this?
i think fark.com will be blocked.
40 days of mourning!!??
Does that mean we have to go 40 days without a beer?
And I bet the poor Indians and Pakis working on Dubai's dangerous construction sites will be given a severe whipping if they take as much as five minutes off from work. Expect no letup in the manic pace of Dubai's building frenzy tomorrow...
I believe construction sites will also be closed for 3 days.I remember when Shk Zayed died in 2004 three days holiday was declared for private sector.But construction sites tried to carry on with their work as usual.There was an intervention by the authorities and work was stopped for 3 days.
SecretDubai looks like the place that everyone congregates to get info. Nice one.
no beer for 3 days. but if that is a problem for you, you're in the wrong country mate. have some respect.
So many questions.
Shk Maktoum passed away in Australia where he was on a visit from Dec 28. His body will be buried in the Umm Hurair cemetery and the funeral prayers will be at 10:00 a.m.
it's a weird co-incidence since his eldest son passed away a few yrs ago before eid-ul-adha and a few days before the very eid, he passes away.
Most of the supermarkets/malls will be closed for a day (tomorrow) but officially pvt sector is off for 3 days and govnt is off for 7 days. though the mourning period goes on for 40 days which means no music (concerts or radio) till then.
i dont think DSF will end because that's just way too large of a loss. they will continue it, though the entertainment activities might be cancelled and all the music/dance displays will be cancelled too. the Sale and barganing opportunities should continue.
Allah yr7ama.
To 'garthicus',
If ever there was a time to be sensitive to Arab and Islamic custom, this would be it.
Kindly cut the sarcasm and show a bit more respect, or else remove back to Ireland where, apparently, people do not get themselves into a 'tizzy' over very much at all.
Hey SD,
Your blog has finally hit 100,000 ..and still going strong. Well done!
Condolences to all emiratis of Dubai
@nostalgiclocal and garthicus:
well nostalgiclocal, u made me go back to garthic's comment and yes i agree with u.
garthic, not every country loves it rulers how locals love them here. there's no comparison.
I dont see why I should mourn.
Nobody mourns the deaths of construction workers due to all the injustices.
Nobody mourns for the poor subcons who end up living and dying in a pathetic existence in the labour camp.
- MJ
may he rest in peace
From what I understand, the DSF shopping bargains will go on after saturday. However, all DSF related activities such as fireworks, Raffles, and other such awards are out. Yesterday Mall Of Emirates was almost dead. No interior decoration also. I also heard that Emirates is allowing you to postpone flights out of dubai for free. Dont know how much that is true. All said and done, the guy was very young.
To Garthicus: Its me, the Anon who wrote the earlier comment "But its the same in any country when a ruler expires, I guess. Not just the UAE'.
Had you corrected me in a more unsarcastic way, I would probably have agreed with you, and so would many others. Indeed, not all countries have such long mourning periods.
But just for the way you put it across, all I will say is that you just made your country proud with those words, I'm sure. Pity you are OUT of that country though. People like you are better off permanently being where they came from.
Oh really, Mr.garthicus?
The least you can do is pay respect to a person who is no more, be it someone in your relation or not.
There is no point in justifying your vile comments by commenting about people who are much 'worse'.
And for your awesome idea on IP checking, I suppose you deserve a bravery award for your roguish_yet_true_for_irish_blokes comment?
We don't need yer condolences or apologies, ya bleedin' mule.
May his soul rest in peace. Have a look at this blog there is a nice post on him.
http://gautamjgoesplaces.blogspot.com/
May God accept Sheikh Maktoum Bin Rashid al Maktoum's soul in heaven.
I am an expat but the rulers of Dubai are the only leaders i have known. The ruler of Dubai was a great man.
Garthicus has a point in that the excessive break taking after the passing away of a ruler is neither sensical, nor economically productive. A day or two would be fine, however weeks on end complicates the situation. Nothing in Islam or any law says we have to take 1 week off if a ruler passes away. Even sheikh zayed stressed that when he passed away, he didnt want anyone to take a break, but of course, people didnt seem to respect that.
Giving people time off when other people dies only gives them an opportunity to celebrate and be happy, when another person has passed away.
Now on the other hand, garthicus's mode of adressing the problem shows a lack of class. Perhaps when he is done assembling IBMs for college kids at whatever Dublin factory he may work in, he can take a few classes on being a more sensitive and less animalistic human being.
Just heard Biggles is open. How does that work then?!
Is the judge Jules concert cancelled?
Darn! Darn! Darn!
It is nice to see that some rulers are actually loved and respected by the people whom they rule over . May Allah (swt) forgive him his sins and grant him a place in the paradise . The rulers have done agreat deal for the people living in emirates I was very impressed.
He was a great man, who worked very hard for his people and country and was the reason the Maktoums and Nahyans have such good relations, inshallah they will continue.
I am so thankful to him, for my life in Dubai and cannot believe people are even trying to make light of it- a great man, and a very good man ho touched millions of people with his charity has left us.
His loss is a great shock, our lives are changed forever.
k
I have heard alot about the late leader's kindness and generosity but perhaps all his 'humanitarian projects' were not worth a mention in the GN yesterday?Strangely it projects him as guiding light and lists a few 'significant ' developments during his rule such as Burj Dubai, dubailand, Internet city ...
...the good, bad and ugly ... a more balanced view of progress
http://www.motherjones.com/commentary/columns/2005/07/sinister_paradise.html
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