I never imagined that a brotherly country, a neighbour with which we share deep bonds, would act against us by supporting terrorist groups and threatening us by getting cosy with our adversary, Iran (Qatar tourism sector squeezed by GCC boycott, June 28).
The Qatari regime’s loyalty to its GCC allies has long been questioned. The fact that it has been sheltering Muslim Brotherhood criminals and is having close ties with Hamas, the Taliban and other terrorist groups is an open secret.
However, the motives behind Qatar’s ill treatment of its friends are not clear.
The Qatari leadership has been having double talks for a long time. The smiles of their leaders and their warm diplomatic messages were all fake. They were designed to hide the country’s double dealings.
Doha’s friendly posture towards Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Bahrain has been exposed as a duplicitous charade that cannot be tolerated.
Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Bahrain do not seek confrontation. Their leaders are patient, but also firm and strong when the safety of their people is at stake.
They cannot shut their eyes and ears forever to the truth.
Benjamin Gharbawi, Dubai
Why complain about oil price?
Regarding the news item Fall in fuel prices of little relief to UAE residents (June 28), people seem to forget that for a long time fuel prices were lower than they were before the pricing regulations were started and now there's a mere 8 fils' difference in price from when the prices were fixed.
Ditch the fuel-guzzling vehicle for a more fuel-efficient car, if the oil price is pinching.
Steve O'Brien, Dubai
Focus on driver education
You're absolutely correct when you state that driver education is essential (Road to safety is a bumpy ride, June 28). The standard of driving lessons and tests here is very low and there is no excuse for it.
Start with implementing proper driving institutes, where all instructors teach exactly to the same rules, without fail. After that, the authorities really need to start enforcing all traffic rules rigorously.
On any long-distance trip, I see between 15 and 20 traffic violations, perhaps 25 per cent of them are serious. I’ve even witnessed traffic violations when a police car is alongside or close by.
Dave Pryce, Dubai
Build a pedestrian walkway across the motorway. It is not complicated.
Robert Antonelli, Abu Dhabi
It seems that no amount of punishment or surveillance can stop drivers from breaking the law.
This is astonishing. So I doubt whether any sort of driver training would change road behaviour. It seems psychopaths dominate our roads. After all, their lives are also at stake.
Amit Danda, Dubai
