VAT will bring positive change to the UAE
In most of our home countries, we pay 40 to 50 per cent in tax from our salaries (‘100% tax on tobacco and energy drinks soon in UAE’, Gulf News, May 24). In the UAE, value added tax (VAT) is just at five per cent, so what’s the problem? We are getting clean roads, clean public toilets, a safe environment and many services. In return, we will receive a healthy society. Smoking and carbonated drinks are contributors to cancer and diabetes. I think it’s okay to pay a little more to avoid an early death.
What is there to complain about? Do people think smoking is becoming expensive, and fizzy drinks too? Well, they don’t benefit your body. The UAE is booming, with people coming here from all over the world. I am from Germany, and pay around 40 per cent taxes there, yet, I don’t feel like I live in a safe place when I am there — it is sad. The UAE is managing hundreds of different cultures, without a tax system, still, we enjoy a lifestyle that is better than anything we would find in our own home countries. For me, the most important aspect is safety. Sure, some say living in Dubai can be expensive, but living in Paris, Berlin, London or Munich is much more expensive, and what are you getting there, in return for taxes? We are more than blessed in this country, and for other mega-cities, the UAE rulers’ strategy is, by far, one of the best examples to follow.
From Ms Susanna Nour
UAE
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Curb cyberbullying
Social media has become an integral part of everyone’s life (‘Protect teens from social media dangers, government told’, Gulf News, May 24). Our online world expands and progresses with each passing day. It has proven to be a boon in many ways, but it can have a negative impact, too, for users. Cyberbullying has become a worldwide phenomenon. Targeting, ridiculing, threatening, criticising and embarrassing young and vulnerable people, and making their lives miserable, has become quite common these days. Online bullying takes place in different ways. Cyber stalking, trolling, insulting, catfishing and threatening people has become a cause for concern. Oversharing on social media is one of the prime reasons for being victimised online.
It is not only the young and naive who become the targets of bullies, as anyone can fall prey to this menace. Parents play a major role in helping their children by making them aware of the potential dangers of cyberbullying, and advising them about what they can do and what they cannot do. Also, parents should teach children the use of strong passwords and tell them to change it regularly.
From Ms Jayashree Kulkarni
Abu Dhabi
Women aren’t slaves
From the news I’ve been reading, I realise that some men are barbaric and ruthless (‘Man clubs wife to death with brick for delay in serving food’, Gulf News, May 23). Now that this man is in prison, I pray he is left in there for a long time. He is 55 years old and we always think that as you age, you should gain more tolerance, but no. What do some men think? Are women their property or slaves? She, too, is human. She could be sick or tired. It’s not only men who work. Women at home have lots of work to do – maybe even more, in fact.
From Ms Samira Mohi Al Deen
UAE
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Implementing gun control
Gun control works when implemented properly (‘Philippines poised to tighten rules on gun ownership’, Gulf News, May 22). It does not work when it is watered down or compromised. Gun control doesn’t work in the Philippines or even in the US, because there is a large group of people working hard to ensure that it doesn’t. It works great in Japan, because gun enthusiasts aren’t allowed to sabotage it. Even Japanese criminals cannot easily get guns. They just aren’t available. It’s not only about the different kinds of guns, and deciding who is allowed to own them. It’s about removing them from the environment, entirely.
From Mr John Rees
UAE
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In the Constitution
Gun control doesn’t work in the US, because it is prevented by the second amendment in the US Constitution, a right of self-protection so vitally important to a free people. It is second only to the right of free speech.
From Mr Todd Gray
Dubai
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Reduce palm oil usage
The revelation that each person consumes 7.7kg of palm oil every year is disturbing (‘Soap to chocolate’, Gulf News, May 19). The most widely used oil in the world is palm oil and it is used in a vast variety of products and foods. Rubber plantations were replaced by palm oil cultivation and more than four million people are working in this sector. Vast areas of natural land is cleared for its cultivation and it is a hazard for the environment. The clearing of rainforests has resulted in several species of animals, birds and insects to become critically endangered, like orangutans and Sumatran tigers. Let us reduce the consumption of palm oil and be healthy.
From Mr Eappen Elias
Dubai
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