In a rare display of public opinion in Dubai, a small demonstration has been held to protest against Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s controversial citizenship law passed earlier this month.
Wow, Indians protesting in Dubai against Modi’s racist citizenship laws. The fact that this is allowed to happen in Dubai is unusual, and it could possibly shed some light on the UAE’s position regarding the matter or the signal they want to send indirectly to the Indian gov’t. https://t.co/31ywisTqM9
— Amro Ali (@_amroali) December 20, 2019
Writer and human rights activist Iyad El-Baghdadi pointed out that the protesters could potentially be deported by the UAE authorities due to the fact that political demonstrations are outlawed in the country.
Too soon to say if this is “allowed” to happen or just happened. UAE just gave Modi its highest honors.
— İyad el-Baghdadi | إياد البغدادي (@iyad_elbaghdadi) December 21, 2019
The UAE has been known to deport protesters previously, such as Indian construction workers demanding better working conditions.
There have been widespread protests in India against the law. The Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) is perceived as being discriminatory to the country’s Muslim minority, as it gives non-Muslim minorities from Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan who fled to India before 2015 a pathway to citizenship which Muslims in the same position do not have.
It is understood that undocumented Hindus and other religious groups can gain citizenship if they can show that they were persecuted for their faith in the neighboring Muslim-majority countries.
Notably, India has the world’s largest Muslim minority population, which estimates put at approximately 14 per cent of the overall population.