Human Rights Abuses & Corruption threaten RAK Fitch Rating

Ras Al Khaimah has undeserved 5* rating from external ratings agencies like Fitch, but Due Process International is raising major issues to the agency in advance of their next review.

It has already been a turbulent few years for the UAE; since the 2018 dramatic escape and capture of Princess Latifa, daughter of Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum and her ongoing captivity, things have only gotten progressively worse. More royal scandals erupted, including the divorce and child custody battle between the Dubai Ruler and his wife, Princess Haya, following her own escape from the Emirates in 2019. However, Detained in Dubai CEO Radha Stirling warns that a storm is approaching on the UAE’s northern shores as investigations into Ras Al Khaimah bring disturbing new information to light. “We have been aware of serious wrongdoing and legal abuse by the government of Sheikh Saud bin Saqr Al Qassimi in Ras Al Khaimah for quite some time, but we have recently uncovered details about the regime that will completely shatter the UAE’s image internationally, and could profoundly alter American and European foreign policy towards the Emirates,” Stirling said.

Ras Al Khaimah is a lesser known emirate in the UAE, less developed than Dubai and Abu Dhabi, it has no oil and has sought to create a more diversified economy and to attract foreign investment to gain global relevance. Stirling explains that a current case led her organisation to take a closer look at RAK, and after over a dozen years dealing with injustice in the UAE, she said that even she was not prepared for the level of corruption she discovered.