Are UAE players citizens?

[Neil Pickup]

As opposed to the numerous non-countries that have played and continue to play at World Cups?

 

[cnerd123]

UAE has a thriving cricket community. They love the sport. My friend and I learnt cricket growing up in the UAE. There are a lot of very talented cricketers in the country.

But for reasons out of their control, they aren't legally allowed to be nationals. Does that mean that, despite all their talent and passion, they should never be able to play at the highest level?

 

[kiwiviktor81]

I don't have a problem with the UAE team, as the players are Emiratis in all but paperwork, but I'd hate to see a team of real mercenaries compete at a CWC.

 

[Cruxdude]

I find non-citizens playing weirder than non-countries playing. That is just me I guess. Just speaks badly of UAE I think. You want the players to play for your country but do not want to give them the benefits of citizenship.

 

[cnerd123]

Actually all the UAE Sheikhs want is for expats to come into the country, work, and earn them money.

If they have to let them play their silly sports to encourage them to do so, then they will.

The UAE football team is a similar story; although I think they actually have people move to UAE just to play football, unlike how the cricketers actually live and work there.

 

[Prince EWS]

As opposed to the numerous non-countries that have played and continue to play at World Cups?

Exactly. If we're going to talk about citizenship, there are no West Indian citizens, English citizens or Scottish citizens at this World Cup either.

 

[Antihippy]

I don't have a problem with the UAE team, as the players are Emiratis in all but paperwork, but I'd hate to see a team of real mercenaries compete at a CWC.

Everything goes to **** once they start breaking out the machine guns for a bad umpiring call.

 

[social]

From my experience, I would say that they have zero chance of being granted citizenship

IIRC, there have literally only been a couple of "foreigners" that have been afforded that right and even they are ranked behind the Emiratis

One issue is that the UAE is basically a welfare state and they don't want to take on additional "liabilities"

However, the main issue is people power and the Sheikhs fear that the locals would be overwhelmed if any semblance of rights were granted to outsiders

 

[GIMH]

Exactly. If we're going to talk about citizenship, there are no West Indian citizens, English citizens or Scottish citizens at this World Cup either.

Ireland too

 

[Spikey]

If we wanna get technical, citizenship is nothing but a social construct and really there are no citizens at all


there are Cityzens though and you can become one: Cityzens | Home

 

[cnerd123]

How apt that Man City is owned by UAE Sheikhs; they want you to be a Cityzen but not a Citizen.

#fullCircle

 

[Rotkohl]

Isn't their Captain also an UAE citizen?

Amjad Javed is and he's their only player with a cool head

Quite doubtful on both accounts.

They may be born and raised in UAE but i dont think they hold UAE passports or citizenship.

Tauqir is indeed an Emirati and a citizen. Farhad Alhashmi is another emirati but he hasnt played a game this world cup. I am not sure about Amjad Javed but the article below suggests that he is Pakistani

Mohammad Tauqir to lead UAE squad for World Cup | GulfNews.com

 

[Prince EWS]

Ireland too

You actually can become an Irish citizen I believe. It is a bit different to 'normal' citizenship though for obvious reasons.

 

[sledger]

What kind of question is that?

Possibly because there's nothing in the eligibility rules that demands players to be citizens of the nations they represent?

A really really dumb one.

 

[silentstriker]

I have a real problem with the way UAE treats immigrants though, and so I do have a problem with this team not being citizens. Not that ICC can do much about it, but I personally wouldn't mind some sort of citizenship rule (not clear on how that would work out - being a natural citizen of a country(or countries) of the board you represent). It gets weird with the UK though.

 

[Fusion]

I have a real problem with the way UAE treats immigrants though, and so I do have a problem with this team not being citizens. Not that ICC can do much about it, but I personally wouldn't mind some sort of citizenship rule (not clear on how that would work out - being a natural citizen of a country(or countries) of the board you represent). It gets weird with the UK though.

Yeah but then you're punishing the very immigrants you're trying to help. There would be zero chance the UAE would ever consider changing its laws due to cricket, or for that matter, sports in general. The only thing that will happen is that the players will be excluded from playing because of the citizenship rule.

 

[GIMH]

You actually can become an Irish citizen I believe. It is a bit different to 'normal' citizenship though for obvious reasons.

UC would probably know better than me. But my understanding is that being an Irish citizen makes you a citizen of the Republic, even though you are entitled to it if you are born and reside in the North

The Ireland cricket team represents the whole island. So a citizen in reality matches what constitutes the cricket team but technically in terms of the discussion we were having would fall under the teams without exact citizenship category.

Maybe. Complicated, this Irish malarkey

 

[Pratters]

As opposed to the numerous non-countries that have played and continue to play at World Cups?

Both are different topics.

Regarding the topic at hand, you do not want a player who has stayed just 2 months or 6 months say playing for UAE. A few criterias should be there. Maybe a person. Should have stayed in a particular country for at least 50% of last 5/10/15 or 20 years, say, if they are not a citizen.

 

[silentstriker]

Yeah but then you're punishing the very immigrants you're trying to help. There would be zero chance the UAE would ever consider changing its laws due to cricket, or for that matter, sports in general. The only thing that will happen is that the players will be excluded from playing because of the citizenship rule.

Yea I realize that. It's not practical and it wouldn't change much. How people are treated in the UAE - especially immigrant construction workers - just leaves a tremendously bad taste in my mouth.

 

[GirtBySea]

isn't it practically illegal to be christian?

edit: nope, but open athiesm is punishable by death.

Not an opinion but a fact for the uninitiated.
Atheism and any other religion apart form Islam is ILLEGAL in SAUDI ARABIA. Not the UAE.
Anyway as someone else said, well over 50% of the population of the UAE are from elsewhere, not indigenous to the UAE. Guess when you have a big population from the sub-continent where the game is so big that helps.