Consulate introduces free legal advice for Pakistanis in UAE

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Consulate, introduces, free, legal advice, Pakistanis, UAE

Dubai - Expats will just have to book an appointment to meet the lawyer.

By Waheed Abbas

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Published: Tue 11 Aug 2020, 7:00 PM

Last updated: Tue 11 Aug 2020, 9:33 PM

Pakistanis in Dubai and the Northern Emirates may now approach their consulate for free legal advice, a top envoy said.
"We have opened a legal desk and signed a contract with a local firm. The lawyer sits at the consulate twice a week, Mondays and Wednesdays," said Ahmed Amjad Ali, Consul-General of Pakistan in Dubai and Northern Emirates.
Expats will just have to book an appointment to meet the lawyer. "Legal advice is given free of cost and minor issues - such as arbitration, visiting a police station or jail or figuring out the status of their problem - are addressed without any charges," Ali said.
If someone wants to file a case or an appeal, however, they will have to pay fees to the law firm, he added. These charges will be at a discounted rate, in line with the contract that the Pakistan Consulate signed with them.
"Since this service was introduced a month ago, 38 legal applications were filed and 80 per cent of them have been resolved or settled. There were a few cases where people wanted to file a case and the requisite processes are under way," Ali told Khaleej Times.
There were about 1.6 million Pakistanis residing and working in the UAE before the Covid-19 pandemic struck, with majority of them living in Dubai and the Northern Emirates. Over 80,000 have left the UAE in the wake of outbreak.
Three Pakistani community schools undergoing major development
Three Pakistani schools, which are under the supervision of the consulate, are currently undergoing major expansion and redevelopment, Consul-General Ahmed Amjad Ali has revealed. These campuses are located in Dubai, Fujairah and Ras Al Khaimah.
For the Ras Al Khaimah school, new land is being acquired and it will be three times bigger than the current area. For the HH Shaikh Rashid Al Maktoum Pakistan School in Dubai, the expansion will start next month, the envoy said. Some renovation projects in all three community schools are set to be completed this month.
The HH Shaikh Rashid Al Maktoum Pakistan School in Dubai is all set for reopening in September after securing the approval from the Knowledge and Human Development Authority (KHDA).
"In the the KHDA report which came out for HH Shaikh Rashid Al Maktoum Pakistan School last month, four areas in the evaluation have been marked fully developed - and there was no area which was marked red for the first time in the history of school. This is a major achievement," he said.
waheedabbas@khaleejtimes.com 


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