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UAE: Women say safety is the main reason they moved to the Emirates

The country was recently ranked as the safest place in the world to walk alone at night in a global index

Female residents have described the UAE's safety as a 'blessing' after the country ranked as the safest place in the world to walk alone at night in a recent global index.

In Gallup Global's 2021 Law and Order report, the UAE scored 95 per cent.

Malaysian resident Deena Stevens said the UAE's safety is the main reason she returned to the country after years of living abroad.

“Though moving overseas to live independently was exciting at the beginning, it quickly got troublesome as I could never walk freely without worrying and looking over my shoulder after some men would follow me home or to work," she said.

Stevens was forced to time her day around being home before nightfall, which she said "was too hard." Upon returning to the UAE, she said she regained her independence, confidence and ability to move freely without worrying.

Mona Al Mohamady, a UAE resident for the past four years, said the safety to walk around the streets at any time of day has been the best part about living in the UAE.

“The first time I was ever out on my own as a woman after midnight was the year I arrived in the UAE in 2017. I was hesitant to go for a dinner ceremony that ended at 1am until my husband reassured me that I’m in the UAE, the safest country in the world," she said.

She also highlighted the police’s quick response to emergencies, the nationwide surveillance and the tough penalties against harassment and other female-related crimes.

“The absence of fear of walking alone at night is a blessing that not many women across the world enjoy. The reason behind the country's safety is not due to the lack of criminals, but due to the widespread surveillance and the firm measures that the UAE implements,” said Mohamady.

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Haneen Mazen, who previously lived overseas before coming to the UAE 15 years ago, said she had not found an equivalent to the sense of safety in the UAE.

“The surveillance across public roads, transport and buildings give women a general feeling of safety and makes a potential violator held liable under the country’s efficient law system. We usually don’t find that in other cosmopolitan cities," said Mazen.

Noting the country’s high safety levels, Layal Charara called the UAE a “safe haven for women, children and men as a community.”

She noted that she never experienced danger when she returned home late after finishing long hours at work.

“Even the country’s leaders walk around so humbly without tight protections because they know the safety they have created," she said.

sherouk@khaleejtimes.com

• Dubai