DUBAI: A small cafe is bustling in the early morning hours here on Sunday, with a group of young men laughing ahead of making their way to work in a largely residential are of Dubai. They are blowing smoke from their mouths, but the shisha cafe could become a thing of the past for residential areas across the United Arab Emirates if a new law is implemented. “I don't like it,” said Omar Hekmat, a Pakistani marketing assistant. “What is wrong with us doing what we want in this closed space?” he asked Bikyamasr.com. Last year, the government passed legislation to close neighborhood cafes serving shisha, or water-pipes, in an effort to remove tobacco from such areas. However, the January 2010 bill, signed by President Sheikh Khalifa, has been delayed and is currently waiting for final approval before it takes effect. “My friends and I come here because it is close to our homes and we want a little relaxation before work,” said Hekmat. But sponsors of the bill believe differently, and the new rules should have been in effect last week. Still, on Sunday shisha smoke still persisted in many local apartment buildings. The National newspaper of Abu Dhabi said that the issue to be sorted before the new law is implemented is a bylaw being prepared by the health ministry that outlines particulars that include how far from residential areas a shisha cafe must be, Wedad al-Maidoor, the head of the ministry's tobacco control committee, was quoted as saying. Maidoor said the bylaw must be revised or passed by the Cabinet, the council of ministers that is the federation's executive authority. “In June, we submitted the bylaw to the council,” she said. “They are supposed to look at it, approve it. Nobody called us from there. I don't know what is the status.” For the time being, it appears that the likes of Hekmat and friends will still be able to enjoy shisha at their local cafe, but the future for their jaunts to the same place seem unlikely. “I understand why they are passing the law and while we don't like it, we will find another place in a commercial area and make it our new home in the morning,” he added. Kuwait is also attempting to pass an anti-shisha law. BM ShortURL: http://goo.gl/tlc4X Tags: Shisha, Smoking, Tobacco Section: Culture, Latest News, United Arab Emirates
