Page 426 - UAE Truncal States

The Formation of the Federation

Another reference was where the role of the Federal National Council
was discussed: "The base of the FNC should be expanded,” pre­
sumably meaning that there should be more than the forty delegates,
but possibly also that they should be elected by a process which
gives them a wider base of public support. There was no direct
reference to elections on the basis of one-man-one-volc, because the
authors of the memorandum were fully aware that with the existing
population structure the application of this principle would be
controversial, and that, in the absence of political parties, the
traditional leadership groups within the local society could well
continue to be used as adequate vehicles of popular representation.
Contrary to the conclusions which many outside observers
reached, the joint memorandum and the Spring 1979 crisis did not
primarily focus on western style democratisalion. Nor was criticism
of lack of freedom an issue, because in every respect, personal,
religious and economic, and with regard to political opinion, the UAE
is one of the least restrictive anywhere. The central issue in 1979 was
the need to make the Federation more governable and its institutions
more professional. The nature of the public support for the move­
ment and the reaction of the highest federal authorities indicate that
these arguments were part and parcel of the ongoing debate about
interpretation of the federal principle; although, to some, unification
to the point of centralisation had always seemed to be a much neater
solution.
On the day that the memorandum was handed to the Supreme
Council a number of citizens from other Emirates and students from
the UAE University in al 'Ain converged on the venue of the seven
Rulers in Abu Dhabi. While Shaikh Zayid, in his address to the
demonstrators, dwell on the point that every citizen should have an
equal share in building and supporting as well as benefiting from
the Federation, the main point which was emphasised in all the
addresses and in a further memorandum handed to him was the call
for an end to regionalism and for a drive towards unification. A
tendency to portray increasing centralisation as the remedy for the
Federation's problems became obvious during demonstrations
which were organised during the following four days in many parts
of the UAE. Hand in hand with this went a surge in enthusiastic
expressions of support for the President, Shaikh Zayid, who was
seen as the proponent of speedier unification. 1GG
Such summary unification and virtual abolition of the principles of
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