UAE makes slow progress towards democracy - FT.com

The United Arab Emirates, one of the Middle East countries to avoid social unrest in recent months, is preparing for the upcoming elections of its Federal National Council, a government advisory body without legislative powers.

Despite increasing the number of people eligible to vote to 129,000 from fewer than 8,000, the number of candidates who have presented themselves was little changed from the previous election in 2006, to the disappointment of some analysts. Last week, 469 Emiratis were accepted as candidates for the September 24 election compared with 453 five years ago.

The UAE has boosted those eligible to vote to include more women and young people after pro-democracy protests rocked other countries in the region. However, the 40-member council with limited powers remains only half-elected, the other half being selected by the seven emirates’ rulers.

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