About This Website
Helpingcameljockeys.org was created to provide the media and the public with the facts concerning the United Arab Emirates' successful and widely praised efforts to eradicate the practice of using underage jockeys in camel racing.
After banning the employment of children in camel racing in 2005, the UAE entered into a ground-breaking agreement with UNICEF that has helped identify and return nearly 1,100 former child jockeys to their homes in Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sudan and Mauritania. The UAE has also agreed to spend more than $11 million to ensure that the former child jockeys receive medical treatment, schooling, compensation and other forms of support.
In partnership with the four governments, the UAE and UNICEF have created community development programs aimed at alleviating the poverty behind the exploitation and trafficking of children. To ensure that all the former child jockeys were helped, the UAE extended the program until 2009. Independent claims facilities, comprised of representatives from the UAE and the source countries, were established to oversee the compensation program.
In 2006, this successful multinational effort was threatened by the filing of a lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Miami. Though that case was dismissed in July of 2007 on jurisdictional grounds, a similar lawsuit was filed in September 2007 in Kentucky. We believe anyone who honestly reviews the facts will conclude that there is no role for plaintiffs' attorneys or for U.S. courts where international diplomacy and innovative programs are already succeeding.
--The Executive Office of the Dubai Government
Timeline of Events
For more than 15 years, the UAE has been involved in self-regulation of its camel racing industry. In 2005 the UAE ended all employment of boys as camel jockeys while entering a series of historic agreements with UNICEF to repatriate the children and provide social support to former camel jockeys in their home countries. The UAE also negotiated agreements with the four primary source countries to compensate former camel jockeys.
To use the Interactive Timeline, click and hold down left mouse button while dragging the bottom (or top) band of the timeline left or right. Click on an event for more details.