Today's Edition
Dr Yousef Abdullah Al Obaidli*
During a family trip, while we were driving between two countries in the West, my family suggested stopping for lunch in a beautiful city.
As we enjoyed our meal, I used an artificial intelligence application to learn more about the city. A historic bridge caught my attention, so I decided to visit it before returning to our original route.
Relying on my experience and driving skills rather than a navigation application, I inadvertently entered a road where entry was prohibited. I found myself among several vehicles whose drivers had been stopped by a traffic officer for violations.
The young officer approached me and calmly informed me that I had breached the traffic regulations. I tried to explain that it was unintentional, but he affirmed that the law applies to everyone.
I told him, “If a violation must be issued, I am responsible for the car behind me, which my brother is driving, and the one behind that, which my son is driving. We are travelling together as one family.” He took my documents and left, then returned a few minutes later with a surprise I had not expected.
“I will not issue you a violation,” he said, “but I want you to know why.” He continued, “I am overlooking the violation because of what I saw in the way you are together as one family. You are travelling together: a father and his children, his brother, together with his family, all on one trip. I admire that bond.”
He added, “Many people of my generation have become so absorbed in their individual lives and social media that most no longer wish to start a family. Finding a suitable life partner has become increasingly difficult."
I left without a violation, but with a thought more profound than any traffic fine. I realised that something we regard as ordinary in our daily lives has become, elsewhere, a dream to which many aspire.
A family gathering around one table, travelling together or attending a family occasion is a true blessing whose value we may recognise only when we see it through the eyes of someone who lacks it.
Thus, when our wise leadership declared 2026 the 'Year of Family', it was neither a mere slogan nor a passing occasion. It affirmed a national vision founded on the belief that a cohesive society begins with a cohesive family.
Islam has made the family the foundation of human stability. The Almighty says: “And one of His signs is that He created for you spouses from among yourselves so that you may find comfort in them. And He has placed between you compassion and mercy. Surely in this are signs for people who reflect.”
I recalled another experience from 2005, when I invited two foreign colleagues to my home. As soon as they entered the majlis (guest room), astonishment was plain on their faces. They asked why such a large space had been set aside within the house.
I explained that the majlis is more than a place for receiving guests: it is a space where family members, relatives and neighbours meet, and where the social ties that have sustained the strength of Emirati society across generations are formed. When I told them that our extended family gathers at my father’s house at weekends, they were even more surprised. One remarked, “I have siblings whom I sometimes see only once or twice a year.”
Many years have passed since those two encounters, yet we still feel the influence of majlises, the maintenance of family ties and regular family gatherings in our daily lives. They are a principal source of our society’s strength and cohesion, as reflected in the teachings of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), who said: “Whoever wishes for his provision to be increased and his life to be prolonged should maintain ties of kinship.”
From the private majlises in our homes to the majlises established by the government in every emirate, all attest to their importance in bringing society together and maintaining its cohesion. As the Founding Father, may God rest his soul, said, “Majlises are schools.”
Between the officer’s words and my guests’ astonishment on visiting an Emirati majlis, I found myself facing a question that is both simple and profound: Does everyone recognise the importance of these traditions in raising our sons and daughters? Will we preserve this heritage and pass it on to future generations?
The undeniable truth is that the family will always be the starting point. It is where values take shape, identity is formed, and children learn the meaning of responsibility, compassion and belonging to their country.
*Dr Yousef Abdullah Al Obaidli is an Emirati researcher. a
