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A camel and a robotic camel jockey
© AFP/File Franck Fife

"A total of 1,075 child jockeys have been repatriated since the use of children in camel races was called into question in 2005," said the deputy interior minister, General Saif al-Shaafar.

"This file is from now on something of the past," he told reporters on Sunday, adding that an unknown number of other child jockeys have been "repatriated by their employers without going through the ministry".

"These kids came mainly from Pakistan, but also from Bangladesh, Sudan, Mauritania and Eritrea. At the time of their return, some of these kids where between eight and 11-years-old," he added.

Children as young as four were used as jockeys because of their light weight, while some were starved to stay light, according to their testimonies in a report posted on the website of the UN children's organisation UNICEF.

Swiss engineer introducing K-Mel
© AFP/File Bruno Fernandez

"Some parents came to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) bringing their families under the guise of (seeking) employment, and handed their children to race organisers" in return for money, the UAE official said.

He said that a repatriation and rehabilitation programme at a total cost of 10 million dirhams (2.7 million dollars, 2.1 million euros), funded entirely by the UAE, had been put in place in cooperation with UNICEF since 2005.

The UAE was often criticised in the West for the appalling conditions to which the children were subjected by the camel owners, but -- thanks to the repatriation programme -- it was removed early June from the US list of countries practising human trafficking.

The country has succeeded in applying most of the measures aimed at putting an end to the abuse of persons under 18 in camel races, the UNICEF representative in the Gulf, June Kunugi, told the local daily Gulf News.

Kuwaitis set up a robotic camel jockey
© AFP/File Yasser al-Zayyat

In 2005, the UAE banned children under 18 and weighing less than 45 kilograms (100 pounds) from taking part in camel races. Violators face up to three years in jail and/or a minimum fine of 50,000 dirhams (13,700 dollars, 10,700 euros).

In collaboration with UNICEF, the UAE government has set up shelters and rehabilitation centres in the Emirates and in the countries of origin of these children.

Children with malnutrition and suffering trauma receive medical and psychological treatment. As they were also deprived of education, they are now taught to read and write.

"The majority of these children were smuggled into the UAE and sold. Their parents are sometimes not known and we are trying with the help of UNICEF to find them," said general Shaafar.

He said that replacing child jockeys with robots has spared them the danger of being injured during races.

Robotic-jockey-mounted racing camel
© AFP/File Yasser al-Zayyat

"Each race involves 50 camels. Any child falling off would certainly be injured by these animals," he said, adding that the idea of using robots was "inspired by remote-controlled cars".

The locally-made improvised robot is made of fibre glass and weighs between four or five kilograms. It boasts a combination of "lightness and robustness".

The small mechanical box is wrapped with fabric in the shape of a figure which holds the reins with its "hands". A long whip is also attached to beat the camel into accelerating.

The UAE remains the top organiser of camel races in the Gulf region, with annual prizes of 70 million dirhams, said a UNICEF official.

"A winning camel was sold at a record price of four million dirhams," said Major Nasser al-Nahani of the interior ministry's department for camel races.

For a new high-tech company in Switzerland, a Qatari competition to design the robot jockeys has proved a godsend.

Child jockeys have been replaced in Qatar since October 2005 by the 70-centimetre-tall (two-and-a-half-foot-tall) robot equipped with GPS made by the start-up firm K-Team in Switzerland.

© AFP Rabih Moghrabi

At a cost of 15,000 euros (19,000 dollars) each, compared to the Emirati version which sells for as little as 2,000 dollars, 150 of the robot jockeys were delivered that year.

"This project was a great opportunity ... even if we needed an atlas to locate Qatar!" said Pierre Bureau, one of the company's engineers.

"The challenge was enormous. The robot had to resist temperatures of 50 degrees Celsius (122 Fahrenheit). We had to train people on site for maintenance and explain to the Bedouins how to operate the robots," said a co-designer, Olivier Magnenat.

Today, K-Team is working on a new generation of robot that will be lighter and without GPS, and cheaper.

"Also, they asked us to change the mask of the robot which looked too much like a human being, something which is contrary to Islam," another K-Team employee said.

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