Lisa Bloom this week filed a complaint with the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission to ban the Dubai ruler and his horse from this year’s Kentucky Derby, scheduled for Saturday 1 May.
The Free Latifa campaign welcomes this week’s demand from top US Attorney, Lisa Bloom that Dubai ruler and his horse be excluded from this year’s Kentucky Derby, which takes place on Saturday 1 May.
A joint statement was issued this week on the subject by Ms Bloom and Professor Sam Marcosson of the Brandeis School of Law at the University of Louisville.
In this, Lisa Bloom explains:
”For over three years, the monarch of Dubai, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, has brazenly and openly held hostage his adult daughter, Princess Latifa, whose only ‘crime’ was her attempt to escape him and live life on her own terms.
“The now thirty-five-year-old Princess recorded a video prior to her escape attempt, describing the ‘gilded cage’ in which she’d been forced to live all her life, always watched, always followed, denied her dream of studying medicine abroad. She said that as a woman in Dubai her life was ‘disposable’. And she warned that if the video was released, it would mean she was dead or in a ‘very, very, very bad situation’.
“Her fear has come true. She is now in that very, very, very bad situation.
Sheikh Mohammed has not denied these events. He does not and cannot deny that he has been holding Latifa hostage and incommunicado since early 2018. He just refuses to discuss it because his actions are indefensible. He hopes that the world will simply forget about Latifa.
“It is time to end business as usual in the United States for Sheikh Mohammed. He operates horse racing farms in Kentucky, called Godolphin, whose horse ‘Essential Quality’ is a favourite to win the Kentucky Derby on May 1.
“It is time to ban Sheikh Mohammed, everyone associated with him, and ‘Essential Quality’ from the Derby, the Oaks, and all horse racing events in Kentucky. Surely as a country that believes in women’s rights and the sovereignty of the American flag, that is the very least we can do.”
The Kentucky Horse Racing Commission dismissed the complaint previously because it was based on press reports. However, in March 2020, the family division of the British High Court found that Sheikh Mohammed had arranged the kidnapping of two of his adult daughters and forcibly returned them to Dubai after they attempted to flee on different occasions. It also found the sheikh “conducted a sustained campaign of fear, intimidation and harassment” of his now ex-wife, Princess Haya, who was one of the leaders of the 2010 World Equestrian Games at the Kentucky Horse Park.
We understand that Lisa Bloom has included information from the 2020 London High Court ruling to support her complaint.
Recently, human rights experts at the UN demanded the UAE provide “Evidence of lifeand assurances regarding her well-being are urgently required" and “independent verification of the conditions under which she is being held”, and “her immediate release.”[1]
David Haigh, a human rights lawyer and co-founder of the Free Latifa campaign, said:
“If the UAE do not release Latifa, then the international community must take action against Dubai. We confirm that Rodney Dixon QC and our legal team will be applying to the Foreign Office for sanctions to be implemented against those responsible for the continued and grave abuses of Latifa’s human rights, including her father, the Dubai ruler. Similar sanction requests will also be made in the EU and the United States.”
Princess Latifa’s lawyer Rodney Dixon QC said: “The UN has made clear that a full verifiable answer is required from the UAE authorities without any further delay. The only way to know that Princess Latifa is safe is for her to be released immediately.”
Tiina Jauhiainen, a friend of Princess Latifa who was kidnapped by the UAE alongside Latifa added: “The last time we heard from Latifa was almost a year ago and not having any news about her is devastating. It’s time that world leaders and the international community support the call of the UN for Latifa’s immediate release.”
Lisa Bloom’s full statement is available here.
A joint statement was issued this week on the subject by Ms Bloom and Professor Sam Marcosson of the Brandeis School of Law at the University of Louisville.
In this, Lisa Bloom explains:
”For over three years, the monarch of Dubai, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, has brazenly and openly held hostage his adult daughter, Princess Latifa, whose only ‘crime’ was her attempt to escape him and live life on her own terms.
“The now thirty-five-year-old Princess recorded a video prior to her escape attempt, describing the ‘gilded cage’ in which she’d been forced to live all her life, always watched, always followed, denied her dream of studying medicine abroad. She said that as a woman in Dubai her life was ‘disposable’. And she warned that if the video was released, it would mean she was dead or in a ‘very, very, very bad situation’.
“Her fear has come true. She is now in that very, very, very bad situation.
Sheikh Mohammed has not denied these events. He does not and cannot deny that he has been holding Latifa hostage and incommunicado since early 2018. He just refuses to discuss it because his actions are indefensible. He hopes that the world will simply forget about Latifa.
“It is time to end business as usual in the United States for Sheikh Mohammed. He operates horse racing farms in Kentucky, called Godolphin, whose horse ‘Essential Quality’ is a favourite to win the Kentucky Derby on May 1.
“It is time to ban Sheikh Mohammed, everyone associated with him, and ‘Essential Quality’ from the Derby, the Oaks, and all horse racing events in Kentucky. Surely as a country that believes in women’s rights and the sovereignty of the American flag, that is the very least we can do.”
The Kentucky Horse Racing Commission dismissed the complaint previously because it was based on press reports. However, in March 2020, the family division of the British High Court found that Sheikh Mohammed had arranged the kidnapping of two of his adult daughters and forcibly returned them to Dubai after they attempted to flee on different occasions. It also found the sheikh “conducted a sustained campaign of fear, intimidation and harassment” of his now ex-wife, Princess Haya, who was one of the leaders of the 2010 World Equestrian Games at the Kentucky Horse Park.
We understand that Lisa Bloom has included information from the 2020 London High Court ruling to support her complaint.
Recently, human rights experts at the UN demanded the UAE provide “Evidence of lifeand assurances regarding her well-being are urgently required" and “independent verification of the conditions under which she is being held”, and “her immediate release.”[1]
David Haigh, a human rights lawyer and co-founder of the Free Latifa campaign, said:
“If the UAE do not release Latifa, then the international community must take action against Dubai. We confirm that Rodney Dixon QC and our legal team will be applying to the Foreign Office for sanctions to be implemented against those responsible for the continued and grave abuses of Latifa’s human rights, including her father, the Dubai ruler. Similar sanction requests will also be made in the EU and the United States.”
Princess Latifa’s lawyer Rodney Dixon QC said: “The UN has made clear that a full verifiable answer is required from the UAE authorities without any further delay. The only way to know that Princess Latifa is safe is for her to be released immediately.”
Tiina Jauhiainen, a friend of Princess Latifa who was kidnapped by the UAE alongside Latifa added: “The last time we heard from Latifa was almost a year ago and not having any news about her is devastating. It’s time that world leaders and the international community support the call of the UN for Latifa’s immediate release.”
Lisa Bloom’s full statement is available here.
