Over 130 Artists Call for Guggenheim Boycott over Migrant Worker Exploitation

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Over 130 Artists Call for Guggenheim Boycott over Migrant Worker Exploitation « Who's Building the Guggenheim Abu Dhabi?

Over 130 Artists Call for Guggenheim Boycott over Migrant Worker Exploitation
(New York, March 16, 2011) A group of leading artists, curators, writers, and others launched a boycott of Guggenheim Abu Dhabi today over the exploitation of foreign migrant workers building the museum on Saadiyat Island, the United Arab Emirates.

More than 130 international artists, curators, writers and others have signed a boycott to end all cooperation with the Guggenheim Abu Dhabi and are demanding that the Guggenheim Foundation and its Abu Dhabi partner take immediate and meaningful steps to safeguard the rights of the workers constructing the new branch museum on Saadiyat Island. Some of the artists who have signed the appeal have also decided to boycott other Guggenheim locations around the world until this issue is resolved.

“Artists should not be asked to exhibit their work in buildings built on the backs of exploited workers,” said Walid Raad, one of the artists boycotting the Guggenheim. “Those working with bricks and mortar deserve the same kind of respect as those working with cameras and brushes.”

In two extensive reports on the UAE, Human Rights Watch has documented a cycle of abuse that leaves migrant workers deeply indebted, poorly paid, and unable to defend their rights or even quit their jobs. The UAE authorities responsible for developing Saadiyat Island have failed to tackle the root causes of abuse: unlawful recruiting fees, broken promises of wages, and a sponsorship system that gives employers virtually unlimited power over workers.

After mounting criticism, the Guggenheim finally made a public commitment in September 2010 to protect the rights of laborers constructing its new branch. However the institution and, its Abu Dhabi partner, the Tourism Development and Investment Company (TDIC) have still not taken sufficient steps to better the conditions of workers.

On March 10, 2011, TDIC announced that it “is broadening its existing independent monitoring programme