(London) \u2013 Candidates in the upcoming Greater Manchester mayoral by-election should publicly commit to engaging with the\u00a0Emirati government on its egregious human rights record if elected, Human Rights Watch and FairSquare said today in a joint letter to the candidates.
The UAE has invested billions of pounds into both Manchester and its football club, Manchester City.\u00a0
\n\n\n\n \n \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n \n \n July 24, 2026\n \n \n Joint Letter to Greater Manchester Mayoral Candidates on the United Arab Emirates and Human Rights Concerns\n\n \n \n \n\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n\n \n\u201cManchester City Council\u2019s ties to Emirati officials have given the UAE\u2019s government valuable reputational cover while it backs forces committing atrocities in Sudan,\u201d said Joey Shea, senior Saudi Arabia and UAE researcher at Human Rights Watch. \u201cMayoral candidates should not stay silent about the UAE\u2019s record despite the money flowing through Manchester.\u201d
Manchester City Council has a close financial relationship with senior figures in the Emirati government, in particular through its stake in the Manchester Life Development Company (MLDC), a joint venture ultimately\u00a0controlled by Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, vice president and deputy prime minister of the UAE. The joint venture has offered the Emirati government valuable reputational benefits in the city of Manchester.
A May 2026 Human Rights Watch report adds to mounting evidence that the UAE has provided military support to the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in Sudan, which is engaged in a conflict with the Sudan Armed Forces (SAF) for control of the country. The RSF is responsible for widespread war crimes, crimes against humanity, and other atrocities, including as part of a campaign of ethnic cleansing in the Darfur region.\u00a0
Human Rights Watch found that Colombian private military contractors passed through Emirati military bases before being deployed to Sudan to support the RSF. This is further evidence indicating that the UAE is assisting or otherwise substantially contributing to the RSF\u2019s capacity to commit war crimes.
Human Rights Watch located Colombian fighters at the site of abuses by the RSF during their takeover in October 2025 of North Darfur\u2019s capital, El Fasher, a city they had besieged for 18 months. Foreign fighters, most likely Colombian military contractors, stood by while RSF fighters massacred men and women, including people with disabilities, and abducted many for ransom.
In February 2026, the UK\u2019s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office\u00a0added three Colombian nationals to the UK Sanctions List for their involvement in enlisting mercenaries from Colombia \u201cto fight alongside the RSF in areas of Sudan, including El Fasher.\u201d
The UAE hosts high-profile sporting, entertainment, and cultural events to promote a public image of openness that is at odds with the government\u2019s efforts to prevent scrutiny of its rampant systemic human rights violations, at home and abroad. The UAE uses these events to burnish its image, despite suppressing dissent domestically and fueling rights abuses abroad.
Human Rights Watch has previously sought to engage with civic leaders in Manchester on issues relating to the UAE\u2019s human rights record. In 2016, HRW requested that a then-senior figure in Manchester City Council, Sir Richard Leese,\u00a0co-sign a letter calling on the UAE to release political prisoners and investigate torture allegations. Leese declined, stating that the Emirati government were \u201cexemplary business partners\u201d and the \u201calleged\u201d abuses detailed in the letter were beyond the council\u2019s sphere of influence.
As outlined in\u00a0a 2023 FairSquare report, very few political leaders in Manchester have offered any criticism of the UAE, even though the city council has been engaged in joint commercial ventures with entities linked to the Emirati government.
The Manchester mayoral candidates should pledge that, if elected, they would press the UAE to end its support for the RSF. They should also promise to conduct human rights due diligence on UAE-linked investment in the city and region, by raising concerns directly with Emirati representatives and meeting Emirati human rights defenders, and speak out on the UAE\u2019s domestic record.\u00a0
\u201cManchester\u2019s next mayor should be willing to stand up to the UAE given its domestic repression and support for the abusive RSF in Sudan,\u201d said Alex Carlen, research and advocacy manager at FairSquare. \u201cGiven local government\u2019s long-standing and extensive ties to the Emirati monarchy, voters need reassurance that investment from the UAE is not being used to deflect from its record as a human rights violator. Our letter offers all candidates the opportunity to speak out and lay out their position clearly.\u201d
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