Activists and intellectuals in the United Arab Emirates have petitioned their rulers for free and democratic elections, a report says.

The petition calls for a comprehensive reform to the Federal National Council (FNC).
However, there appears to be no indication of any effort towards street protests in the seven-emirate federation.
Some 160 people, many of them former council members, signed the document on Thursday.
“The (petition) group calls for comprehensive reforms to the Federal National Council (FNC), or parliament, including demands for free elections by all citizens in the method of universal suffrage,” Reuters quoted a statement from the petitioners as saying.
(Source: Press TV)