Comment in Gulf News

I forgot to mention this: my letter to the editor got published in Gulf News ...Here's the comment:

Disproportionate
Although the regulation on rent increases in Dubai is commendable, I do not understand why "Dubai residents go ecstatic over rent cap" (Gulf News, November 12). A 15 per cent increase is nothing to be ecstatic about! In Canada, rent increases are limited to about 2 per cent every year and can go up to about 4 per cent if (and only if) the landlord carries out some renovation that adds value to the building.
In my case, a 15 per cent increase translates to Dh10,000, which is ridiculous. The rent allowance allocated by many employers will not increase proportionally to the rent increase. From A Reader Dubai Name withheld by request

Of course it was slightly edited...I am especially upset that they did not print the last phrase of my original letter:

Does the government think we are idiots by making it seem like a GOOD THING to have a 15% rent cap? Come on!

After discussing with some colleagues at work, they told me that in previous years, rents would increase by 20, 25, sometimes even 30% from year to year...Can you imagine! So now I understand why residents are "ecstatic"...But I still think 15% is a ridiculous amount. We'll see what happens when I have to renew my lease 6 months from now.