Adi Bitar
Adi Nasib Al Bitar (1924 - 1973) was a judge, a legal advisor a lawyer who worked all over the Middle East. He had the honor of writing the constitution of the United Arab Emirates.
His early years
Adi was born in Jerusalem on December 7, 1924. His father, Sheikh Nasib Al Bitar’s continuous relocation around Palestine forced him to enroll at the Terra Sancta School in Jerusalem as a boarder. He graduated high school there with honors.
Jerusalem
He then joined the Jerusalem Law Classes; a British established specialized college that tought law, until he graduated on April 26, 1948 and was registered as a lawyer on June 16, 1949.
He joined the DA's office in Jerusalem and worked his position up until he resigned in August 18, 1956 to work in Sudan as a judge.
At the highpoint of his career as a DA, Adi took part in the initial hearings of the murder of HM King Abdullah I of Jordan that occurred on July 20, 1951 in Jerusalem.
Escaped an early death
To help pay for his college fees Adi worked at the Land Department in Jerusalem. The British had chosen the King David Hotel as their headquarters, thus the land department was also based there.
On July 22, 1946 there was a bombing attack against the British government of Palestine by members of Irgun — a militant Zionist organization.
The attack, initially ordered by Menachem Begin the head of the Irgun and later Prime Minister of Israel, had members of the Irgun, dressed as Arabs, set off a bomb in the King David Hotel in Jerusalem.
Adi was in the building when the bomb exploded and was saved only because his elder brother Bahij; who also worked there, insisted that Adi was buried alive under the rebel and should be dug up quickly. It took two hours to reach him and luckily was found alive with two broken arms and two broken ribs with many bruises all over his face and body. It took several weeks for his injuries to heal.
Sudan
He accepted to be a judge in Sudan at Wad Medani where he was appointed as the Blue Nile District Judge in 1956. In late 1959 he returned to Jerusalem where he established his own law firm. From 1959 until 1963 he never lost a case.
Dubai
In 1963 he was offered a job in Dubai. He went to visit and met with the late Sheik Rashid bin Saeed Al Maktoum the Ruler of Dubai then. In 1964 he was appointed as the Legal Advisor to the Government of Dubai. There he established the first Civil Laws and He also established the Civil Courts and was appointed as Chief Justice. He helped establish the Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry and many other projects.
The Trucial States
He was also appointed as the Secretary General to the Trucial States Council in 1967, the year it was established until it closed down in 1971 when the federation was created and the United Arab Emirates emerged as a new Arab State.
The United Arab Emirates
He took a very active and strategic role in the formation of the UAE. As a matter of fact it was decided by both Their Highnesses Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan and Sheik Rashid bin Saeed Al Maktoum during their meeting at the "Abu Dhabi - Dubai" border point at Sumaih; now known as the "Sumaih Meeting", that Adi Bitar should write the constitution and has to be ready by December 2, 1971.
Adi Bitar had the honor of writing the Constitution of the UAE". It was approved and signed by the Rulers of six Emirates in the Dubai Guesthouse Palace exactly on December 2, 1971, the date that the UAE was formed and celebrates that day as its National Day. The Emirate of Ras Al Khaima joined almost a year later.
The end
Two years later he died of colon cancer, and was buried in Dubai on March 4, 1973. Adi was buried next to his 10 years old son Issa who had died three months earlier of leukemia.