Detained In Dubai

[Arthur Little]

"Queer" story of a Scot, jailed for 3 months in the United Arab Emirates' LARGEST city on a [false] charge of "indecency" ... before finally being released, following a major "sheik~up":

www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-tayside-central-41744068 ... :ReadIt:

"D'you buy" that? It wasn't as though he and his accuser were "joined at the hip"! :NoNo:

[Trefor]

Hmm, I don't think this guy is Mr Innocent. I've been to lots of bars and clubs out there and not had a snitch of trouble. Having a few drinks with the locals (Arab and Westerners) etc. Just like back home sometimes.

This incident happened in the Rock Bottom nightclub. A bar I would never go to as it's reputation precedes it. There is one in Muscat too, full of hookers and boozers. Couple this with a young man who works abroad, probably in a dry country, has a few days off work and goes to Dubai. He is drinking. He then has the evil eye with another guy in the club who is probably also pretty testosterone fuelled. This probably wouldn't end well in the UK either. He admitted touching the guy, said he had no choice. Really? He could have done the polite thing and tapped him on the shoulder (too loud to talk in these clubs), or had a mate lead the way to avoid confrontation. I also suspect when he was face-to-face with the Police he was a little drunk (as in smelt, maybe animated, protesting loudly too), they don't normally care unless you're disruptive. They also had to take the accusers concerns seriously. Into the clink for the night...

Then the part that is bad about Dubai crops up - the whole prosecution thing. This is very separate from the Police. It is true that the whole process seems to run at its own pace, and even though the accuser dropped his charge the prosecution did nothing, it went to court and he got sentenced. The court did not allow him a fair defence apparently, but I don't know the detail here (guess the judge used the information he was presented with). I've been involved a little with the Dubai Police (been to multiple Police stations in Dubai and dealing with various people) and the Court (nothing bad), and I found them polite, above-board and generally professional - but a bit slow and bureaucratic. Sometimes you come across someone who goes beyond the call of duty to help, other times they ignore you and you're in the 'queue' with everyone else and lost about what to do next.

Now Sheikh Mohammed heard about this and sorted it immediately. So you see the leaders want the system to be better, and trust me it is changing and improving all the time. For now, just don't be an idiot and kiss/be drunk/fight/fail to pay a debt and you will have no issue.

[bigmarco]

Pleased that common sense kicked in and he's free.
A good advertisment for not going to places like this with their stone age laws.

[Tawi2]

Something doesn't ring true about the scotch lad's story :wink:

[Arthur Little]

Something doesn't ring true about the Scotch lad's story :wink:

:Erm: ... 'fraid, as a Scotsman born & bred, I must point out the bloke's Scottish - or a Scot - NOT Scotch! :nono-1-1: ... "scotch" being an amber liquid poured from a bottle. :icon_lol:

.................................. :yeahthat:!

Cheers! :Beer:

[Ako Si Jamie]

Shirtlifting in an Islamic state? Not a hip thing to do! :wink:

[grahamw48]

I use their airlines, but I'm always pleased to be out of any Middle-Eastern country.