Sunday, March 21, 2010

Let's be clear about this...

The theme of expats falling foul of the laws rumbles on with a opinion piece by Sultan Al Qassemi in The National today. In my opinion it's one of the most sensible columns on the subject so far.

Sultan mentions some recent cases that have hit the world's media, including the text messaging case, the Bob's Diner kissing case, the beach sex case and the alleged rape in a five star hotel. I've posted about them previously but it's worth looking at them briefly here because they're actually quite different from each other.

Sex on a beach, or anywhere in public, isn't going to be tolerated in any country, so that falls outside the debate about what's acceptable in Dubai.

The alleged rape case was a mixture - the stories said that a woman's report of being raped was ignored and instead she was charged with illicit sex with her fiance. In fact she wasn't ignored and when CCTV footage proved she had not been raped she admitted that she couldn't remember the evening and withdrew the complaint. It is true that she and her fiance were charged with illicit sex.

The text messaging case certainly is about what's acceptable in Dubai and how things are dealt with. I posted about it here.

The kissing case was also about what's acceptable here - and also about the justice system, which I posted about here.

Sultan's column includes four extremely important points.

One, the ambiguity surrounding the whole question of what is and is not acceptable. The column is headed "Nothing should be ambiguous about what’s indecent"

Two, the country needs to decide what it wants to be.

Three, there is a vacuum of information regarding what is and isn’t officially acceptable.

Four, the inconsistency of court sentences.

That's something I've posted about several times, a minor misdemeanor attracting a longer jail term than a serious offence. As Sultan points out, a kiss is not a hazard to others' lives, as drunk driving is. He asks how both can be punishable by a jail sentence.

I would add another point - enforcement. If you have rules and laws you must enforce them, not routinely allow people to ignore them as happens here on a daily basis.

Looking at these important points, ambiguity and the resulting confusion is a real problem.

Comments left on my posts on the subject invariably include 'when in Rome do as the Romans do', accepting that a country has the right to to its own laws but expressing confusion about what is and is not acceptable.

Innocent public displays of affection are an offence yet prostitutes operate openly on the streets of Deira and Bur Dubai, in hotels and even in malls.

There is a dress code yet the malls are full of men in football shorts & singlets and women in revealing clothing.

Alcohol is legally available, the Friday drunken brunches are legendary, yet you can be jailed for drinking alcohol.

No wonder there's both confusion and criticism.

All of this has to be sorted out and Sultan's most important point in my opinion is that the country has to decide what it wants to be. Not just to clarify the situation for expats and visitors but, more importantly, for Emiratis.

As he says, "It is no longer possible to expect that these issues will sort themselves through a policy of ambiguity".

He wants Emiratis brought into the conversation as stakeholders in the future and shape of their country. He says, ideally this is the role of the Federal National Council because it should be the voice of the citizens.

He also wants more media involvement: "the local fourth estate can play the role of the parliament by debating what citizens deem acceptable".

That's critical. Decide what you want to be, then within that framework write the laws.

But they must be consistent and hypocrisy must be removed from the equation.

To tell people that holding hands is indecent while turning a blind eye to prostitution simply won't do. To jail people for 'planning a sin' because sex outside marriage is illegal but allowing thousands of unmarried couples to share hotel rooms won't do.

These inconsistencies in what's said and what actually happens 'won't do' not just for foreigners but also for Emiratis. Surely they want consistent laws and enforcement of them as much as, probably more than, foreigners do.

By all means have laws that reflect the country's culture, and expect people to obey them, but there has to be consistency. If not, there is confusion, there are charges of hypocrisy, there is cynicism.

As for the vacuum of information, that's simple.

When the laws and rules are clearly written it's the simplest thing in the world to distribute them to travel agents, tour operators, airlines and to give a leaflet to everyone passing through an Immigration desk.


I think this is an important column by Sultan and I hope it generates urgent debate that results in the ambiguity and increasing confusion being resolved. You can read it here.


Just In

As I was typing this an e-mail came in from a friend on a related subject so I thought I'd add it.

It's about ambiguity, confusion, statements and rethinks, and 'clarifications'.

According to Arabian Business, Dubai Municipality has issued a letter stating that the use of alcohol in the preparation and cooking of food, and the display and sale of food containing alcohol is 'strictly prohibited'.

Not surprisingly it caused mass confusion in the industry leading to officials to rethink the ban. They are now set to issue revised restrictions on Tuesday, sources said.

If it happened once it would be funny but it's become the standard way of doing things.

Here, read it for yourself, I'm tired...

Here it is.

16 comments:

Anonymous said...

As always, commonsense, well-considered analysis. 'Maintain the rage', Seabee...or perhaps 'keep chipping away' is a better recommendation. I hope that tiredness is just mild frustration. A Bex and a good lie down will fix it. Keep up the good work!

Abu el Banat

Anonymous said...

All of this has to be sorted out and Sultan's most important point in my opinion is that the country has to decide what it wants to be. Not just to clarify the situation for expats and visitors but, more importantly, for Emiratis.

How is the country to decide? Hold an election or maybe a referendum? Shouldn't you (or Sultan) say instead, "the rulers" or "the narrow ruling elite" has to decide?

He wants Emiratis brought into the conversation as stakeholders in the future and shape of their country. He says, ideally this is the role of the Federal National Council because it should be the voice of the citizens.

It should be the voice, I agree. But since it is appointed from above, not elected, can it really be the voice of the citizens?

He also wants more media involvement: "the local fourth estate can play the role of the parliament by debating what citizens deem acceptable".

Since there is not a democratically elected parliament you might very well hope that the local fourth estate would play the role of the parliament (although not many people would take seriously the ability of the media to fulfil the role of a legislature). But since the media is largely state controlled how can it play any significant role holding the state to account and cause it to legislate sensibly?

And how does anyone, the state or the media, know what citizens deem acceptable - there are no elections! (Out of interest is opinion polling permitted in the UAE?)

That's critical. Decide what you want to be, then within that framework write the laws.

But how can you decide when you have no elections? Unless you are happy that the decision is taken by the ruler/ruling elite?

But they must be consistent and hypocrisy must be removed from the equation.

Seabee - I agree with much of your post - of course the laws need to be better thought through and thus be consistent and without hypocrisy. But both you and Sultan Al Qassemi seem to ignore the fact that your exhortations to sensible legislation which reflect what citizens deem acceptable is not possible without democracy. After all, would you not agree that, on balance, democratically elected bodies tend to pass the least objectionable laws?

Anonymous said...

I think you have hit the nail on the head. The Emirate needs to determine which way it wants to swing and then stick to it with consensus and consistency. Consensus might be asking for too much because in reality it is the Ruling elite who will decide. This is not a democracy, so asking the local citizens will only be a 'lip service' exercise at best.

My argument has all along been the hypocritical and false advertising Dubai has operated in the past in order to lure the expats into the region whether to work or for vacations offering 'liberal' attitudes so 'westerners' can feel a certain comfort zone whilst in reality, the local population may have a deep resentment towards the expats population even though many of them utilise this 'liberal' attitude in order to fulfill their own vices of sex, alcohol and debauchery.

Due to the financial pressure on Dubai and it's ongoing bailout, I believe that it will go back to the conservative route, to which I have no problem, as long as they make it very clear, just like KSA has. At least everyone will know where they stand and Dubai will become just another tourist destination for the local GCC population at best!

Anonymous said...

Or perhaps the current inconsistency/hypocrisy and uneven application of local opaque laws suits the ruling elite. In this way they can speak to different 'constituencies' (e.g. local religious/conservative or liberal foreign expat) and claim different things.

Surely they want consistent laws and enforcement of them as much as, probably more than, foreigners do.

Seabee - no doubt this reflects the views of many "men and women on the street" but since most of these people want very different things from the laws (and possibly many things inimical to foreign residents) and not all can be satisfied and, crucially, you can't (or won't) hold an election to determine the majority view, an inconsistent fudge is a more than successful outcome for the country's rulers and is no doubt very desirable.

Anonymous said...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R5P5Npb6NmM

Strange that its blocked here.

rozard said...

I really believe on freedom of expression and I just hope your blog will somehow be the voice of us Expats/Emiratis here instead of castigating it by the local government as a one sided blog and eventually ban. Hope not and pls continue informing us!

Seabee said...

Anon@5.14, agreed, of course. But Sultan is working in within the situation as it is in the real world right now. He wants as much of a debate and a voice as is possible, which as things stand is through the FNC and the media.

A truly democratic parliamentary system with universal suffrage isn't going to happen for a long, long time so just sitting and waiting for it isn't going to achieve anything.

If Emiratis want that they can work towards it. But in the meantime there are still issues that need addressing and they have to be addressed through whatever institutions are available.

Ace said...

These recent events are like handing out speeding tickets at the Indianapolis 500 auto race!

All tourists and expat residents are treading on thin ice. Yes, the Emirates paint a rosy picture to the Western tourists and investors but a small twist of circumstances can get one afoul of Sharia law and in deep do-do.

Even if one is careful, there seems to be a "gotcha" contingency in the rules. You can't win.

The UAE has to make up it's mind. It needs Western money and talent but pressures are there to keep it a Muslim country. These inherent incompatibilities have to dealt with, one way or another or the increasing exposure of these types of cases will discourage both.

For example, it is legal for a non-Muslim to drink in a hotel bar, but illegal to leave that hotel under the influence just to hail a cab.

And then there is the "meat market" downtown.....

Anonymous said...

Now there is this clampdown on massage centres too, which may not be a bad thing

http://www.thenational.ae/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20100322/NATIONAL/703219815/1010/national

But to me all this - alcohol, kissing, texts, and massage clampdowns - seems part of a creeping drive to make Dubai more acceptable (ie more fundamentally Islamic)to those in Abu Dhabi and Saudi who are going to bail it out of the debt crisis. Maybe I'm just being cynical but I think the days of "liberal" Dubai are numbered.

That's fine if that's what they want - but as you have already posted Seabee the government need to be clear and consistent about what is allowed under law and what is not. And then enforce it.

Shutting massage parlours where illegal activity, though sordid, at least goes on behind closed doors in private, while allowing prostitutes to parade openly on the city's streets is hypocritical at best.

Myself and my wife enjoyed a couples massage at a well-known hotel Spa recently - all legit and very professional. But I had no idea, and I assume the establishment didn't either, that because my massage was carried out by a female therapist it was illegal.

Tiramisu said...

You are going to LOVE the latest 'booze in food' fiasco.

No Yes No Yes No Yes.

I think the regulators are just bored of twiddling their thumbs all day and are keen to see their names in print every now and then.

It's the only way you can explain the bold declaration banning alcohol in food, followed by the near instant back peddle.

Anonymous said...

So am I allowed to hold hands with the hooker I just picked up in Bur Dubai or not?

Thanks!

Confused

Seabee said...

Anon@12.47, LOL.

According to the Code of Conduct (which was never made official by the way) you can only hold her hand if you're married to her.

Be careful though, you could go to jail for planning to commit sin.

HE said...

Hey, guess what?!? It's our fault, we misunderstood again! - even though "eyewitnesses" to the circular (Arabian Business)saw "strictly prohibited" written.

http://www.arabianbusiness.com/584296-confusion-as-dubai-alcohol-in-food-ban-is-denied

Doug said...

What makes this even more bullshit is the fact that they’ve been filming Sex and the City 2 in Abu Dhabi. Or is it a case that the more you spend, the more things are suddenly legal?

blue-eyed floozy said...

@Doug, 5.35 pm:
Really? I thought that filming SATC2 in the UAE fell through (issues with the film title, iirc) and was being filmed in Morocco instead...

Anonymous said...

Your wrong in your claim "sex on a beach or in public isnt going to be tolerated in any country".

In spain, public sex is perfectly legal so long as no minors can observe...

the UK have just passed similar rulings with regards to being observed too.