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Stripping down the laws
A man in Dubai has been sentenced to a month in jail for wearing a cancer awareness t-shirt that featured an almost nude Victoria Beckham.
A Lebanese man in Dubai has been sentenced to one month in jail followed by deportation for wearing a cancer awareness t-shirt featuring a nearly naked Victoria Beckham, reports The National. The Dubai Court of Appeals charged him with offending public decency.
The 28-year-old was reportedly stopped at a bakery in Dubai last year by an Arab man, who questioned him about his t-shirt, which showed a nearly nude Beckham with the slogan “Protect the Skin You’re In.”
The two argued, and after the accused left to change his shirt, the police were called and charged him with three accounts; drunkenness, fleeing the scene of a conflict and offending public decency. The first two charges have since been dropped, says the report.
The shirts were designed by Marc Jacobs for a cancer awareness campaign.
We have asked the police for a comment and are still waiting for a response.
Laws regarding public behavior in Dubai came to light when a British couple was arrested for having sex on a public beach last year.
It was followed by media reports earlier this year that claimed that the Dubai Executive Council had launched a campaign against what it considers inappropriate behavior in public. According to the reports, playing loud music, dancing, nudity, kissing, holding hands and being under the influence of alcohol in public will be considered offenses, and may result in jail time and fines.
Wearing revealing clothing in public, including short skirts and shirts that expose shoulders, will also be considered offenses, the council said.
Last week, the British Foreign Office launched a campaign urging British nationals to dress appropriately and respect local customs when overseas on holiday. The office warned that there have been several cases of British nationals being charged with indecent public exposure while on vacation, reported the Telegraph.
Research by the office found that half of all British women who sunbathe topless risk prosecution, and that one in seven men admitted to having had sex in a public place on holiday.
Some of the instructions given include: “Rude gestures in Dubai are considered to be an obscene act and offenders can be prosecuted,” and “topless sunbathing in Abu Dhabi is forbidden and liable to be punished by imprisonment or deportation.”
The latest incident again highlights the struggle that Dubai seems to be facing: being a cosmopolitan city with traditional Islamic laws. With more cases of “public indecency” making headlines, is the emirate trying to prove a point? And will the negative publicity prove to be detrimental to Dubai’s image?
Recent stats reveal that Emirati men are increasingly likely to marry foreign women. “Social experts” say it is because it’s cheaper for the men.
It’s traditional versus modern as we pit Abu Dhabi against young upstart Dubai. Time for the two giants of the UAE to go head to head in the ultimate showdown (sort of).
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If you want your country to have tourists , investors and expatriates , you should at least allow a bit of flexibility in the law implementation .
Your whole life in terms of work , family and financial commitments will suffer because of a severe punishment that could not have been expected.
I don't think the administration is so serious about such matters but only to get some publicity on such things. If they are so serious, why there are so many prostitutes openly selling on the roads in lthe Deira and Naif area all the time irrespectve of day and night. This is happening openly and it is really embarassing for the families staying in the very same building where the prostitutes are doing their buksiness. While the administration is taking action against a person who is wearing a Tshirt that also part of a cancer awareness campaign but closing their eyes on such things.
Thank you
Muslim Indonesia - 175m ??
Malaysia?
SIngapore?
all of these are majority muslim countries and manage to combine western values etc with Islam
Islam is not supposed to be enforced on others
yes we are visitors and should respect it
but christians can eat in ramadan in indonesia in daylight, there are pubs clubs etc
dubai needs to make its mind up what it wants to be
unfortunately the courts and real estate "industry" made the decision for them and everyone has long gone now
who cares if he's sentenced to one month in jail and deported for wearing a T-shirt featuring a semi-naked woman..
Now let's focus on Paris Hilton bikini stories.. and the summer shopping festival..
But what the heck another day in dubai, these things dont even surprise me anymore
Which one do u prefer to look at? A couple making love on the beach, or picture this:
u r at the hospital waiting for the ambulance to deliver your only daughter that u were told that she fell off a bike while hanging out with her classmates at a supposedly safe compound, and broke her arm, u see her, they are bringing her out of the ambulance, her big blue eyes wide open, but there is no expression!! bcos she didn’t fall off a bike, but off a quad bike, bcos corrupt dubai and emaar gave permission to one of the residents to get a quad for his son even though they are not allowed to be driven as per their own written rules as well as uae rules, they drive it in the compound while the security guards are watching, picture your daughter lying down on the floor moaning for 40 minutes, while everyone else is watching her, the security guards couldn’t touch her bcos they are not trained on first aid, AND bcos its ramadan thery can not touch a female?!?! ambulance arrives after 40 minutes and police came only when they heard that Gabriella passed away?! In the police report they address Gabriella as "the accused" why? The quad bike wasn’t hers! She was only 14! She was the victim of ignorance!
U think sex on the beach is bad? What would u call the lawyer whom I approached for the case and he wanted me to invite him for dinner etc etc...before he takes the case?!?ah maybe if it is hidden its ok in dubai?!?!
How about my so called "best friend" whom I knew for 10 years and he conned me financially, without feeling any remorse towards what kind of emotional and financial state I am in already? now he is sat in his new found country and chanting about it!
If I had a choice, I prefer to see the sex on the beach, then the expresionless eyes of my daughter! those 2 who were making love in the open didn’t kill or con anyone, still, they got their punishment but nothing happened to the people who were responsible for my only daughters death, or to my "best friend"!
"and being under the influence of alcohol in public will be considered offenses!!!"
how do we go back home from the clubs? do we stay in that hotel?
just food for thought
It is illegal to have liquor on your breath when walking on the footpath ( this is a Muslim country remember ?) but it is perfectly legal to sell liquor at all the 3, 4 & 5 star hotels.
A copy of a British Magazine was confiscated at the airport because there was one ad for the perfume Obsession which showed some skin ( this is a Muslim country remember ? ) , but the police office so kindly directed me to the Duty Free to pick up not 2 but 4 bottles of liquor !
People can be arrested and jailed ( see this story ! ) for wearing a T shirt with a picture of a woman showing skin , but go to any disco or night club in any hotel in Dubai and you not only see skin you can also touch and feel it provided you have the cash.
Sensibilities, religious sentiment and traditions be damned, rules can be bent as long as there is money to be made, after all this is Dubai !