Dubai: Dubai Police helped two women and their children — one abandoned by her husband and another who could not make ends meet — in two different cases in 2015.

Major Shaheen Ishaq Al Mazmi, Director of the Child and Women Protection Department, said these were just two of the 191 cases handled by the department between January and September 2015.

“A GCC national abandoned his Arab wife and her four children in the UAE and returned to his home country,” he said.

The woman sought the department’s help because her landlord threatened to evict her and her children as she had not paid the rent for eight months.

“She tried to get in touch with her husband for months but could not reach him. [She had lost all hope] as her salary was not enough to cover their expenses,” he said

The father had also failed to issue identity documents for some of his children, one of whom was of school-going age, and the others were younger.

“When she came to us, we tried calling her husband in his home country but to no avail. Social workers visited her and assessed her case and she was provided shelter along with her kids at the Dubai Women and Children Establishment,” Maj Al Mazmi said.

Meanwhile, a team from Dubai Police’s Criminal Investigation Department tasked with dealing with consulates contacted the consulate which helped, after multiple attempts, in getting to the man.

“We spoke to him and asked him to get his children their identity documents, and also asked him to provide his wife a house in his home country. We helped the woman travel to him with her children, and the consulate advised her to file for child support in his country if he does not take care of them,” he said

In the other case, Maj Al Mazmi said, a non-Arab woman who was still married but separated from her Arab husband was facing financial problems as her husband was not giving her enough money to take care of their children.

The couple have three children together, one of them is special needs child.

“The woman came to us asking for help because she did not know what else do. We called the father, who said he had other financial commitments. He was also married to another woman,” he said.

The team at the department explained to the man that he has to give her more money, as his wife has the right to ask for more through the court.

Maj Al Mazmi said the man agreed to increase his wife’s allowance, and the woman was satisfied with the increase.

The department, he added, checks on such cases for at least six months to ensure that the parties are standing by their commitments.