Abu Dhabi: Sharing photos or videos of accident sites and victims through social media could get you into trouble, the UAE Ministry of Interior said on Monday.
Sharing such images are considered to be irresponsible and disrespectful to the victims, and is punishable under UAE law, the ministry said in a statement.
“The publication of such images is unacceptable as it could cause psychological trauma to the victims’ family members. It violates UAE traditions and Islamic values,” the statement said.
The warning was issued after images of an accident that occurred in Ajman on Sunday evening were widely shared on social media. Two people were killed in the accident and at least four others were injured.
Major Fawaz Ali Abdullah, director of the Security Media Department at the ministry, said that sharing such images is against UAE policy, and violates the sanctity of the dead and the privacy of the victims. The official said he was shocked to see that people filmed the horrific accident site in Ajman and shared it on social media. While people were acting irresponsibly, the police were working hard to investigate the incident and take necessary action in this regard, he said.
As Gulf News reported in July 2015, UAE laws call on social media users to think twice before posting or reacting to risky content on social media. For instance, care needs to be taken when posting pictures of others online, including via social media sites.
In addition, the Cyber Crimes Law (Federal Law No 5 of 2012) makes it an offence to use any means of IT to breach someone else’s privacy, including by taking pictures of others, or publishing or displaying those pictures.
The UAE Penal Code (Federal Law No 3 of 1987) also makes it an offence to transmit someone’s photograph without their consent.
Finally, the Copyright Law (Federal Law No 7 of 2002 in Respect of Author Copyrights and Parallel Rights) states that in the absence of an agreement to the contrary (and with limited exceptions), a person who takes a picture of another cannot distribute or publish such picture without the consent of the person appearing in the picture.
Residents speaking to Gulf News said they were aware of the legal implications of sharing images and photos without prior consent.
“Publishing such pictures is not acceptable, because it is a form of disrespect for the victims and their families,” said Rama Mohiddin, 22, an engineer from Palestine.
“When I was in school, my teacher’s son had a very severe accident in which the car was split in half. I was in deep pain when I first saw the picture, and I couldn’t even imagine what my teacher’s reaction would be if she saw such a picture,” she added.
Ibtihal Khaleel, a 22-year-old HR officer from Jordan, agreed with the UAE laws on sharing gruesome images.
“I found out about the regulations when the police issued a warning following the heavy rain in the UAE last winter. These rules are relevant because many social media users tend to post very scary and disrespectful pictures without thinking of their effect on others,” she said.
-Omnia Fahim is a trainee at Gulf News
