UAE torture case: Wudeema’s father accuses ex-wife
A father sentenced to death for torturing his daughters says his ex-wife abused daughters
Dubai: A father sentenced to death for torturing his daughter Wudeema to death yesterday accused his ex-wife of abusing the girl and her sister to throw the blame on him.
In a melodramatic scene before the Dubai Appeal Court, the 30-year-old Emirati, Hamad S., said he would not seek an acquittal or ask for his death sentence to be overturned but begged “for the truth to be exposed and justice to be enforced at any cost.”
“I beg the court to seek the truth and make it public… I don’t care about being executed or asking for my primary judgement to be reduced. At any cost, the court needs to reach the truth,” said Hamad when he addressed presiding judge Eisa Al Sharif on Sunday.
“I have had an 11-year-old dispute with my ex- wife and still have. I suffered dearly due to my ex-wife and her mother constantly trying to cast a spell on me. My ex-wife does not deserve to be a mother...” said Hamad.
During his brief argument, he accused his ex-wife of torturing their daughters, Wudeema and her sister Meera, and burning them “to throw the blame” on him.
He also alleged that she conspired against him and tried to put Meera under emotional pressure to testify against him.
In February, the Dubai Court of First Instance sentenced Hamad to death and handed his 28-year-old Emirati girlfriend Al Onoud A., life in prison. The couple claim to be married.
The couple was convicted of using merciless emotional and physical brutality, mistreatment and torturing eight-year-old Wudeema to death. Hamad and Al Onoud were found guilty of burning and torturing Wudeema’s seven-year-old sister, Meera, causing her a ten per cent permanent disability.
Hamad and Al Onoud pleaded not guilty to mistreating and torturing the two sisters, keeping them unfed and confining them in the washroom in a locked flat for a period of six months in Al Warqaa.
The father’s court-appointed lawyer, Hamdi Al Sheewi, argued his client did not intend to kill Wudeema.
“He confessed that he beat and tortured her because he was disciplining her. May she rest in peace and God bless her soul… the defence does not agree that disciplining someone should go beyond humanity. However he beat her in a form of chastisement and his actions went beyond normality… evidently he did not intend to kill her.”
He asked presiding judge Al Sharif to modify the charge from torture which led to death to beating which led to death.
“Prosecutors asked for the implementation of the Penal Law’s article 344, according to which my client was handed a capital punishment. According to the aforementioned article, prosecutors said Hamad kidnapped, confined his daughters and deprived them of their freedom… and that was what led to Wudeema’s death. The daughters’ custody was granted to Hamad as per a Sharia court order. Meanwhile we ask the court to prosecute Hamad as per article 339 which mainly tackles the crime of beating which leads to death,” said Al Sheewi.
The appeal court’s judgment will be given on June 9.
