Family members protest shaming of offenders

Abu Dhabi: The public may believe that authorities are not doing enough to uproot sexual harassment but families of the offenders said the measures taken by the authorities to punish offenders are too strict.

Many people contacted by Gulf News said naming and shaming brings disgrace to the entire family, not just the offender.

"I regret the offence my son committed and do not object to the penalty inflicted upon him - but I would sue anybody who may bring disgrace to my entire family," a parent of a young man caught harassing women in a shopping mall in Abu Dhabi said on condition of anonymity.

"Naming and shaming will not help deter offenders - but will rather damage the reputation of innocent members of the offenders' families," he said.

However, a poll conducted by Gulf News showed 69 per cent of those polled believe authorities did not do enough to eliminate harassment in public places.

Some 23 per cent disagreed and said measures are enough, while the remaining 8 per cent were unsure.

Men caught harassing women will have their photographs and personal details published on the internet, an official at the Interior Ministry had said.

"Tough action will be taken against those who repeatedly harass women. This includes a one-year jail term for UAE nationals as well as naming and shaming them across the media and a fine of Dh60,000.

"Foreigners caught harassing women in shopping malls and other public places in Abu Dhabi will be jailed for one month and deported under a presidential decree issued by the late Shaikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan. At least 47 men, mostly UAE teenagers, are serving their jail terms at present. Two UAE nationals from Abu Dhabi and Al Ain repeated the offence and therefore will stay one year behind bars," the official said.

Police said 108 cases of harassing women, involving 127 men, were reported in the last three years.

Under the UAE Penal Code, a person who commits an indecent act towards a female, either verbally or by any action in a public place or anywhere else, will be punished with a prison term of not more than one year, or a fine of Dh10,000 or both.

The same punishment will be handed to men disguised as women, or wearing women's clothes to enter places frequented by women only, or a place where men are not allowed to enter at that time.

Naming of accused should be stated in law

The government is not authorised to inflict naming and shaming unless the measure is part of a penalty stated in the law or a court ruling, a human rights activist said.

Dr Mohammad Abdullah Al Rokn of Busit, Al Rokn and Associates Advocates and Legal Consultants, said the UAE justice system and the constitution protect everyone as equal human beings.

"Before the UAE laws, everyone, including offenders, have the right to legal redress if they are named and shamed," he said.

He added naming and shaming of offenders is an additional penalty, which may not be inflicted upon them without a court ruling.

The legal principle states that no penalty may be inflicted without a law. The damage of naming and shaming is not confined to the offender. It reaches out to his family and relatives.

"It is still a cornerstone of the UAE justice system that once an offender's time is served he starts anew with a clean slate. Therefore, naming and shaming runs contrary to one of the basic principles of our justice system. Has it occurred to anyone that the 'guilty' people targeted have the same legal redress as anyone else," he asked.