Police to visit Ramadan tents to inform workers of local laws

Everything from combating drugs, to cybercrime, dresscodes, begging and jaywalking will be covered in the awareness drive against ‘negative phenomena’ in a first of its kind initiative launched in cooperation with Sharjah Police and the Sharjah Charity Association.

Details were announced during a press conference held at Sharjah Police headquarters on Thursday.

“Sharjah Police have taken several measures to combat these crimes, which increase during the Holy Month of Ramadan,” said Brigadier Mohammad Rashid Bayat, Director of Operations at Sharjah Police.

The initiative entitled ‘Safe Ramadan’ will last the month and cover the entire emirate.

Under the directives of Major General Saif Al Ziri Al Shamsi, Commander in Chief of Sharjah Police, the force have upgraded their security preparedness ahead of Ramadan.

Bayat stressed that the public can play a vital role in curbing ‘negative phenomena’ by immediately informing police of such activity.

He added that with more than 200 nationalities living in coexistence in the UAE and despite challenges faced by police due to ‘cultural pluralism’, police and security forces work to ensure the highest level of safety, making the UAE one of the safest countries in the world.

“Security is and has always been the main pillar to ensure good living conditions for people, as is humanitarian policing,” he said.

“Without the valuable collaboration between community members and the police, we would not be able to provide security for all.”

Lieutenant Colonel Ahmad Al Mirri, director of Sharjah Community Police said there was a total of 148 Ramadan tents in the emirate and a select 44 to be attended by police. Lectures will be attended by five teams of Sharjah police officers with 94 lectures planned in all regions of the emirate.

Delivered in English, Arabic and Urdu, it is expected that more than 60,000 people will benefit from the lectures.

Ramadan tents are considered an ideal place to engage the initiative’s target group of Asian workers as some will be illegal residents.

Police: Show no empathy to beggars

Police are also launching awareness drives on the dangers of showing empathy to beggars, with officers asking the community to only offer assistance through legitimate channels linked to recognised charitable foundations.

Police warned that beggars are expected to spill into the UAE during Ramadan hoping to cash in on the spirit of giving.