Social media, smartphones credited with helping juveniles shun crime

Dubai: Social networking sites, smartphones and tablets have been lauded for helping raise the awareness levels of families and juveniles on legal matters.

A senior Dubai Public Prosecution official said social networking sites, tablets and smartphones helped families draw lessons from case studies, thus preventing them from committing crimes.

"Social networking sites and smart phones such as iPhones and iPads play a very good role in spreading legal awareness amongst families and juveniles," senior Chief Prosecutor Mohammad Ali Rustom, head of Family and Juveniles Prosecution, told Gulf News yesterday.

"Facebook and Twitter and smartphones have helped us in spreading more... knowledge through having a wider outreach to families and juveniles," Rustom added.

The Dubai Public Prosecution carries different materials and programmes, such as the Qadiyyah Tahummak [Interesting Case] and Jareemah wa I'ibra [Crime and Lesson] on its website, Facebook and Twitter accounts as part of efforts to enlighten the public on matters that are punishable by law. The programmes can be downloaded on iPhones and iPads.

"Hence publishing criminal case studies via Qadiyyah Tahummak and Jareemah wa I'ibra on social networking sites and smart devices also helps in enlightening families and juveniles that if they commit a crime they will be prosecuted," he said.

"Social networking sites and smartphones have helped us promote one of our reformative programmes called Al Solhu Khair [reconciliation is good]. The programme has also helped in enlightening families on the importance of reconciliation. That was quite evident when 46.5 per cent of family cases were resolved [through] reconciliation at the Family and Juveniles Prosecution," Rustom told Gulf News.

Advocate Mukhtar Mohammad Gareeb, who is specialises in family and civil status cases, told Gulf News: “I strongly agree those social networking sites and others means have helped spread awareness amongst families and juveniles. Nowadays we notice that every child, teenager or parent either carries a smart device and/or has access to social networking sites.”

Gareeb said there were plenty of advantages that offset the disadvantages posed by owning smartphones and tablets or having access to networking sites. He said social media, smartphones and tablets had undoubtedly helped in reforming the public.

“The fact the prosecutors use those media to publish reformative programmes eventually enable the public to benefit largely,” he said.

The Family and Juveniles Prosecution looked into 119 family cases during this year’s first quarter. In a media statement issued yesterday, Rustom said the Family and Juveniles Prosecution had investigated 113 family cases during the same period in 2011 and 107 cases in 2010.

“Al Solhu Khair helped in convincing [an] elderly couple, [both] in their 60s, to reconcile and drop their cursing cases against each other. Hence they avoided being referred to the Family Court.”

Rustom said prosecutors had managed to make the couple realise the disadvantages of referring the matter to court, especially as regards their children and grandchildren.

Meanwhile 46.7 per cent of family cases were resolved through reconciliation during 2011’s first quarter, Rustom said.