Calling someone 'bad words' in UAE can land you in jail

Try not to say awful words nor call individuals 'silly' or 'stupid', except if you need to finish up in prison in the UAE.

In the course of the most recent couple of months, no less than two individuals had confronted preliminary in the nation in light of the fact that they had supposedly offended their companions.

In October, a man called a lady he needed to get drew in with 'trick' in a WhatsApp message, inciting her to document a case. He got fined Dh20,000. Prior this month, amid a football coordinate in Sharjah, a man allegedly called his associate 'senseless'. He is at present standing preliminary.

Notwithstanding whether obscenities are communicated as half-implied jokes or as a major aspect of an easygoing discussion, an affront is an affront - and it is a wrongdoing, as indicated by the laws of the nation.

Mahmoud Azab, attorney and specialist at Al Wasl International Group, said criminal disciplines for put-down vary contingent upon whether these were conveyed "specifically or eye to eye" or by means of online channels and web based life.

"Coordinate affront or defamation is culpable as per the government corrective code, yet when it happens on the web or through internet based life or versatile applications, it would be culpable as per the bureaucratic law fighting cybercrimes. The last prompts heavier sentences or fines," Azab said.

Article 373 of the government corrective code expresses that any individual who "throws another, by any exposure implies, with any explanation that influences his respect or poise" will be condemned to a prison term not surpassing a year and a fine of up to Dh10,000. Punishments are higher if the affront has been coordinated to an open authority or has influenced families.

Then again, hostile dialect conveyed by means of online stages - including WhatsApp - is viewed as a cybercrime and will be deserving of "detainment and a fine at the very least Dh250,000 and not in overabundance of Dh500,000", as per Federal Decree Law No. 5 of 2012.

Azab said up to an individual was outraged by an affront or a vulgar motion, it would be viewed as an infringement of law. "An individual I know from Asia was imprisoned and ousted on account of a revolting signal," he included.

Ashish Mehta, author and overseeing accomplice of worldwide law office Ashish Mehta and Associates, said the law is appropriate to all and it doesn't make a difference whether the affront was utilized against a companion or an outsider.

"I trust individuals ought to be in charge of their demonstrations or conduct, they ought to be watchful when they converse with others actually or on a web based life stages to maintain a strategic distance from such cases," Mehta said.

Insults punishable by law in the UAE

Online insults and slander
Dh250k-Dh500k fine
Jail term

Direct insults (any publicity means)
Dh10,000 fine
One-year jail term

Direct insults over the phone / facing the victim in the presence of others
Dh5,000 fine
Six-month jail term

*Higher penalties are imposed if insults are directed to public officials.

What the law says about insults

Article 373

Shall be sentenced to detention for a term not exceeding one year or to a fine not in excess of Dh10,000. Whoever casts another, by any publicity means, with any statement that affects his honour or dignity without attributing to him a specific fact.
The penalty shall be detention for a term not exceeding two years and a fine not in excess of Dh20,000 - in both instances, or one of those two penalties - if the insult is addressed to a public servant or a person in charge of a public service, during or because of the discharge of his duties or performing the public service, or if it affects honour or reputation of the families, or if expected to fulfil an illicit purpose.

Article 374(1)

Shall be sentenced to detention for a maximum period of six months or to a fine not exceeding Dh5,000 in case the libel or insult takes place through the telephone or facing the victim in the presence of others.
The penalty shall be a fine not exceeding Dh5,000 if the libel or insult takes place facing the victim without the presence of a third party or in a letter dispatched to him by an means whatsoever. Shall be considered an aggravating circumstance if the libel or insult - in the stances stated in the paragraphs hereinabove - is addressed to a public servant or a person in charge of a public service, during or because of discharging his duties or performing his service, or if affecting his honour or the reputation of the families, or if expected to reach an illicit objective.

Federal Decree Law No. 5 of 2012:
(Issued on 25 Ramadan 1433 AH Corresponding to 13 August 2012 on Combating Cybercrimes)

Article 20

Without prejudice to the crime of slander determined by the Islamic Sharia, shall be punished by imprisonment and a fine not less than Dh250,000 and not in excess of Dh500,000 or either of these two penalties whoever insults or accuses another person of a matter of which he shall be subject to punishment or being held in contempt by others, by using a computer network or an information technology means. If a slander or insult is committed against a public official or servant in the course of or because of his work, this shall be considered an aggravating factor of the crime.

Source: https://www.government.ae/en/resources/laws