Knowing the law is up to you

Dubai residents and tourists are invited to learn the law of the land to stay out of trouble.

After a string of high profile lawsuits involving the behavior of mainly Western tourists and residents, Dubai Public Prosecution (DPP), has launched an iPhone application that allows people to download the law directly to your mobile.

The line publishes laws. And yesterday one of the lawyers told AFP older people whether they live in Dubai or just visiting the city to make sure they know what they can not do.

"Many people have problems because they do not know the law here," said the Attorney General of Dubai Yousif Al Mutawa."Our goal is to publicize the law and educate society."

The iPhone app is only available in Arabic, but says Al Mutawa an English version is coming soon."There are over 200 nationalities here and most speak English, so our next step will be to translate it," he explained.

"Whoever wants to visit, live or open a business here should download this and read it."

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A i on the law

UAE rules are available on the iPhone, but it is enough to make us all behave?

Most lists of holidays should not contain a research note on local laws before flying. But prosecutors asked the people in Dubai who come to the emirate to do just that. And they said people who live in Dubai should make the same.

By posting copies of the law on the web, prosecutors say their goal is to make life easier and they also released a request that people can download them directly from your iPhone. "It is a new and unique - by putting all the laws in your mobile with one click you can see them, "Attorney General of Dubai Yousif Al-Mutawa said the application, how applications are known, which contains 11 books of law. The movement, however, has been questioned by some people within the travel industry, who say it is not only to governments to ensure that people know the law.

Just a few weeks ago, the British Foreign Office warned people should not expect the UK government to bail them out if they have problems overseas. And a number of expatriates in the UAE both residents and tourists - who made headlines in last two years just for that, whether public indecency, alcohol consumption, illicit sex, bouncing checks or abusive behavior.

Concerns were also raised that the laws as published, can not be specific enough. For example, the law says people should not commit indecent acts in public, but does not specify what is considered indecent.

But at the official launch of the iPhone application, yesterday, said Al Mutawa Dubai Public Prosecution was just trying to spread the knowledge of the law, which is based on Islamic law.

He also said that the free application has been downloaded by 10,000 people since it appeared on Apple's online store, two weeks ago, mostly by people in the UAE and United States.

The current version is in Arabic, Al-Mutawa, but said his team was working on an English language version.A similar application is also available for the IPAD, while the laws of the UAE will also soon be found at the Dubai Courts with an English version.

But Sean Tipton, spokesman for the Association of British Travel Agents (ABTA), the UK, said it was not until the authorities only to tell people.

He said: "If someone books a package holiday, we must give them information."But, he said, can not solve the problems.

"People are adults and even if they are aware of the laws, they will not necessarily follow them," he added."And today, many people do not book holidays, in which case, perhaps the company should provide information."

Tipton added that all publications on the law must be specific.

"We need greater clarity about what is and is not acceptable. In most cases they are dealing with Western tourists, and everyone understands in an Islamic country can not act as a 17-year-old on a Saturday night, in Manchester, but the behavior of a particular level is acceptable, it is not clear.

"The UAE has marketed itself successfully as a holiday destination. If there is a blatant disregard of the law, then they have reason to take action, "he added." But these are minor cases continue, can damage your reputation and brand .

"People should do their research as something that seems trivial or irrelevant to them, may well be a much bigger deal in the UAE." Some rules to follow or you might regret:

The book contains chapters on the law of drugs that are illegal in the UAE, where people can check before coming to the country. Anyone caught with illegal drugs shall be sentenced to four years imprisonment followed by deportation. * drunk driving is mentioned in the traffic laws and is an important part that can land someone in jail or a fine of dhs20, 000. * If a person eats during the day, in public during Ramadan, so they could be jailed for up to a month and fined dhs1, 000. *Article 358 of the book is about the law of indecency: Any person who commits an indecent act in public can be imprisoned for six months.

* If the act is against a child under 15 years of age, then the punishment will be at least one year in prison.

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So now you can brush up on what is right and wrong anytime and anywhere. But it is the publication of laws and a good idea will work? Laird Doyle, a British resident and recent visitor to Dubai, said: "If a country is going really know the laws, then that is a very good thing.

This means absolute clarity about what can and can not do and if you know before you go, so if you get busted then it is your fault. Not necessarily my list to check the laws of the land, but I use a small amount of common sense. Do the laws put me off visiting? Possibly, but a country informing me that the law would not. " Waleed Jamal, an Iraqi living in Dubai, said: "It's a new idea and unique.We have the technology that surrounds us, so why not use it?

But still not enough to publish awareness because many people here do not really know the law, although many Arab citizens know because it is similar to laws in their countries. The laws are different, but visitors should respect them. "Linda Johnson, a British expat in the UAE, says: "The publication of laws is a great idea, although we need the English version and in theory should mean everyone knows how to behave.

However, I think travel agents should advise people to familiarize themselves with the laws of the country before traveling. Investigate the laws are not necessarily a thing to a tourist who only went to Spain would.

Despite living in a country where the laws have made the headlines in the world I do not check the laws before I travel, foolishly believing anything I do is illegal.