• Home
• /
• UAE
• /
• Crime

UAE law: Dh10,000 fine for insults, 'indecent acts' in public or social media

Dubai - If a man impersonates a woman to enter a place where only women are allowed, then it's considered an indecent act.

The Dubai Public Prosecution has stressed that speech or conduct which undermines public morals exposes residents to legal accountability.

Listen to this story and more on the 8@8 with David Light podcast

Lawyers have explained how indulging in indecent acts or insulting anyone in public or on social media in Dubai could land you in hot water.

Karim Hesham Teleb, a senior legal consultant, said committing indecent or insulting acts in public, either via hand gestures, or hurling abuses, or any other offensive or disturbing act, is punishable by a minimum of six months in prison. If the said act is against a woman or a boy aged 15 years or younger, the perpetrator can even face a year in jail and Dh10,000 fine.

Teleb said: “Article 358 of Federal Penal Code (Criminal Law) of the UAE says: Shall be sentenced to detention for a minimum term or six months, whoever has flagrantly committed an indecent act. Shall be sentenced to detention for a minimum term of one year, whoever has perpetrated an indecent act with a girl or boy who did not complete fifteen years of age, even if [the act was] not committed openly.”

Dubai viral indecent video: Deportation order issued

Karim said anyone who insults, abuses or commits indecent acts against a woman can face jail of one year and a fine of Dh10,000, or either penalty. “Such acts might be considered as a sexual harassment in a public place,” he said

Additionally, if a man impersonates a woman to enter a place where only women are allowed, then it's considered an indecent act. For example, if a man wears women’s clothes to enter a center or a salon meant for women, he could be punished by up to a year in prison, or a Dh10,000 fine, or both, Karim noted.

hesham@khaleejtimes.com