Eating out, poor hand hygiene and erratic weather may be among causes, say medics
The suggestion was made during a symposium held by the Dubai Police for the Pakistani community, including officials from the Pakistani consulate, where various ways of increasing awareness and security measures were discussed.
High-ranking officials from Dubai Police interacted with members from the Pakistani community during the conference, where they answered some of the most pressing concerns they had.
This is the first-time Dubai police authorities have held a conference as such focused on just the Pakistani community and it comes shortly after the new Pakistan consul general, Ahmed Amjad Ali, was appointed.
Khalid Mohammed Banasser, the head of the criminal section of Smart Police Station (SPS) at Dubai Police, told Khaleej Times that the SPS will allow residents to file cases and complaints through a smart system, with no "human interaction needed". He said this should encourage more people to come forward as, sometimes, "people can be scared of the police".
"The Smart Police Station has been opened now and there's four of them in Dubai. It's 24/7 and we're serving in four languages. I hope that in the future if anyone has any problems or troubles, they'll come to the station and we'll guide him through it. It will help them (Pakistanis) very much. If they are in any kind of trouble, we can help them and prevent them to fall into any crimes in the future or become a victim to a crime."
He added that many of the cases involving Pakistani expats are related to fraud and forgery.
"Some people can't tell the difference between original and fake documents, so maybe they sign it without knowing they'll be charged for it in the future. Some people have their passport and ID being used by someone else who is committing crimes," he said.
Rashid Al Muhary, the head of CID at Dubai Police, said: "The Pakistani community is the second biggest after Indian community. Dubai Police offer services that aid the society and we believe these services help them, such as the Dubai Smart Police Station.
Meanwhile, the Pakistan Consul General, Ahmed Amjad Ali, told Khaleej Times that the crime rate within the Pakistani community is minor when compared to the population of Pakistani expats in the country.
He said: "When it comes to the crime rate within the Pakistani community - the ratio between the population, crime rate and people in jail - that's negligible. But things can improve. I cannot say how much it will increase or decrease the crime but these efforts help out in giving awareness to people and this will definitely improve in people's knowledge."
sarwat@khaleejtimes.com
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