# Norwegian Women Raped in UAE; She is Sentenced to 16 Months **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [July 19, 2013, 11:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/norwegian-women-raped-in-uae-she-is-sentenced-to-16-months/663989 "2013-07-19T23:41:24Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2013, 7:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/norwegian-women-raped-in-uae-she-is-sentenced-to-16-months/663989/21 "2013-07-20T07:06:52Z")
Yet another reason why I’m thankful they don’t allow my kind there. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2013, 7:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/norwegian-women-raped-in-uae-she-is-sentenced-to-16-months/663989/22 "2013-07-20T07:18:56Z")
> [@Nava](#): > > In another thread, someone posted a comparison between so-right-they’re-left Muslims and so-right-they’re-left US Conservative Christians. And you know what? You could apply the same list to any group of “backwards extremists”, the only way in which it’s linked to religion is in that those groups use religion as an excuse. When those groups happen to be in charge of a community, things are bad for anybody who’s not One of Them. Exactly. There are intolerant dickheads in every society and if they take over, they use whatever the local fixation is - Islam, Christianity, Marx, the Master Race, Xenu - as an excuse for their dickheaded rule. ---
**Author:** ![bldysabba](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ecccb3/32.png) [@bldysabba](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bldysabba)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2013, 7:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/norwegian-women-raped-in-uae-she-is-sentenced-to-16-months/663989/23 "2013-07-20T07:55:43Z")
> [@AK84](#): > > Well. I hope when people read this they realise that laws are not different for you, because you are a westerner. Do elaborate. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2013, 8:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/norwegian-women-raped-in-uae-she-is-sentenced-to-16-months/663989/24 "2013-07-20T08:59:41Z")
I feel bad for people that get tripped up by laws in other countries. Theres even a show called _Locked Up Abroad_ with real stories about the experiences of being incarcerated in other countries. But, it is there country. Americans get pissed if foreigners visit our country and commit crimes. People in other countries feel the same way. I wouldn’t touch a drop of liquor in a Muslim country. Even in a Westernized hotel with a bar. It’s just a sign of respect for the country I’m visiting. I wouldn’t try to lure any of the local ladies into my bed either. Singapore has strict laws too. Their strict liter laws makes it one of the cleanest cities in the world. I recall some stupid American got caught spray painting graffiti. [That earned him a caning](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_P._Fay). He should have known better. Their country. Their laws. Don’t like it? Don’t apply for a Visa and visit. ---
**Author:** ![AK84](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/85e7bf/32.png) [@AK84](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AK84)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2013, 9:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/norwegian-women-raped-in-uae-she-is-sentenced-to-16-months/663989/25 "2013-07-20T09:01:26Z")
> [@bldysabba](#): > > Do elaborate. Have you ever been to the Emirates? Or read a newspaper about that place. Or spoken to anyone there? You must have, there is a large Indian community there. I have heard and also experienced the fact that Westerners tend to be (and demand to be) treated differently from the locals or god forbid, South Asians. Now imagine if instead of a Norwegian chick, it had been like someone like you or me. It would not have been even newsworthy (and would not have been a sentence of 16 months). Thats the reason I suspect that it seems to have struck such a chord with people on this board, its a cute young Norwegian woman rather than some Mumbaikar or Karachite. As it is, since I posted, I read up about this case a bit more and it seems that contrary to what I thought, she **is** being treated differently, she is being held by Norwegians not the local authorities and apparently there are no steps to arrest her. Incidentally, I have had the pleasure of dealing with the Dubai judicial system (in a commercial matter not a criminal one) and all I can say is that it is staffed by idiots. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2013, 9:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/norwegian-women-raped-in-uae-she-is-sentenced-to-16-months/663989/26 "2013-07-20T09:06:33Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > I feel bad for people that get tripped up by laws in other countries. Theres even a show called _Locked Up Abroad_ with real stories about the experiences of being incarcerated in other countries. > > But, it is there country. Americans get pissed if foreigners visit our country and commit crimes. People in other countries feel the same way. > > I wouldn’t touch a drop of liquor in a Muslim country. Even in a Westernized hotel with a bar. It’s just a sign of respect for the country I’m visiting. I wouldn’t try to lure any of the local ladies into my bed either. > > Singapore has strict laws too. Their strict liter laws makes it one of the cleanest cities in the world. I recall some stupid American got caught spray painting graffiti. [That earned him a caning](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_P._Fay). He should have known better. > > Their country. Their laws. Don’t like it? Don’t apply for a Visa and visit. Do you have even a vague idea of what we’re talking about here? What crime do you think a woman is committing when she gets raped? ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2013, 9:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/norwegian-women-raped-in-uae-she-is-sentenced-to-16-months/663989/27 "2013-07-20T09:10:32Z")
She was drinking heavy and invited a guy into her room. Both crimes in that country. Why should they treat her any differently just because she’s a visitor in their country? The rape is a separate issue. Yeah the guy should have been prosecuted. But in that country they require 4 male witnesses or a confession. It’s their country. They make the rules. No one has to visit if they don’t like the rules. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2013, 9:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/norwegian-women-raped-in-uae-she-is-sentenced-to-16-months/663989/28 "2013-07-20T09:24:35Z")
Actually, a travel boycott would be the best way to pressure the UAE to modernize their laws. International companies with foreign workers in the UAE could also lobby for change. The UAE isn’t immune from worldwide pressure. But tourists or foreign workers shouldn’t go there and deliberately break their laws. ---
**Author:** ![palacheck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/a88e57/32.png) [@palacheck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/palacheck)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2013, 9:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/norwegian-women-raped-in-uae-she-is-sentenced-to-16-months/663989/29 "2013-07-20T09:28:59Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > She was drinking heavy and invited a guy into her room. Both crimes in that country. Why should they treat her any differently just because she’s a visitor in their country? > > The rape is a separate issue. Yeah the guy should have been prosecuted. But in that country they require 4 male witnesses or a confession. > > It’s their country. They make the rules. No one has to visit if they don’t like the rules. Are you a serious person? Is this a work? You remind me of the people on Facebook that, when the latest animal torture outrage pops up, complain about everyone focusing on the suffering of animals when there’s so much human suffering out there, man!!! Your post is victim-blaming, weaselly nonsense. You’re a dolt. I’m gladly risking a possible mod warning just to tell you that. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2013, 9:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/norwegian-women-raped-in-uae-she-is-sentenced-to-16-months/663989/30 "2013-07-20T09:36:33Z")
If the lady was visiting America then she could have easily gotten the guy prosecuted for rape. We recognize women’s rights here. It’s not exactly a secret that women’s rights are extremely limited even in progressive Muslim countries. Women’s rights are non-existent in strict Muslim countries. If anyone travels to another country they are expected to follow the local laws and customs. It doesn’t matter whether you agree with them or even consider them violations of human rights. Visit someones country, then you follow their laws. You can scream and yell about human rights after you leave and go home. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2013, 9:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/norwegian-women-raped-in-uae-she-is-sentenced-to-16-months/663989/31 "2013-07-20T09:38:28Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > She was drinking heavy and invited a guy into her room. Both crimes in that country. Why should they treat her any differently just because she’s a visitor in their country? > > The rape is a separate issue. Yeah the guy should have been prosecuted. But in that country they require 4 male witnesses or a confession. > > It’s their country. They make the rules. No one has to visit if they don’t like the rules. Where are you getting that information from? The reports I’ve read said that Dalelv had been at a business meeting. She then went back to her hotel room alone. She woke up to find a man had entered her room and then raped her. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2013, 9:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/norwegian-women-raped-in-uae-she-is-sentenced-to-16-months/663989/32 "2013-07-20T09:50:19Z")
Unless the guy was a locksmith and had his tools; it seems reasonable to assume she invited him into her room. I can’t find the cite right now. But didn’t the hospital give her a blood test? I think thats what got her convicted for alcohol consumption. Or maybe she admitted she had been drinking? I read several articles yesterday. I don’t agree with these laws at all. I enjoy a cold beer and occasionally rum & coke. But if I visit the UAE I won’t be drinking booze there. This seems like a pretty typical date rape. Booze and a heavy handed guy. It gets prosecuted successfully in America all the time. > [@](#): > > Explaining the March 6 attack at a hotel where she was attending a business conference, Dalelv said she awoke to find a co-worker raping her. She fled to the lobby to report the assault ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2013, 10:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/norwegian-women-raped-in-uae-she-is-sentenced-to-16-months/663989/33 "2013-07-20T10:03:45Z")
The BBC is reporting this differently. Date Rape in any western country and easily prosecuted. But she was in a Muslim country governed by Sharia law. Even a kiss on the mouth cost a Brit couple a month in jail. > **[Dubai sentences Norwegian woman who reported rape](https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-23381448)** > > Norwegian Marte Deborah Dalelv is given a 16-month prison sentence in Dubai after reporting a rape incident to police. > [@](#): > > Ms Dalelv says she had been on a night out with colleagues on 6 March when the rape took place. > > She reported it to the police, who proceeded to confiscate her passport and seize her money. She was charged four days later on three counts, including having sex outside marriage. > [@](#): > > A British couple, Ayman Najafi and Charlotte Adams, were jailed for a month in 2010 after they shared what Mr Najafi described as an “innocuous peck on the cheek” in a restaurant. A witness said they had kissed on the mouth. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2013, 10:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/norwegian-women-raped-in-uae-she-is-sentenced-to-16-months/663989/34 "2013-07-20T10:28:32Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > I don’t agree with these laws at all. I enjoy a cold beer and occasionally rum & coke. But if I visit the UAE I won’t be drinking booze there. > > This seems like a pretty typical date rape. Booze and a heavy handed guy. It gets prosecuted successfully in America all the time. Nobody cares how many times you’ve blacked out drunk and woke up in bed with a stranger. Can you produce a cite that says Dalelv had been drinking or had inviting the man into her room? ---
**Author:** ![bldysabba](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ecccb3/32.png) [@bldysabba](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bldysabba)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2013, 11:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/norwegian-women-raped-in-uae-she-is-sentenced-to-16-months/663989/35 "2013-07-20T11:06:39Z")
> [@AK84](#): > > Have you ever been to the Emirates? Or read a newspaper about that place. Or spoken to anyone there? You must have, there is a large Indian community there. I have heard and also experienced the fact that Westerners tend to be (and demand to be) treated differently from the locals or god forbid, South Asians. > > Now imagine if instead of a Norwegian chick, it had been like someone like you or me. It would not have been even newsworthy (and would not have been a sentence of 16 months). Thats the reason I suspect that it seems to have struck such a chord with people on this board, its a cute young Norwegian woman rather than some Mumbaikar or Karachite. > > As it is, since I posted, I read up about this case a bit more and it seems that contrary to what I thought, she **is** being treated differently, she is being held by Norwegians not the local authorities and apparently there are no steps to arrest her. > > Incidentally, I have had the pleasure of dealing with the Dubai judicial system (in a commercial matter not a criminal one) and all I can say is that it is staffed by idiots. I’ve lived(briefly) in Kuwait. So I know quite well that white people are treated very differently in the middle east. However, it’s a shameful fucking law in the first place don’t you think? If a woman complains that someone raped her, the law ought not to be able to then go and say “Oh you’ve had extramarital sex, off to jail for you”. And outrage that such a law exists is justified. As for whether the outrage in the West would have been as great if it had not been a Norwegian/European - probably not. But that fact is to be expected of human nature. These laws are not. ---
**Author:** ![AK84](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/85e7bf/32.png) [@AK84](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AK84)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2013, 1:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/norwegian-women-raped-in-uae-she-is-sentenced-to-16-months/663989/36 "2013-07-20T13:56:29Z")
> [@bldysabba](#): > > I’ve lived(briefly) in Kuwait. So I know quite well that white people are treated very differently in the middle east. However, it’s a shameful fucking law in the first place don’t you think? If a woman complains that someone raped her, the law ought not to be able to then go and say “Oh you’ve had extramarital sex, off to jail for you”. And outrage that such a law exists is justified. As for whether the outrage in the West would have been as great if it had not been a Norwegian/European - probably not. But that fact is to be expected of human nature. These laws are not. If that actually is the law, then yes it is shameful. If the sequence of events is as she claimed, it is shameful. ---
**Author:** ![Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eyebrows_0f_doom/32/3119_2.png) [@Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eyebrows_0f_Doom)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2013, 3:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/norwegian-women-raped-in-uae-she-is-sentenced-to-16-months/663989/37 "2013-07-20T15:12:54Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > If anyone travels to another country they are expected to follow the local laws and customs. It doesn’t matter whether you agree with them or even consider them violations of human rights. I know, why did she go and get raped like that? She should have known not to get raped over there. ---
**Author:** ![Werekoala](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/7993a0/32.png) [@Werekoala](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Werekoala)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2013, 3:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/norwegian-women-raped-in-uae-she-is-sentenced-to-16-months/663989/38 "2013-07-20T15:20:40Z")
> [@Spice\_Weasel](#): > > Utter horseshit. Stories like these make me realize how lucky I am to live in the U.S. Stories like this should be mentioned every time someone starts bitching about how horrible the U.S. is - sure, we’ve got issues, but it could always be worse. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2013, 3:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/norwegian-women-raped-in-uae-she-is-sentenced-to-16-months/663989/39 "2013-07-20T15:36:31Z")
Both the man and woman were convicted of alcohol consumption. Thats a serious crime under sharia law. I’m not going to waste time debating how the man got into her room. He obviously did because the rape couldn’t happen otherwise. I thought she invited him in after a pleasant evening on the town (see my BBC cite) and he got aggressive. Classic date rape in a Western country and routinely prosecuted. I have no problem with that. _No means no_. If you want to imagine he used lock picks or just went caveman and kicked in the door. Fine. I read on this case extensively yesterday. My earlier comments were based on multiple articles. Primarily the BBC article (which reports the evening out) and Huffington reports the alcohol blood test. A routine test done in any modern hospital. > **[HuffPost - Breaking News, U.S. and World News](https://www.huffpost.com/)** > > Read the latest headlines, news stories, and opinion from Politics, Entertainment, Life, Perspectives, and more. > [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > Nobody cares how many times you’ve blacked out drunk and woke up in bed with a stranger. > > Can you produce a cite that says Dalelv had been drinking or had inviting the man into her room? > [@](#): > > Dalelv said she was given a medical examination seeking evidence of the alleged rape and underwent a blood test for alcohol. Such tests are commonly given in the UAE for alleged assaults and in other cases. Alcohol is sold widely across Dubai, but public intoxication can bring charges. (BBC article) > [@](#): > > Her alleged attacker, she said, received a 13-month sentence for extra-marital sex and alcohol consumption. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2013, 3:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/norwegian-women-raped-in-uae-she-is-sentenced-to-16-months/663989/40 "2013-07-20T15:52:51Z")
Under Western law the woman did nothing wrong. She had a few drinks with someone she met and a date rape occurred. But she wasn’t in a country that recognizes the same women’s rights. Aren’t those pamphlets still issued about foreign countries? My parents traveled and I remember travel advisory pamphlets that described the country, local laws, customs, and the local embassy if you needed help. I certainly would do some reading before I ever traveled to a Muslim country. Sharia law is so foreign and different from anything I’ve experienced before. Theres got to be a _Dummies Guide book_ on it. Or at least read travel advisories on the country. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/norwegian-women-raped-in-uae-she-is-sentenced-to-16-months/663989.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/norwegian-women-raped-in-uae-she-is-sentenced-to-16-months/663989.md?page=3)