# 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:** 5
**Author:** ![DigitalC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ebca7d/32.png) [@DigitalC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DigitalC)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2013, 7:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/norwegian-women-raped-in-uae-she-is-sentenced-to-16-months/663989/81 "2013-07-21T19:17:43Z")
It has nothing to do with Muslims, any religion would be just as backwards and oppressive if they were ever allowed free reign. Muslim countries aren’t this way because they are muslim, they are this way because conservatives are winning. ---
**Author:** ![PastTense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pasttense/32/14550_2.png) [@PastTense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastTense)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2013, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/norwegian-women-raped-in-uae-she-is-sentenced-to-16-months/663989/82 "2013-07-21T19:24:45Z")
> [@PunditLisa](#): > > There is literally no amount of money that would lure me into such an oppressive, backward, misogynistic, xenophobic culture. Actually a great many Westerners in such a country do not live in the culture of that country; instead they live in a Westernized ghetto. ---
**Author:** ![even\_sven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/dfb087/32.png) [@even\_sven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/even_sven)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2013, 10:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/norwegian-women-raped-in-uae-she-is-sentenced-to-16-months/663989/83 "2013-07-21T22:06:38Z")
F that. Dubai is one of the bigger centers of business in the world, and anyone involved in international business is going to cross paths with Dubai eventually. Telling women never to go there is pretty crippling in some industries, and not at all an acceptable technique for dealing with people who use rape to terrorize women. This is what should be happening- call them out publicly for their backward policies, and out the pressure of the world on them. That is better than telling women to let them win. ---
**Author:** ![KarlGauss](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/karlgauss/32/3713_2.png) [@KarlGauss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KarlGauss)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2013, 12:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/norwegian-women-raped-in-uae-she-is-sentenced-to-16-months/663989/84 "2013-07-22T00:12:42Z")
> [@Marley23](#): > > [Your impression is wrong.](http://www.timeoutdubai.com/knowledge/features/27931-uae-law-explained#.UerRe21BJEM) I have doubts about the accuracy of the info in the piece you cite. For example, on page 4 of the linked article, one finds: > [@](#): > > • Carrying, consuming, buying or selling any kind of non-prescription drug in any quantity, as well as testing positive for any drug, is considered a crime. That can’t possibly be true. I hope. “What’s this? Lipitor?!! Twelve lashes for you, infidel!! But, wait! What’s this? There is more!?! Aspirin?!! You dare to insult us with aspirin? Twenty-fo . . , no, thirty! Yes, thirty lashes for you, you, infidel son of a dog!” ---
**Author:** ![Chief\_Pedant](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a6a055/32.png) [@Chief\_Pedant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chief_Pedant)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2013, 12:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/norwegian-women-raped-in-uae-she-is-sentenced-to-16-months/663989/85 "2013-07-22T00:19:45Z")
> [@DigitalC](#): > > It has nothing to do with Muslims, any religion would be just as backwards and oppressive if they were ever allowed free reign. Muslim countries aren’t this way because they are muslim, they are this way because conservatives are winning. Can you give some modern examples? Islam and Islamic countries are where Christianity was hundreds of years ago, and where Judaism was a couple thousand years ago. But these days, it’s pretty much only the Muslims, I’d say, and nearly all of the policies are based on Islam. It’s not like they just happen to be Muslims but thought up the nuttiness of how to govern without basing it on Islam. The ones who are winning are conservative, alright. Conservative Muslims. And there are gobs of them. Which is why they are winning in those Muslim majority countries. Something like 20% of Muslims think suicide attacks directed against innocent people are justified. You won’t find those kinds of insane numbers with any other large scale religion. ---
**Author:** ![madsircool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madsircool/32/3432_2.png) [@madsircool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madsircool)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2013, 1:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/norwegian-women-raped-in-uae-she-is-sentenced-to-16-months/663989/86 "2013-07-22T01:47:13Z")
> [@DigitalC](#): > > It has nothing to do with Muslims, any religion would be just as backwards and oppressive if they were ever allowed free reign. Muslim countries aren’t this way because they are muslim, they are this way because conservatives are winning. Nonsense. Any religion? Cite? And please provide any kind of a cite that ‘conservatives’ are winning as opposed to this is the way the society works. ---
**Author:** ![OurLordPeace](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/e8c25b/32.png) [@OurLordPeace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OurLordPeace)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2013, 1:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/norwegian-women-raped-in-uae-she-is-sentenced-to-16-months/663989/87 "2013-07-22T01:54:08Z")
> [@madsircool](#): > > Nonsense. > > Any religion? Cite? > > And please provide any kind of a cite that ‘conservatives’ are winning as opposed to this is the way the society works. How about the regimes in very Christian places like Uganda and some of its neighbors? As for the second point, it wasn’t that long ago that even Afghanistan had a government that was forcefully trying (and succeeding) in improving women’s rights, and even toyed with state atheism. That did not end well, partially thanks to some geniuses in the Carter administration. Look at the changes in Turkish, Egyptian, Palestinian, and for that matter Israeli politics in recent years. Israel’s Jewish far right don’t behave much differently than these creeps in Dubai. Look at the clashes between Haredi communities in the diaspora and their neighbors, often over women’s issues. ---
**Author:** ![stui\_magpie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stui_magpie/32/11010_2.png) [@stui\_magpie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stui_magpie)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2013, 3:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/norwegian-women-raped-in-uae-she-is-sentenced-to-16-months/663989/88 "2013-07-22T03:12:29Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > 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. This report is a little different. She is quoted as saying she had been drinking with colleagues, asked (or agreed) to someone walking her back to her room, ended up in the mans room (not her own), and the next thing she remembers is waking up while being raped. > **[Norwegian woman: I was raped in Dubai, now I face prison sentence | CNN](https://edition.cnn.com/2013/07/20/world/meast/uae-norway-rape-controversy/index.html?hpt=hp_t1)** > > Norwegian speaks out after being handed a 16-month prison sentence in Dubai – after she went to police to report she had been raped. None of which changes the fact that the penalty is IMHO absurd. ---
**Author:** ![Leaper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/4bbf92/32.png) [@Leaper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaper)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2013, 3:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/norwegian-women-raped-in-uae-she-is-sentenced-to-16-months/663989/89 "2013-07-22T03:13:46Z")
> [@lavenderviolet](#): > > If you admitted to homosexual activity in UAE, you would be jailed and then deported: [LGBTQ rights in the United Arab Emirates - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LGBT_rights_in_the_United_Arab_Emirates) Fine, but my basic question remains: the UAE forbids extramarital sex. But _whose_ definition of “married” do they use? Theirs? The country of origin of the people involved? Islam’s? ---
**Author:** ![grude](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e47774/32.png) [@grude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/grude)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2013, 4:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/norwegian-women-raped-in-uae-she-is-sentenced-to-16-months/663989/90 "2013-07-22T04:23:03Z")
> [@KarlGauss](#): > > I have doubts about the accuracy of the info in the piece you cite. > > For example, on page 4 of the linked article, one finds:That can’t possibly be true. I hope. > “What’s this? Lipitor?!! Twelve lashes for you, infidel!! But, wait! What’s this? There is more!?! Aspirin?!! You dare to insult us with aspirin? Twenty-fo . . , no, thirty! Yes, thirty lashes for you, you, infidel son of a dog!” It is 100% true, they will pull a tourist arriving aside at customs and test their urine/blood/hair and if any drugs are found jail them. Not even illegal stuff OTC crap, mind you we’re talking molecules of drug residue in body fluids here. They jailed one tourist arriving in the country because they apparently looked over his clothes with a magnifying glass and found a poppy seed from a bagel he ate before boarding the plane. A POPPY SEED! > **[BBC NEWS | UK | Tourists warned of UAE drug laws](http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/7234786.stm)** > > Travellers are being warned about severe drug laws in the UAE which have seen dozens held for apparently minor offences. I made a thread a long time ago asking if anyone had any background info on WHY this was going on, or had any info on why certain tourists are targetted for this nonsense. It baffles me and makes me wonder if there is more going on the media is leaving out.😕 ---
**Author:** ![grude](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e47774/32.png) [@grude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/grude)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2013, 4:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/norwegian-women-raped-in-uae-she-is-sentenced-to-16-months/663989/91 "2013-07-22T04:34:02Z")
[http://www.thenational.ae/news/uae-news/courts/american-who-said-urine-samples-were-mixed-up-jailed-four-years-in-dubai](http://www.thenational.ae/news/uae-news/courts/american-who-said-urine-samples-were-mixed-up-jailed-four-years-in-dubai) > [@](#): > > A urine sample held by the prosecution showed traces of opium, but the 65-year-old defendant HA denied taking drugs when he appeared in Dubai Criminal Court in April. > > His lawyer Abdul Hamid Al Kumaiti said his client’s urine sample was numbered 43, but the one referred to by the prosecution was numbered 42. > > “Police officers who worked on the case testified that no drugs were found on the defendant or in his residence,” ---
**Author:** ![Don\_t\_Panic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/don_t_panic/32/398_2.png) [@Don\_t\_Panic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Don_t_Panic)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2013, 4:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/norwegian-women-raped-in-uae-she-is-sentenced-to-16-months/663989/92 "2013-07-22T04:44:26Z")
Well, the UAE is off my holiday list… The place seems to be a loony bin. ---
**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 22, 2013, 5:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/norwegian-women-raped-in-uae-she-is-sentenced-to-16-months/663989/93 "2013-07-22T05:44:54Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > I didn’t intend to give that impression. Victims of rape are blameless. There’s no excuse for rape. Ever. > > There are things men and women can do to reduce the chances of being a crime victim. Carrying mace on a key chain, asking security to walk them to the car late at night, self-defense classes etc. Someone going to any Muslim country should research the travel advisories and be more cautious. The UAE is dangerous for any foreigner. My behavior in Vegas would be completely different from Dubai. > > But as you said. The victims of rape are blameless even if no special precautions are taken at all. And I will concede that the newer reports have confirmed your earlier suspicion - Dalelv had been drinking and she did ask the man to escort her to her room. She still says she never agreed to have sex with him but now says she made a false statement to the police that she did agree. At this point, I think we’re probably in agreement. These are bad laws and they were enforced in an overly harsh manner. But it does appear that Dalelv technically broke the law. ---
**Author:** ![bldysabba](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ecccb3/32.png) [@bldysabba](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bldysabba)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2013, 6:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/norwegian-women-raped-in-uae-she-is-sentenced-to-16-months/663989/94 "2013-07-22T06:11:52Z")
> [@AK84](#): > > I am sorry…but yeah right.:rolleyes: Dubai is the center of regional finance and a major emerging player on the global stage. If you think that this will have even an iota of an impact on Dubai then you are mistaken. And it is not my intention to doubt that your intentions were sincere when you wrote the above, but I suspect when the opportunity comes you will go, its one thing to state a theoretical, quite another when it tangible and has real consequences staring you in the face. I have heard many people say that they will never go to the US (too anti-muslim, too degrading, foreign policy) Saudi Arabia (too hot, too conservative, anti-women), China (too repressive) Singapore (what a fine city) and they have gone when the time actually came. Hell, _I_ always said I would not work in Dubai due to their less than subtle racism against people like me, and when I actually got an opportunity…I turned it down, only after much soul searching and due to getting a better offer elsewhere. > > Fact of the matter is that while people have different religions, everyone worships at the alter of Mammon. Meh. I was offered a _very_ highly paid job in tax free Kuwait at the end of my brief internship there. And not highly paid by Indian standards, highly paid by white expats in Kuwait standards. I politely turned them down because I didn’t want to live in a country where there was a hierarchy of citizenship(locals, whites then Indians/Pakistanis/Bangladeshis). I don’t like the idea of being a third class citizen no matter how much money it makes me. Just a data point for you to consider. ETA: I had another offer too, but nowhere close to better or even equivalent ---
**Author:** ![bldysabba](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ecccb3/32.png) [@bldysabba](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bldysabba)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2013, 6:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/norwegian-women-raped-in-uae-she-is-sentenced-to-16-months/663989/95 "2013-07-22T06:18:17Z")
Crap, I now remember that I didn’t have another offer at the time I turned down the Kuwait job, although I was reasonably sure that it wouldn’t be difficult for me to get a job. Sorry for the double post and the poor edit. ---
**Author:** ![Floater](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/dc4da7/32.png) [@Floater](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Floater)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2013, 10:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/norwegian-women-raped-in-uae-she-is-sentenced-to-16-months/663989/96 "2013-07-22T10:03:20Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > Why would a billionaire even know a low level employee in a company he owns? It seems very unlikely that he had anything to do with her firing. Not more than signing his name on the letter when she was sacked. Anyway, I just read that she has been acquitted. ---
**Author:** ![Evil\_Captor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f17d59/32.png) [@Evil\_Captor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Captor)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2013, 10:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/norwegian-women-raped-in-uae-she-is-sentenced-to-16-months/663989/97 "2013-07-22T10:41:14Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > Pretty sure they wouldn’t listen to me. My point is that people shouldn’t blame Islam for the narrow-minded misogyny and bigotry of some Muslims. I can’t quite buy this. This IS Islam as it is now practiced in countries that use Sharia law. ---
**Author:** ![Norse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/a9adbd/32.png) [@Norse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Norse)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2013, 11:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/norwegian-women-raped-in-uae-she-is-sentenced-to-16-months/663989/98 "2013-07-22T11:27:20Z")
> [@Floater](#): > > I just read that she has been acquitted. \ To be more accurate, she was [pardoned by the emir of Dubai](http://www.vg.no/nyheter/utenriks/artikkel.php?artid=10112302), not aquitted - which AFAIK happens in court. \ ---
**Author:** ![bldysabba](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ecccb3/32.png) [@bldysabba](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bldysabba)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2013, 12:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/norwegian-women-raped-in-uae-she-is-sentenced-to-16-months/663989/99 "2013-07-22T12:28:13Z")
> [@Floater](#): > > Not more than signing his name on the letter when she was sacked. Anyway, I just read that she has been acquitted. Not acquitted - pardoned by the ruler. ETA - Ninjaed. Although I’d argue that it’s not a nitpick. ---
**Author:** ![DigitalC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ebca7d/32.png) [@DigitalC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DigitalC)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2013, 1:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/norwegian-women-raped-in-uae-she-is-sentenced-to-16-months/663989/100 "2013-07-22T13:35:13Z")
> [@Evil\_Captor](#): > > I can’t quite buy this. This IS Islam as it is now practiced in countries that use Sharia law. Give us a few generations of Todd Akins in charge and christian law would be exactly the same. You must be delusional if you don’t see the same exact anti woman mentality in conservatives the world over, the name of their religion makes zero difference. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/norwegian-women-raped-in-uae-she-is-sentenced-to-16-months/663989.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/norwegian-women-raped-in-uae-she-is-sentenced-to-16-months/663989.md?page=6)