Dubai rape illustrates 'dictatorship holidays'
A prominent Swedish editorial writer has questioned why Scandinavian tourists visit authoritarian regimes, stating that a Norwegian rape victim's jail sentence in Dubai illustrated the paradoxes of "dictatorship holidays".
"The legislation in the United Arab Emirates is just as absurdly disgusting as it sounds, that is also true for women who live there," said editorial writer Kristina Lindquist in the Wednesday edition of the Dagens Nyheter newspaper on Wednesday.
Marte Deborah Dalelv, 24, was convicted of extra-marital sex, inebriation and perjury in Dubai last week and sentenced to jail for 16 months. The verdict has created headlines worldwide, with Norway's foreign minister an outspoken critic of the decision. Dalelv, who had first reported being raped, was pardoned by Emirate authorities this week.
Lindquist, meanwhile, underscored that the UAE not only has locked up some 90 political dissidents, but has, according the human rights group Amnesty, defended "pain and suffering" as a legitimate punishment in its legal system.
"But have a nice time on holiday!" Lindquist summarized, adding that it was time to question whether it was appropriate to visit countries with documented human and civil rights problems. She also underlined how Scandinavian passports give their bearers almost unprecedented rights of access across the globe.
http://www.thelocal.se/49234/20130724/
