To report or not that is the question
Australian woman to sue government over UAE rape
Ex-employee of luxury hotel says consulate failed to warn her of jail risk if she reported assault
By Joanne Bladd Monday, 6 June 2011 9:26 AM
Le Méridien Al Aqah said staff safety was its top priority
A Brisbane woman jailed for adultery in the UAE has moved to sue the Australian government for failing to warn her that a rape claim could lead to imprisonment.
Alicia Gali, a former beauty salon manager at the luxury Le Méridien Al Aqah in Fujairah, claimed she was drugged and raped by three co-workers in June 2008.
The 29-year-old was jailed for eight months on charges of adultery after reporting the assault to UAE authorities – a consequence she claims an Australian consulate official in Dubai should have warned her about.
In a statement to Australian media, Ms Gali’s lawyers, Maurice Blackburn, said the firm was taking the step of suing the Commonwealth to protect its client’s rights.
The legal firm is seeking leave to sue the government in the Brisbane Supreme Court.
Ms Gali has already won leave to pursue legal action against international group Starwood Hotels, manager of Le Méridien Al Aqah, for allegedly failing in its workplace duty of care.
In a previous statement, her lawyer said the hotel had failed to provide segregated, secure quarters for female employees or adequate training on local laws and customs.
The case is likely to proceed in Australia.
In a previous statement, a spokesperson for Le Méridien Al Aqah said the hotel was aware of the incident and that staff safety was “a paramount priority”.
“The local authorities applied local laws and determined that it was appropriate to incarcerate Ms. Gali and the other individuals involved in this matter,” the spokesperson said, adding the hotel had supported Gali throughout the incident.
“Including assisting with medical support, arranging for financial support, assistance with the investigation, liaising with her representative embassy and arranging for her family to come to the UAE from Australia.”
FathimaH,
I agree and unfortunately all GCC countries fit that hat!
happygolucky,
Ooops, my mistake soly ;)
That if a girl or woman gets raped in an Arab country, she should just quietly grab her clothes, tell them thanks and goodbye for the good job.. Then go home, shower and go to bed.. Next day just continue living a normal life.. As if nothing happened. No need to report or tell a soul.. But then of course you need to see a really good psychiatrist..
I think the problem is that they are not REALLY ruled by shariah law! Else the victims would have been compensated and the culprits put to death. I would say "dangers of being in a state "claiming to be" ruled by sharia law but not quite sure how to work it out".
Nic... not sure if you considered my post in response to yours ...if that be, then it was not. I actually didn't read your post earlier as I got stopped in between.
happygolucky,
no, its not mandatory as it is not mandatory to comment or to find a post when you search it by a specific title that describes objectively the post.
All tourism agents who sell packages to these GCC countries should be responsible for not warning their clients of the danger they put them selves when visiting countries ruled by sharia law!
The same goes for employers, employment agents and foreign embassies, they all have the responsibility to warn the potential candidate of the dangers of being in a state ruled by sharia law.
Is it mandatory to post on a thread???
Kareena74,
perhaps you have not picked a catching title.
there will be always more to the story than what the reporters say.
This is Unfortunate, but the Responsibility was on the Embassy Staff to guide her all the way...
add some spice with OP, call sms group and within an hour U'll reach to second page.
But I posted it yesterday and till now there was no comments at all and now suddenly I got 10 plus comments within 30 minutes.. I wonder why? How come no one noticed the post last 24 hours and now suddenly everyone noticed it at once and decided to post their comments..
i just saw the post now
sad very sad
Why it took everyone 24 hours to respond to my post????
Still not sure about this one. Whilst I agree that the Embassy should have been more forthright in their advice, I can't really see what more the hotel could have done.
I'll have to read up a little more on the story methinks..
Care to elaborate Chelsea?
a source said, she was not paid accordingly, what she was promised for.
it is sad to hear this kind of cases. It also happened before with a Filipina in UAE. I hope someone from human rights will response about this.+
Actually it was her(Alicia Gali) fault.
I know the story (truth) 100%...
At the end of the day, some countries need to change their legislation to protect innocent people from being charged under arcane laws such as this case.
mods bear sharp eyes, keeping on everyone, brilliant:D
Apologies to the MOD's for not finding the article as it was post with a title not easy to track and thanks for the link.
The victim can finally sue her own government for not protecting here.
This is quite an achievement and all other governments (including yours) should be aware of their responsibilities towards their citizens!
Woman at centre of rape case leaves Libya-UNHCR
Tue Jun 7, 2011 10:15am GMT
* UNHCR declines to reveal her current location
* Obaidi was deported by Qatar last week to her homeland
GENEVA, June 7 (Reuters) - A Libyan woman who said she was gang raped by pro-government militiamen has left her homeland again, after being deported to there by Qatar last week, the U.N. refugee agency said on Tuesday.
Eman Al-Obaidi spent nearly a month in Qatar before authorities there forced her and her parents to board a flight last week to rebel-held Benghazi, in violation of international law, the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) said.
"She has been moved out of Libya to a safer place," UNHCR spokesman Adrian Edwards told a news briefing, declining to reveal her current whereabouts. "The degree to which she wants to speak about her experience has to be in her hands."
In March Obaidi burst into a Tripoli hotel and, weeping, made a plea for help to journalists there, saying that she had been held for two days and raped by 15 militiamen loyal to Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi. [ID:nLDE7521WZ] (Reporting by Stephanie Nebehay; Editing by Greg Mahlich)