According to sharia law, it is nearly impossible for a woman to convict a man who rapes her. The victim must present four “pious men” as witnesses, otherwise she will be punished for the adultery or for lying. It's even worse for boys.
A 15-year-old French-Swiss boy shot anguished glances at an HIV positive man he accuses of raping him and described in court Wednesday a vicious attack by three Emirati men.
The case has raised tensions over attitudes toward sex crimes in the tiny Gulf nation's Islamic-rooted legal system.
The teenager has told police investigators that the three attackers abducted him and a 16-year-old friend in July while they were on their way home from a mall and took them to the edge of Dubai's desert. The men allegedly took turns raping the younger boy in the back seat.
Mother Veronique Robert said her son's 90-minute testimony was crucial.
"Now they have a full picture. They heard the defendants' stories, they heard my son and the witnesses. Now they can judge," Robert told The Associated Press by phone after the court session.
Her son told her that "he looked the defendants in the eyes and gave a chance for justice to be served," said Robert. She added that the testimony was helpful for her son.
Two Emirati men, ages 35 and 18, are on trial on charges of "kidnapping with deceit" and "forced homosexual relations," a charge that can be punished with life imprisonment or death. The third defendant, who is under age 18, is being tried in a juvenile court on the same charges and could face up to 10 years imprisonment if convicted.
The charges reflect the complicated attitutes toward sex crimes and homosexuality in the booming city-state where critics say the laws are an outmoded mix of religious and tribal values.
The defendants are not charged with rape, a specific charge applicable only to women victims. Even convictions for rape of women victims are rare in the Emirates, and there have been cases where the victim herself was charged with prostitution.
Although rape against men is not a specific charge, prosecutors have other charges they can bring in such cases such as forced homosexual relations. Homosexuality is illegal in Dubai, and the boy's mother said her family initially feared that the boy could be charged himself, though authorities have subsequently said that will not happen.
Before the hearing, Robert told media outside the courtroom that she is seeking justice for her son and other teenage rape victims—girls and boys alike. She said she is determined to help change the Emirates' law regarding male rape, however long it takes.
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This is a babelfish translation of the website founded by the victim's Mother. Boycottdubai.com
For Alexandre I dedicate this site to all the children whose wounds were never recognized, the remarks ever heard and the sufferings ever shared. I dedicate this site to all the mothers, including those of the attackers of my son. With Pakistani, the Philippines, Indiennes who was returned of Dubai in their country of origin with their small, reached in their hearts and their flesh. This site their is open so that from now on the same combat links us.
The tears do not have identity, not religion. We must link ourselves so that they do not run any more in insulation, but through glance of the World, whose hands will be there to wipe them.
Please spread the word.
Trackposted to The Virtuous Republic, The Pink Flamingo, Big Dog's Weblog, Rosemary's Thoughts, Leaning Straight Up, guerrilla radio, The Populist, and Gone Hollywood, thanks to Linkfest Haven Deluxe.
