MMS misuse
Does anyone know what mobile phones in the UAE are supposed to be used for? Because "spreading news, harmful comments, even if true, or circulating family photos" are apparently now illegal.
One has to presume that Brigadier Al Mari's comments were mistranslated, because even the most plodding of cops would realise that it is none of their bloody business if someone wants to send a picture of their new baby or their new haircut to family, or a warning to friends that parking fines have gone up.
It is the police's duty to prevent blackmail, invasions of privacy and intimidation: whether carried out by phone or not, so no arguments there.
One has to presume that Brigadier Al Mari's comments were mistranslated, because even the most plodding of cops would realise that it is none of their bloody business if someone wants to send a picture of their new baby or their new haircut to family, or a warning to friends that parking fines have gone up.
It is the police's duty to prevent blackmail, invasions of privacy and intimidation: whether carried out by phone or not, so no arguments there.
Labels: censorship, crime
15 Comments:
Sorry SD but Al marri's sole duty is to protect the interest of Eti salad and the fabric of UAE adutlterous culture, the fact that you get everyday 10s of unsolicited mms and sms messages is ok and if I were you, I would "hail" Al marri for his foresight in driving his culture into the caves of yonder past. once a cop, always a cop!
Could we encourage Mr Al Marri to also incude the producers of the endless stream of spam and junk sms's that plague the lives of most of the population here?
Just to comment on the rape post as well, please tell me that sending 'news, ... even if true' deserves a longer jail term than raping someone??? Which planet are the judiciary and the police on in this country. They may also choose to ignore the issue that the main proponents of said offences of harassment and rape tend to be from within the native population of our adopted homeland. Whatever happpened to the pictures of young dishdasha's regularly published in Gulf News? Don't tell me - the police have managed to stop such offences!?
definetly a mistranslation
"Brig. Al Mari said that some people used information technology to obtain photos of people, specially women and girls. It had been noted that some youth had started threatening young girls on the basis of any photos they had on their mobile phones, asking them to practise immoral acts with them or be prepared for the photos to be posted on any web sites, he added."
And I think he meant by 'spreading news, harmful comments' as spreading untrue rumors, which have in the past generated waves of panic (AIDS nurses, etc)
Off topic but I just read this in an old GN and then dug it out of the online archive. Wonder if anybody here recognises themselves? (It's relevant to quite a few past discussions which is why I took the liberty of posting off topic - sorry about that.)
Anon that is a very interesting article, thanks for posting.
I reminded you that I was a journalist not in the language "Indian" but in English. Getting my grammar right was my job. Luckily working for you wasn't.
So sad. This is the kind of person who is really harmed by crap like the Kretin Times and the type of stereotypes it creates. There are plenty of Indian journalists who write flawless, international English - so why are those that don't still getting hired all over the place?
Main reason: the people doing the hiring are so clueless they can't tell the difference between them.
I would dare say that if we can't trust KT to write in English, can we really trust them to _translate_ from Arabic to English?
Despite Mr. Al Marri's several past outrageous remarks, I think it is a case of horrid translation, no more.
In either case, such a law is not implementable and so is a pointless one anyway.
SD, you think a newspaper that keeps repeating - "X told your favorite/No.1 newspaper that..." is a ....newspaper?
As you said, there are plenty of good Indian journalists out there. But what if it went straight over the top of their heads (and it will, considering KTs sizable fanbase)
Its sad that the author (nameless?) has only met those stereotypes whom we seem to be seeing more and more of each day. I don't blame him.
Regarding the MMS thingy, if GN had some balls, they'd publish an item tomorrow titled "Lost in transalation - Al Marri"!!
what made my day today was when someone from Galadari Publishing spent 4 minutes reading my "gift of giving" post.
You misrepresented what he said in your post. Reading the article itself makes what was said reasonable and in keeping with the laws of many countries, including mine, which say you cannot record or photograph a person without their consent. From the Khaleej Times:
As per Article No 378, any one affecting the privacy of a person or a family without their consent would be subject to imprisonment and fine, he said, adding that eavesdropping, recording private conversation through phone or any other recording device, taking photos, etc would be included among violations of the law.
What about at shopping centres when the TV crews have their stupid cameras and point them everywhere? doesn't that count as a violation of privacy?
Re: the Gn article - the other side is that a reporter like that is about one in a hundred from the subcontinent. But in the media is well-known that certain big houses will hire subcon salespeople, but only white reporters.
Anon@8:50 - no I didn't. I specifically said "no arguments" with the rest of the law. But saying (if he did, which I doubt, I think it's another Kretin Times fk up) that sending family photos and news "if true" is illegal is absurd.
Of course, Etisalat is promoting its MMS service on outdoor advertising banners down the central reservation of the Sheikh Zayed Road. The ads portray a happy family and a baby with the instruction to capture the memory ... Can anyone else see a contradiction here?
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