An expat working in the UAE has been sentenced to one month in prison, followed by deportation, for posting a video of a 5-year-old relative on Snapchat without her parents’ consent.
It held that publishing a child’s image without the necessary permission could constitute a criminal offence, regardless of whether the person intended to cause harm. The court also dismissed her argument that her public Snapchat profile absolved her of legal liability. The incident has sparked a discussion on privacy in the digital age. Radha Stirling, CEO of the UK-based advocacy group Detained in Dubai, called the sentence too harsh.
(Also read: Harwinder Kumar deported from UAE, arrested by NIA in Vikas Prabhakar murder case ) The court said that police reports, supporting evidence and the woman’s own confession during questioning established that she had filmed and shared the video.
This sentence is extremely harsh and disproportionate. Privacy is important but surely this goes too far in the UAE,” Stirling wrote on X. “One month in prison and deportation for a relative sharing a harmless family video of a 5-year-old mispronouncing food on Snapchat?
