UAE Pardons 57 Bangladeshis Imprisoned for Staging Protests

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Facts

  • Pres. Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan has pardoned 57 Bangladeshi citizens who were convicted in July for staging unauthorized protests in the United Arab Emirates against then-Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.[1]
  • While the Abu Dhabi Federal Court of Appeal sentenced 53 people to 10 years in prison and 11 years to another, three received life sentences.[2]
  • The protesters were accused of 'crimes of gathering in a public place and protesting against their home government with the intent to incite unrest.'[3]
  • Protests flared up in Abu Dhabi, Dubai, and Sharjah on July 22 in support of demonstrations in Bangladesh over the nation's quota system for government job applicants. A day before the protests, Bangladesh's Supreme Court scaled back the system.[4][5]
  • According to state media, the protests by the 57 Bangladeshis had caused 'riots, disruption of public security, obstruction of law enforcement, and endangerment of public and private property'.[6]
  • Their pardon reportedly comes after Al Nahyan called Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus, the chief adviser of the interim government of Bangladesh, last month. Following the cancelation of their sentences, the protesters will be released and deported.[7][8]

Sources: [1]Al Jazeera, [2]Associated Press (a), [3]Reuters, [4]Middle East Eye, [5]Associated Press (b), [6]BBC News, [7]Dhakatribune and [8]Firstpost.

Narratives

  • Narrative A, as provided by The National and Khaleej Times. Bangladeshis are the third largest expatriate group in the UAE and are expected to show utmost restraint on its soil. It's a given that they know that the oil-rich Gulf country bans unauthorized protests, prohibits speech that can encourage social unrest, and criminalizes defamation. This act of clemency — releasing Bangladeshi nationals who violated the country's laws — exemplifies Al Nahyan's compassionate leadership.
  • Narrative B, as provided by The Times of India and BBC News. While this decision is welcomed, the Bangladeshi expatriates shouldn't have been detained, convicted, and sentenced for peacefully protesting against their erstwhile government in the first place. The UAE's reaction to a demonstration that had no criminal intent was extreme. The UAE must apologize for arbitrarily detaining the marchers, who neither engaged in violent acts nor used inflammatory language during their protests.