Human rights in the United Arab Emirates

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Human rights in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) are substantially restricted. The UAE does not have democratically elected institutions and citizens do not have the right to change their government or form political parties. Activists and academics who criticize the government are detained and imprisoned, and their families are often harassed by the state security apparatus.[1] There are reports of forced disappearances of foreign nationals and Emirati citizens, who have been abducted, detained and tortured in undisclosed locations, and denied the right to a speedy trial and access to counsel during investigations by the UAE government.[2][3][4][5][6] Human Rights Watch states that Emirati laws maintain capital punishment and discriminate against women, migrants and LGBT individuals.[1]

The government restricts freedom of speech and freedom of the press, and the local media are censored to prevent criticism of the government, government officials or royal families. As a result, the UAE routinely ranks near the bottom of many international measures for human rights and press freedom.

Despite being elected to the UN Council, the UAE is not a signatory of many international human rights and labour rights treaties, including the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, and the Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families.

In November 2020, the UAE overhauled its legal system and enacted a number of reforms, including lowering restrictions on alcohol consumption, permitting cohabitation, imposing harsher sentences for honor killings, and removing corporal punishment as a legal form of punishment in its penal code.[7][8]

  1. ^ a b "Dubai princess' 'hostage' video shines light on rights record". NBC News. 17 February 2021. Retrieved 23 July 2021.
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference aohr was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference hrw was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ "Survivors call for action to stop UAE torture". aljazeera.com. Retrieved 17 June 2019.
  5. ^ "UAE: Investigate Allegations of Torture of Foreign Nationals". Human Rights Watch. 13 October 2015. Retrieved 17 June 2019.
  6. ^ "Scottish authorities will not investigate Emirati Interpol president, police say". ICIJ. 8 November 2024.
  7. ^ "UAE announces relaxing of Islamic laws for personal freedoms". Associated Press. 7 November 2020.
  8. ^ "Federal Decree Law No. (15) of 2020". Ministry of Justice. 27 September 2020. Pages 1, Article 1 "The provisions of the Islamic Shari’a shall apply to the retribution and blood money crimes. Other crimes and their respective punishments shall be provided for in accordance with the provisions of this Law and other applicable penal codes". Archived from the original on 31 May 2023. Retrieved 8 June 2023.