25 Apr 12 | Index Index, Middle East and North Africa, minipost
A rapper has been sentenced to a minimum of three months in prison after releasing a violent music video in the UAE. The singer, known as Dangour, was arrested in June. In the footage, Dangour raps about drug abuse and his hatred of white people. A clip went viral on messaging service BBM, and several people complained to the police. The court ruled that the rapper created the video to make people scared of him and issued the “light sentence”. They added that it “harmed public decency and order and spread terror and panic among people”.
21 Mar 12 | Index Index, Middle East and North Africa, minipost
Authorities in the United Arab Emirates have removed two paintings inspired by the Arab spring from an art fair. The paintings, which were appearing as part of the regional art fair “Art Dubai”, unsettled the authorities and were ommitted. A painting titled After Washing by a Libyan-born artist — showing a woman holding underwear with word “Leave” written on it — was removed. Similarly, “You were my only love” by a Moroccan artist, which depicted an incident in Egypt in which a female protester was beaten up and stripped by members of the security forces, was also banned from the fair.
02 Mar 12 | Index Index, Middle East and North Africa
A 42-year-old Emirati man faces up to three years in prison or a fine of 30,000 AED (£5,122) for tweeting insults to a public official. The man reportedly sent messages “using foul language” to Police Chief Lieutenant General Dahi Khalfan Tamim, and in court denied insulting the official, claiming that his comments were actually aimed at Tamim’s cronies. Tamim filed the case against the man after he reportedly tweeted insults at him for a second time. His case has now been adjourned to 11 March after his request for bail was rejected by a judge on Wednesday.
11 Jan 12 | Middle East and North Africa, News and features
Unable to travel freely or look for work, five political activists still face extreme hardship after being pardoned by the Emirati president. Sara Yasin reports
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