UAE Issues Law Against Hate Crimes and Discrimination

Strict action will be taken against any form of expressions of hatred or incitement to hate crimes spread in the form of speech and published media. The United Arab Emirates has issued a new law against any form of discrimination on the basis of religion, caste, creed, doctrine, race, colour or ethnic origin following a decree by the President, His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan.  The new law No. 02 of 2015, criminalises any acts that stoke religious hatred and/or which insult religion through any form of expression, be it speech or the written word, books, pamphlets or via online media. The law also includes provisions for punishing anyone for terming other religious groups or individuals as infidels, or unbelievers. Penalties for violation of the various provisions of the law include jail-terms of six months to over 10 years, and fines from Dh50,000 to Dh2million. The law encourages anyone involved in any activity that violates the law to voluntarily submit themselves before the authorities and has provisions allowing the courts to waive penalties in such cases.