Abu Dhabi And Sydney - A Tale Of Two Cities

[Published 15 July 2015]


An Australian woman — Jodi Magi - has been arrested, jailed and deported from Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates after being found guilty of “writing bad words on social media about a person” — reportedly a cyber-crime in the United Arab Emirates.

Her crime?

Photographing a car in her apartment block that was parked across two disabled parking spaces without any disability stickers, blacking out the number plate, putting the photo on Facebook without any other identifiable detail and drawing attention to the seemingly selfish act.

Someone in the apartment block apparently complained to police and the case went to an Abu Dhabi court in June.

Ms Magi - who has lived in Abu Dhabi with her husband since 2012 - said she was forced to sign multiple documents in Arabic without any translation.

Two weeks after her conviction she was told she would be deported.

Last week Ms Magi tried to voluntarily deport herself and pay the approximately $3,600 fine - but Abu Dhabi authorities would not allow her to leave without presenting herself to the court.

When she did she was jailed - spending 53 hours in custody, shackled at the ankles, strip-searched, blood tested, sleeping on a concrete floor without a mattress or pillow, without toilet paper or eating utensils - before being deported.

Meanwhile in Sydney an on-line petition signed by hundreds of members of the Muslim community has successfully resulted in the cancellation of an Eid Dinner organised by the Australian Federal Police marking the end of Ramadan — whilst another similar dinner organised in Melbourne will proceed.

The petition - urging invited Muslim community leaders, Imams, representatives and prominent personalities to boycott the Eid Dinners — made the following charges (among others):

1. The Australian Government has over the last 12 months executed a concerted and prolonged campaign of anti-Muslim hysteria, pulling out all stops to demonise, marginalise and victimise the Muslim community. Under the pretext of international developments and a supposed impending domestic threat, many tranches of counter-terrorism legislation have been passed that ostensibly target Muslims specifically.

2. Federal and State Government bodies such as their police forces (including the Australian Federal Police) and intelligence agencies (such as ASIO) have been a key strategic component in the Australian Government’s deliberate targeting of the Muslim community, used to execute phoney raids that have often amounted to nothing.

3. An Islamopbobic atmosphere is directly resulting from the actions of police and government agencies.

Regrettably the petition failed to note that the “many tranches of counter-terrorism legislation” were adopted with the support of the Opposition and after extensive consideration of amendments proposed by the bipartisan Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security.

Making this petition an attempted political “cause celebre” against the Australian Government will elicit no sympathy from the alternative Government.

The Muslim community in Australia has the perfect right to express any concerns it has with its alleged treatment. It however needs to document and substantiate the generalised allegations made in the petition if they are to have any credibility whatsoever.

That such a petition can appear on-line and its authors and signatories not be subjected to the kind of treatment visited on Ms Magi in Abu Dhabi is something they should seriously reflect on. So too should those Muslim community representatives who spurned the Australian Federal Police invitation — rather than attending the function and repudiating the statements expressed in the petition as representing the views of the Muslim community.

They should all dwell on Dickens' words in his “Tale of Two Cities”:

“Liberty, equality, fraternity, or death; — the last, much the easiest to bestow, O Guillotine!”

Palestine - Tongue-tied and Terrified

[Published 15 February 2013]


“The State of Palestine” is not a place that encourages or tolerates freedom of speech - if recent events are any guide.

David Keyes has made this very clear in an article written by him in the New York Times:

“Last week, a 26-year-old Palestinian activist, Anas Awwad, was sentenced in absentia by a court in Nablus, the West Bank, to one year in prison for "extending his tongue” against the Palestinian Authority’s president, Mahmoud Abbas, on Facebook.Thousands have joined a Facebook group to show their solidarity with Mr. Awwad, but the damage has been done. Free speech has been set back, and a chill sent throughout Palestinian society.”

Awwad had uploaded a photo of Abbas on Facebook dubbing it with the caption “the new striker in “Real Madrid”. Perhaps he might have got a lighter sentence had the caption read “the new striker in Unreal Palestine“

Awwad’s “crime” appears to have been committed in the context of the PLO’s ongoing six year struggle for political dominance over its bitter rival Hamas.

In all likelihood Awwad is a Hamas-supporter and has become the latest victim among hundreds of Palestinians who are exposed to detention because of their political opinions.

The law used to convict Awwad was a 50-year-old Jordanian law still operative in the West Bank. The law became applicable in the West Bank when it was unified with Transjordan to form a new territorial entity called Jordan in 1950.

The law was intended to punish critics of Jordan’s monarchy.

Applying that law now to send someone to prison for criticising an unelected and unconstitutional President overstaying his term of office four years after his term has expired indicates the ingenious legal thinking that has permeated the legal system of the “State of Palestine”

The sentence highlights the questionable democratic credentials Mr. Abbas claims to possess when meeting Western leaders.

A suit and tie do not maketh the man.

Abbas has pledged to move Palestine towards a practising democracy as the final destination for creating the two-state solution.

Depriving his constituents of their right to freedom of expression and to hold political views contrary to him is the very antithesis of democracy.

The respected Israeli Arab journalist Khaled Abu Toameh has made it clear that this assault on individuals is also happening to journalists in both the West Bank and Gaza

“Over the past few weeks, several Palestinian journalists have been arrested in the West Bank and Gaza Strip for reportedly criticizing the policies and leaders of the Palestinian Authority and Hamas."

But this most recent assault on freedom of expression does not seem to bother the Western countries that fund the Palestinian Authority or Hamas supporters from all around the world.

As far as many Western governments and journalists are concerned, physical assaults on Palestinian reporters in the Gaza Strip are fine as long as they are not perpetrated by Israel.

The Palestinian Authority crackdown on Palestinian journalists in the West Bank is also fine as long as Israel is not involved.

Most of the assaults against journalists took place in the Gaza Strip, where Hamas continues to display zero tolerance towards critics or anyone who dares to say something “controversial.”

In the past few weeks, at least 16 journalists from the Gaza Strip were arrested or summoned for interrogation by Hamas authorities in the context of a campaign aimed at intimidating the local media.

Some of the journalists were released only after Hamas forced them to sign a document stating that they would refrain from attending press conferences or covering various activities unless they obtained permission in advance.”

Jillian Yorke- the director of international freedom of expression at the Electronic Frontier Foundation has noted that this not the first time Jordanian law has been used to prosecute online speech in the West Bank.

“In 2010, Walid Hasayin was arrested in Qalqiliya and accused of violating Article 273 of the Jordanian Penal Code, which deals with insults to “religious feelings of other persons or their religious faith”. And in 2011, another man was arrested under the same article."

Yorke further points out:

“... growing internet penetration has raised the spectre of unbridled freedom for the Palestinian Authority (PA) - (now defunct - ed).With nearly a quarter of the West Bank population on Facebook, new opportunities for online organising and sharing of news have arisen over the past few years… just the recipe to threaten an insecure government.

In 2012, at least 10 individuals were arrested for public criticism of the PA, online or off. In April, two journalists and a lecturer were arrested for comments on Facebook deemed critical of the PA, coinciding with the PA’s awarding of a press freedom prize to American journalist Helen Thomas. The arrests were condemned by watchdog groups, including the International Press Institute and the Committee to Protect Journalists. And Palestinian groups, such as the Independent Commission for Human Rights, have called for greater press freedom.”

One of the targeted journalists, Tariq Khamis, told the Electronic Intifada:

“The regime is very similar to other Arab regimes. If the Palestinian Authority had trust in themselves, they would let journalists get on with their work. But because of their mistakes and corruption, they fear the work of journalists.”

In April 2012 blogger Jamal Abu Rihan was arrested for launching a Facebook campaign demanding an end to corruption. Columnist Jihad Harb was later sentenced to two months in prison on charges of libel and slander for raising questions about cronyism within Abbas’ office.

Last year - according to Yorke:

” Ma’an News uncovered evidence of website blocking, a practice otherwise largely unheard of in the West Bank. The eight blocked websites were all news sites critical of President Abbas and were eventually unblocked after Communications Minister Mashour Abu Daka spoke out against the blocking as being “against the public interest”, resulting in the resignation of Attorney General Ahmad al-Mughni”

The PLO and Hamas are entitled to do whatever they like in their “State” to repress free speech, ban Facebook or Twitter and even harass and arrest journalists or individuals who dare to speak out or criticise those who govern them.

If they want to pursue self-extermination at the expense of self-determination - then that should be their prerogative.

That does not mean that the European Union and America should continue pouring billions of euros and dollars into trying to create a State in their own image that shows no sign of emerging after 20 years of extraordinary financial generosity and political support.

Hopefully those whose tongues are now tied can try throwing their shoes instead.

Facebook Or Facelessbook?

[Published 22 March 2012]


Can anyone out there tell me how I can have direct on-line contact with a real live person at Facebook - not just some anonymous message that is flashed on my screen?

I need your help urgently to find such a person in an effort to discuss and resolve issues which have arisen between myself and Facebook.

My problems revolve around a Facebook Group I created called “Help Restore UNESCO’S Funding” - whose objective is clearly stated in the following terms:

“Pledged to calling for UNESCO to seek an advisory opinion on the legality of Palestine’s admission to UNESCO - which if reversed would immediately enable America to resume funding 22% of UNESCO’s budget.”

The Group’s objective was to engender support for UNESCO approaching the International Court of Justice to obtain judicial confirmation on the legality of UNESCO’s decision to admit Palestine as its 195th member state. I had started the Group after UNESCO had refused to even discuss the merits of a legal opinion I had furnished.

If UNESCO’s decision was found by the Court to be in breach of UNESCO‘S Constitution - this would result in America resuming payment of its financial dues to UNESCO - totalling about $260 million until 2013 - thereby avoiding UNESCO cutting its aid to scores of millions of people world-wide in programs such as literacy, gender equality and water purification.

I received some complaints directly on the Group page from people asking that their names be removed as members and questioning how they had become members. To the best of my knowledge these complaints were from people who had already agreed to become my Friends on my own face book page. I had then joined them as members of the Group - as was permissible and appeared to be encouraged by Facebook.

On receiving these complaints those objectors were advised of the procedure to enable them to remove their names as members of the Group.

In addition I had been sending out Friend Requests to people who were members of other Groups - of which I was also a member and a frequent on-line contributor. Many of these people became my Friends and I joined them to the Group page as well - without any objection from them.

Apparently my actions incurred the wrath of Facebook following complaints received by it.

I began to receive a number of automatic messages from Facebook stating that I was sending Friend Requests to people I did not know - affording me the opportunity to respond. I explained what I had done. An automatic response in acknowledgement was the only reply received in each case.

Believing my explanation had been accepted I continued to approach members in those other Groups of which they and I were members - asking them to become my Friends.

I then received an automatic message telling me that I had sent out Friend Requests to people I did not know - and that I would not be able to send out Friend Requests for seven days. I was also advised in the message that if I thought I was seeing the message by mistake - to let Facebook know.

A response in explanation was duly sent by me setting out what I had been doing.

Again - believing my argument had been accepted I resumed my approaches and - lo and behold - I received another automatic message advising me that I could not make Friend Requests for 14 days!!

Worse was still to come.

When I tried to send a message to someone about the difficulty I was having in accessing a web site - I received another automatic message stating that my messages had been blocked temporarily to prevent sending spam. I was directed to the automated Help Center - which I suspected would only lead to another automated response.

My capacity to send messages to anyone on Facebook - unrelated to my Group page - had now been arbitrarily blocked for an indefinite period - without affording me any opportunity to respond before such action was taken.

Oh and if you think that was the end - more was yet to come.

Facebook actually notified me by “no-reply emails” that some people had requested to join my Group - people to whom I had not sent a Friend Request.

When I endeavoured to sign them up - their names had disappeared off the radar. They remain unable to become members.

Undeterred - I did send off a complaint to the “no reply” e mail address and of course - as you might guess - I have received no reply.

Just to round off this confrontation - I now find I have been removed as a member of one of the Groups and the name of that Group has been removed from my Facebook page. This has been done without any notification to me.

When I tried to message the Administrator of the Group to find out what had happened - I was notified by another flashing message that I had been blocked because multiple people to whom I had sent Friend Requests indicated they did not know me.

I can understand that this very powerful social media site can do as it likes in the way it manages its affairs. But what they are doing seems to me to be a denial of natural justice - of the right to be given a fair hearing and a reasoned judgment after hearing all the facts.

I only hope that being the nerd I am - I have somehow missed a contact address of a real person at Facebook with whom I can correspond to try and sort out these issues.

If this is not possible - then my Group page has become effectively impacted in recruiting new members and my capacity to message anyone on Facebook has been frozen for I do not know how long.

Has anyone else had similar problems making personal contact with a human being at Facebook when they have issues that need to be resolved through face-to-face contact?

Discouraging communication and arbitrary decision making seems to be the complete opposite of what Facebook is all about - or should be about.

This is hardly a way to win Friends and influence people.

So my plea is - can anyone out there put a face to Facebook to help me resolve my run-in?