Dubai Woman's Nightmare
Discussion
Read this and tell me if I'm missing something here.
A British woman cleared in Dubai of carrying a banned painkiller in her system must wait "four or five days" before knowing if she can fly home.
Codeine, banned in Dubai, was found in Tracy Wilkinson's urine when she was arrested for a passport irregularity.
Mrs Wilkinson, 44, from Balcombe in West Sussex, spent seven weeks in jail before being cleared by a Dubai court.
However, she must now wait for 15 days before she can leave the country in case prosecutors launch an appeal.
Campaign Group Fair Trials Abroad, which has been working on Mrs Wilkinson's behalf, said no decision would be made for "four or five days" and she could have to wait the full 15.
Under United Arab Emirates (UAE) law, prosecutors have 15 days to lodge an appeal, but Ms Wilkinson's lawyer had hoped they would speed up the process.
Although codeine is widely-used prescription painkiller in the UK it is banned in the UAE. ( and you can also but it from any supermarket, Nurofen Plus ?)
The mother-of-two, a sports osteopath, was found with traces of the sedative temazepam in her system as well as codeine when she was arrested at Dubai Airport two months ago.
She had faced a four-year jail sentence if found guilty and was held in prison before being released on bail on 30 April.
The drugs were prescribed by her GP for back problems following a car accident, and she took them before flying to the United Arab Emirates.
But according to Fair Trials Abroad, during a court hearing on Saturday, official medical records revealed she was also administered the drugs by a police doctor at Dubai airport before she gave a urine sample.
Stephen Jakobi, a spokesman for Fair Trials Abroad, said on Monday: "I have spoken to Tracy today and she has been told it is likely to be four or five days before she's going to be in a position to come home, and it might even be the full 15 days.
"She remains in good spirits but clearly today's meeting is a huge disappointment."
__________
Dear me, you have to feel sorry for this woman. I mean codeine FFS.
And get this, she was administered codeine by a police doctor in Dubai before giving her urine sample ???? WTF.
What's the charge for getting thrown out of a moving police car...jaywalking ?
A British woman cleared in Dubai of carrying a banned painkiller in her system must wait "four or five days" before knowing if she can fly home.
Codeine, banned in Dubai, was found in Tracy Wilkinson's urine when she was arrested for a passport irregularity.
Mrs Wilkinson, 44, from Balcombe in West Sussex, spent seven weeks in jail before being cleared by a Dubai court.
However, she must now wait for 15 days before she can leave the country in case prosecutors launch an appeal.
Campaign Group Fair Trials Abroad, which has been working on Mrs Wilkinson's behalf, said no decision would be made for "four or five days" and she could have to wait the full 15.
Under United Arab Emirates (UAE) law, prosecutors have 15 days to lodge an appeal, but Ms Wilkinson's lawyer had hoped they would speed up the process.
Although codeine is widely-used prescription painkiller in the UK it is banned in the UAE. ( and you can also but it from any supermarket, Nurofen Plus ?)
The mother-of-two, a sports osteopath, was found with traces of the sedative temazepam in her system as well as codeine when she was arrested at Dubai Airport two months ago.
She had faced a four-year jail sentence if found guilty and was held in prison before being released on bail on 30 April.
The drugs were prescribed by her GP for back problems following a car accident, and she took them before flying to the United Arab Emirates.
But according to Fair Trials Abroad, during a court hearing on Saturday, official medical records revealed she was also administered the drugs by a police doctor at Dubai airport before she gave a urine sample.
Stephen Jakobi, a spokesman for Fair Trials Abroad, said on Monday: "I have spoken to Tracy today and she has been told it is likely to be four or five days before she's going to be in a position to come home, and it might even be the full 15 days.
"She remains in good spirits but clearly today's meeting is a huge disappointment."
__________
Dear me, you have to feel sorry for this woman. I mean codeine FFS.
And get this, she was administered codeine by a police doctor in Dubai before giving her urine sample ???? WTF.
What's the charge for getting thrown out of a moving police car...jaywalking ?
Strange that they made her take it. If it is obviously prescribed to her, then of course it is likely to be in her system. Even if it's non-Rx in the UK, but illegal in UAE, you'd think they'd be able to ask themselves, "Does this woman have enough/intent to sell?" and determine whether she knowingly violated their laws. Codeine is Rx only in the US, too.
simpo two said:
So the police doctor in Dubai administered an illegal drug? Why isn't he in jail, rather than the victim?
Yes, quite.
I just can't imagine what this woman must have gone through (and still going through), stuck in some ratpit jail looking at a minimum 4 stretch. Now she has to wait possibly another 2 weeks for the prosecution to possibly appeal.
This would definitely make the next episode of 'Holidays from Hell' on ITV.
I wonder what the passport irregularity was? And what has happened to that.
No doubt the action against her for the drug is harsh, assuming the story is accurately reported. By Borther lives in Dubai and was over the other week, and we discussed this story. His supicion is there is more to it.
No doubt the action against her for the drug is harsh, assuming the story is accurately reported. By Borther lives in Dubai and was over the other week, and we discussed this story. His supicion is there is more to it.
JagLover said:
After all the 'UK is hell an' I'm gonna leave' threads recently doesn't this illustrate why the UK is still a good place to be?
Rather it illustrates that you should never visit an Arab state (with the possible exception of Egypt.)
The majority of Arab states are fine. Out of the many, many visitors that visit Dubai (or other Arab states), very, very few have these sorts of problems. There is definately more to this than meets the eye as the authorities are usually OK in Dubai. Saying that they have a very hard line on drugs.
When visiting anywhere which is fairly culturally different, it is wise to research local customs and rules (e.g. not bringing fruit/veg/plants into New Zealand) before going there. It's daft to write off an area of the world due to the reported experience of one person.
I hope it get's cleared up soon for the lady
bga said:
planetdave said:
After all the 'UK is hell an' I'm gonna leave' threads recently doesn't this illustrate why the UK is still a good place to be?
Rather it illustrates that you should never visit an Arab state (with the possible exception of Egypt.)
Well said....all of it.
The majority of Arab states are fine. Out of the many, many visitors that visit Dubai (or other Arab states), very, very few have these sorts of problems. There is definately more to this than meets the eye as the authorities are usually OK in Dubai. Saying that they have a very hard line on drugs.
When visiting anywhere which is fairly culturally different, it is wise to research local customs and rules (e.g. not bringing fruit/veg/plants into New Zealand) before going there. It's daft to write off an area of the world due to the reported experience of one person.
I hope it get's cleared up soon for the lady
planetdave said:
After all the 'UK is hell an' I'm gonna leave' threads recently doesn't this illustrate why the UK is still a good place to be?
BTW my parents want me to join then in Ex pat ism. The weather is nicer but nein danke.
Your quite right P-Dave. The UK is not such a bad place when alls said and done.
Diving about where I am, the state of the roads and the standard of driving are, strictly speaking, the least of your worries. Your usually to preoccupied with dodging mortar rounds and RPG's not to mention completely clueless US troops who are just as likely to start firing at you as they are at the insurgence!
Having said that though, all the fuel is free and there’s no road tax or insurance to worry about. All things are relative though, as they say.
bga said:
There is definately more to this than meets the eye as the authorities are usually OK in Dubai.
What exactly do you base that on ? The woman was there for a holiday, she's a registered osteopath with 2 kids and her husband's an ex-copper. She had codeine in her system, remember that's just Nurofen Plus.....she hardly befits the typical smackhead.
I've been following this case since I first read about it on 25 April. It's nothing short of an outrage.
As for the passport irregularities well this is from the telegraph.
Telegraph said:
Mrs Wilkinson is understood to have taken the painkillers on Feb 28, the day before she departed for Dubai. As she continued to suffer from back pain, she decided to cut her holiday short.
Her early departure, on March 3, led to the irregularity on the travel details contained in her passport.
I'm sorry to say, but some of these places are simply medieval, particularly when it comes to their treatment of women. Muslim countries generally have a problem in this area, due IMO to a combination of 'Islamic law' and third-world dictatorships.
Saudia Arabia is arguably the worst of all. If the reports I have read are to be believed then working there as a foreigner is very dangerous. Essentially you are seen as a second class citizen to the extent that a Saudi crashing his car into you can result in you being chucked in prison for weeks without anyone being told. I'm told the principle behind this is that if you hadn't been in their country he wouldn't have crashed into you.
Frankly I find the stories about Saudi hard to believe but I've heard them more than once. Does anyone have any personal experience?
Saudia Arabia is arguably the worst of all. If the reports I have read are to be believed then working there as a foreigner is very dangerous. Essentially you are seen as a second class citizen to the extent that a Saudi crashing his car into you can result in you being chucked in prison for weeks without anyone being told. I'm told the principle behind this is that if you hadn't been in their country he wouldn't have crashed into you.
Frankly I find the stories about Saudi hard to believe but I've heard them more than once. Does anyone have any personal experience?
Talking about Codeine here, well Codeine is in a class of drugs called narcotic analgesics. It relieves pain. It's also habit forming drug and if you use other medicine with it, it's a one dangerous mixture. Codeine is converted to morphine in the brain. This of course will result in a positive result in a drug test for the opiates.
mannginger said:
She also had temazepam in her system - a highly addictive class A drug.
So no - all is not as it seems I feel...
Phil
Wrong Temazapam is a Class C benzodiazipne and is not highly addictive, can be addictive over 4 weeks or so continuous use.
Also the court records show she was administered the drugs before she gave the urine sample.
'Spokesman Stephen Jakobi said that a court hearing on Saturday heard that official medical records revealed she was also administered the drugs by a police doctor at Dubai airport before she gave the urine sample.'
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