‘We lie on the floor till someone buys us’: shocking allegations of UAE agencies’ abuse of domestic workers
GuardianSep 30, 2023
Irish Woman Detained for Attempting Suicide Allowed to Leave UAE
Image copyright: via Wikimedia Commons
The Facts
Tori Towey, an Irish flight attendant who had been charged in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) with attempting suicide and consuming alcohol, has had the charges dropped and her travel ban lifted.
Legal aid group Detained in Dubai claims that Towey, employed by Emirates Airlines since April 2023, had attempted suicide after a "brutal domestic violence" incident. The group says that this led to criminal charges against Towey and the confiscation of her passport.
The Spin
Narrative A
The treatment that Towey faced was inhumane and is a sad reflection of the status of women in the UAE and elsewhere in the region. She suffered a brutal attack, and sadly women in Dubai are often the victim of bad-faith legal arguments that are red herrings to their cases. The state of women's rights in the UAE and Gulf region is a major human rights issue.
Narrative B
The UAE is happy that this case was resolved, which did not take long after the full circumstances came to light. While prejudice against the Arab world often centers around the treatment of women, it should be noted that the region has made strides towards gender equality. Ireland and other nations have no right to criticize another country making progress at a pace that aligns with good governance.