In a most egregious attack, those who are responsible for the safety and protection of people in their custody, took advantage of their power and abused the 61 year old grandfather, Albert Douglas.
After having been violently beaten and tortured by UAE prison guards, Albert sustained multiple fractures and injuries that still require surgery today. Now, rather than returning him to his home country, UAE authorities have been pushed by the UK to conduct a charade of an investigation into the abuse.
In a recorded telephone call yesterday, Albert Douglas said “2 years ago I was severely beaten and tortured by the UAE police. My left shoulder and right hand were broken. My head was kicked around like a football. As a direct result of the head trauma, I now suffered from Alzheimer's, PTSD and regular blackouts. I was deprived of water and left in the desert for two days. I was forced to drink from the filthy toilet basins to survive. I thought I was going to die. It was all recorded on CCTV and there were numerous witnesses. There is no argument. The FCDO were immediately advised but it took one year for my savage beating and torture to be investigated.
“I arrived at the court a year ago, I was given a full medical examination by specialists who confirmed my injuries were correct. The court asked me to give a full detailed account. I was about half way through my statement when a local Emirati burst into the chamber and shouted “khalas” (finish) so they never heard my full statement.” Albert was then chained up and returned to a local Dubai prison.
Listen to Albert's full phone call:
Albert continued, “Another year went by and then Abu Dhabi asked me to make a full account. I told them a year prior, I was asked to do this.” The Emirati returned and said “don’t worry, a full investigation and report is almost finished” before abruptly ending the meeting.
But Albert said, “Anyone with an ounce of intelligence must know there has been no investigation and there will be no proper report. The crimes committed against me will be ignored and covered up by the UAE authorities. The past two years, I’ve spoken to dozens of prisoners who have also been tortured and not one case has been made against a policeman responsible for these crimes here. The UAE has laws but they’re only for the benefit of the local people and not foreigners like myself.
“This is a warning to any businessman or investor thinking about coming to the UAE. Never forget Lee Bradley Brown who was murdered in Dubai prison. The FCDO has failed to protect me, that’s a fact. I was a business investor that was chained up, beat up and locked up. I’m now left permanently disabled with no human rights”.
Long term resident and businessman, Albert Douglas, was locked up over a bounced cheque he did not author. “In the UAE”, explains Detained in Dubai CEO Radha Stirling, “anyone can be held responsible for an alleged crime. Morag Koussa narrowly escaped imprisonment over her former husband’s bank debt. Relatives, business partners or employees are often used as leverage in the justice system. They hope that by jailing someone ‘close’ to their target, they will pressure that person to pay any monies they are seeking. They don’t care if that person is innocent. They only care about the money. Sometimes, cases are completely fabricated just to extort foreigners”.
“But the risk is not just imprisonment, there is a significant risk of torture and human rights violations. This is one of the main reasons British courts refuse to extradite citizens. At an inquest into the death of Lee Bradley Brown, Coroner Nadia Persaud wrote a report to the FCDO, advising that if changes were not made, further deaths in custody were likely. She also advised that the current UAE travel warnings were insufficient and required review.
“The FCDO has handled Albert’s torture poorly. At a diplomatic level, this kind of treatment is totally unacceptable and he should have been released immediately and allowed to continue his surgery in the safety and comfort of the UK. Allowing the UAE to keep Albert in prison is emboldening to them. There is no incentive to change.
“Albert is absolutely right to warn businessmen that their investment could lead to their death”.
The inquest heard that the number of new cases of Britons reporting torture or mistreatment in Dubai to the Foreign Office had surged from 3 per cent of the global total to 13 per cent in just four years.