Dubai’s launch of a government-funded Influencer Academy is being criticised as a desperate attempt to mask the country’s repressive legal system and human rights abuses behind a manufactured image of glamour and safety. The UAE’s plan to pay Western influencers to promote the country has been condemned by Radha Stirling, founder of Detained in Dubai and CEO of Due Process International, who warns that the campaign is built on censorship, state-controlled media and outright deception.
“Dubai’s marketing office offers lie upon lie. They tell the world it is safe for solo female travellers, that it is a modern, tolerant country, but behind the curtain is an authoritarian system where tourists can be jailed on a whim,” said Stirling. “This Influencer Academy is just the latest attempt to whitewash a regime that jails people for Facebook posts and punishes victims of crime.”
The UAE’s media is state-controlled, crime statistics are censored, and victims of abuse are often silenced through pay-offs or threats. Stirling says the influencers being trained are unlikely to mention that leaving a negative TripAdvisor review could land you in prison, or that false accusations and hearsay are enough to get someone detained and convicted.
“We have handled cases of beatings and torture in custody, wrongful arrests, and years-long detentions over flimsy or fabricated claims. Influencers might be able to pull strings to get out of trouble, some of them, but what about the everyday traveller who cannot?” she asked.
“The UAE has to spend big to whitewash the country. That alone should ring alarm bells. It is not a campaign to promote tourism; it is a campaign to cover up the truth similar to what we saw during the Princess Latifa saga.”
Stirling is calling for upgraded travel warnings, increased media scrutiny, and clear, visible alerts from airlines, travel companies and tourism boards.
“Governments must take a firmer stand. Tourists deserve transparency, not TikToks selling them a fantasy. Before the next arrest goes viral, we need serious warnings in place, not propaganda dressed up as lifestyle content.”
Detained in Dubai has long warned that the UAE's legal system lacks due process, disproportionately targets foreigners, and is riddled with corruption and coercion. The Influencer Academy, they argue, is just the newest layer in a slickly produced facade.
