Judges in the United Arab Emirates have the right to impose an alternative sentence instead of imprisonment for petty crimes.
The UAE issued a decree of the Council of Ministers on the designation of community service as an alternative to imprisonment. A document published by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, UAE Vice President and ruler of Dubai, lists 19 categories of community service.
This type of punishment is possible in the case of a minor offense and can replace a prison term not exceeding six months.
So, in March, three men who participated in the killing of an animal received punishment from the ruler of Dubai for cleaning the Dubai Zoo for three months, and in February a group of people arrested for reckless driving in the City Walk were punished by daily cleaning of the city streets during months for four hours daily.
Here are the categories of public works stipulated by the decree:
- Memorizing or helping others memorize fragments of the holy Quran
- Work in institutions for people with special needs
- Work in nursing homes
- Work in juvenile prisons
- Work in kindergartens
- Work in maternal and child care centers or women
- Traffic management work
- Ambulance work
- Civil defense missions
- Work in charitable or humanitarian organizations
- Work in adult literacy centers
- Cleaning and maintenance of public areas and facilities, including roads, parks, squares, beaches and reserves
- Cleaning and maintenance of mosques
- Supporting various events
- Food quality control work
- Work in public parks and reserves
- Care for animals and their feeding in zoos and reserves
- Loading and unloading of cargo containers in ports
- Work at the gas station
The document also states that work should be paid in the amount of a quarter of wages. The nature of public work should be determined by decree of the Minister of Justice. The sentence shall not be less than ten days and not more than one year.
