Marcus, from Tottenham, North London, had been enjoying a holiday with his parents when he met a fellow Brit at the same hotel. A holiday fling sparked and the pair spent time together until the girl, also from London, flew back to Britain.
In Dubai, if an adult has a sexual relationship with a person under 18, they can be prosecuted for having a sexual relationship with a minor. The relationship would be legal in the UK.
Marcus and his parents were set to fly back shortly after - but their plans were thrown into chaos when police knocked on their hotel room door. The “terrified” teenager was then reportedly hauled in for questioning without any explanation and held at the Al Barsha Police Station, DID said. He spent three days there, during which time he was not allowed to make a phone call or speak with his parents, it is claimed.
I really hope y’all ain’t defending his actions. The age of consent is the age of consent. That he couldn’t keep it in his pants is on him. It doesn’t matter what the AoC in UK is when you’re in another country.
The law not having a provision for such a situation is a completely separate issue. To criticise that is valid. It still doesn’t give him an excuse to break it.
The age difference is less than a year are you fucking insane, legality is not morality and we should always push back against unjust laws
Weird hill to die on but ok. Again, the law itself can be argued about, breaking it not really. No one made him jump in bed, nor is the law some violation of human rights. “Don’t shag people under 18” is not a tall ask.
The kid is 18. Were y’all assuming he was older for some reason?
It creates an few different odd possibilities though, in the UK you can be married before 18, let’s say an 18 year old wife and her 17 year old husband went on their honeymoon to Dubai, would they legally be allowed to consummate their marriage?
Would Dubai recognise their marriage?
Simply don’t visit Dubai then. Because “no”.
I too read every law of a foreign country before I visit them. /s
This arrest is shitty and the comment above you is stupid, but you should absolutely be aware of the laws of wherever you go. Being a visitor somewhere doesn’t bestow the right to ignore the law.
Yes, although I wouldn’t really expect a teenager to read up on age of consent laws, especially when traveling. They probably should, but I wouldn’t think them likely to.