Matthew Hedges jailed for life in UAE

[hash tag]

The fact that he was, or so it would seem, an intelligent bloke, it did not sit comfortably with me that he was "researching" UAE's foreign affairs policy and security did not sit comfortably with me. Why would you do that in a middle eastern country? Still,, he has only got life, so there is hope.

Briton on UAE spy charge jailed for life

 

[skyscraper101]

I don't know enough about the case to form much of an opinion, save to say they got form for harsh sentences and wrongly jailing people on the flimsiest of evidence.

Remember that one guy, Jamie Harron? The one who was sentenced to 3 months in prison for allegedly touching a man's hips. It got dropped a day after his sentence, but the evidence was weak AF and even if he did it - 3 months for 'touching' a guy, not even assault or anything sexual? What a load of shit.

Also not forgetting Grooverider who was sentenced to 4 years for having like a blim of hash on him. Place is fucked up.

 

[Spymaster]

Nasty shit hole of a nation, the same as most of its neighbours. Just don't go there.

 

[Argonia]

Also not forgetting Grooverider who was sentenced to 4 years for having like a blim of hash on him. Place is fucked up.

Did Grooverider have to serve the sentence or did he get off?

 

[SpackleFrog]

I don't know enough about the case to form much of an opinion, save to say they got form for harsh sentences and wrongly jailing people on the flimsiest of evidence.

Remember that one guy, Jamie Harron? The one who was sentenced to 3 months in prison for allegedly touching a man's hips. It got dropped a day after his sentence, but the evidence was weak AF and even if he did it - 3 months for 'touching' a guy, not even assault or anything sexual? What a load of shit.

Also not forgetting Grooverider who was sentenced to 4 years for having like a blim of hash on him. Place is fucked up.

He's a fucking PhD student. Doing research. Where do you think people do research? Quite often, fucked up places.

Nasty shit hole of a nation, the same as most of its neighbours. Just don't go there.

Oh it's a shithole is it? Definite no reason to do research there then.

I hope our union will be a bit more sympathetic than you lot.

 

[skyscraper101]

Did Grooverider have to serve the sentence or did he get off?

Pardoned after 10 months if I recall. That's not even the worst case. A Swiss guy was sentenced to four years in prison in the UAE after three poppy seeds from a bread roll were found on his clothes. It's an insane system.

 

[splash]

The fact that he was, or so it would seem, an intelligent bloke, it did not sit comfortably with me that he was "researching" UAE's foreign affairs policy and security did not sit comfortably with me. Why would you do that in a middle eastern country? Still,, he has only got life, so there is hope.

Briton on UAE spy charge jailed for life

Apparently based on a forced confession

 

[Idris2002]

We were under orders not to mention his case on social media, in case it made things worse.

 

[not-bono-ever]

Anyone up to date on what the evidence produced for the conviction was ? Researching Arab spring is all I know about this / asking someone questions

Shithole of a country- for some reason, the brits have really taken to it, I use it for transit and that’s about it

 

[skyscraper101]

He's a fucking PhD student. Doing research. Where do you think people do research? Quite often, fucked up places.

Alrighht. I wasn't refuting his defence, I just said I didn't know enough about the case yet, save to say the UAE have form for having a shitty justice system. I wasn't being unsympathetic, Jesus.

 

[Spymaster]

Shithole of a country- for some reason, the brits have really taken to it ...

Only a certain type of Brit. If you're the type who's into lying by a pool at utterly vulgar desert hotels and clicking your fingers at Pakistani/Indian waiters who wouldn't earn enough money in a month to buy the drink they just served you, Dubai is probably right up your street.

 

[Argonia]

Bet that Matthew Hedges is pleased Boris isn't the Foreign Secretary still to go and fuck up the negotiations by saying he was training people in the country.

 

[not-bono-ever]

So it seems that his PhD notes were the evidence for this prosecution. Confession about acting for security services seems to have been extracted under duress ( there is virtually no way a PhD would have been assigned any spying duties given the amount of spooks in the region) .

Hopefully Hunt will be able to apply pressure of the shitty kingdom to get him out - hunt is a smart operator and is unlikely to follow his predecessors blunt instrument approach

Sanctioning the fucking place for tourists would be a start

 

[likesfish]

So are we holding anyone they want or are they in the market for eurofighters?

 

[Pickman's model]

hunt is a smart operator

i wish i could share your confidence

 

[SpackleFrog]

Alrighht. I wasn't refuting his defence, I just said I didn't know enough about the case yet, save to say the UAE have form for having a shitty justice system. I wasn't being unsympathetic, Jesus.

Fair, was more directed at the OP sorry.

 

[Chilli.s]

Research? My desktop research tells me that was a dumb place to choose.

 

[not-bono-ever]

i wish i could share your confidence

It’s all relative

 

[not-bono-ever]

Research? My desktop research tells me that was a dumb place to choose.

It may not have done his studies much good if he got all his research from the Internet

 

[Pickman's model]

It may not have done his studies much good if he got all his research from the Internet

on the positive side his next conference paper will be entirely based on first hand experience

 

[likesfish]

He's not Boris so that's a start I'd make a better negotiator than fucking Boris .
Trump would actually be more tactful and intelligent than boris

 

[ViolentPanda]

Bet that Matthew Hedges is pleased Boris isn't the Foreign Secretary still to go and fuck up the negotiations by saying he was training people in the country.

To be frank, the fact that Jeremy Hunt is Johnson's replacement, DOES NOT preclude any "fuck ups". Hunt is as big a twat as Johnson was.

 

[ViolentPanda]

So it seems that his PhD notes were the evidence for this prosecution. Confession about acting for security services seems to have been extracted under duress ( there is virtually no way a PhD would have been assigned any spying duties given the amount of spooks in the region) .

Hopefully Hunt will be able to apply pressure of the shitty kingdom to get him out - hunt is a smart operator and is unlikely to follow his predecessors blunt instrument approach

Sanctioning the fucking place for tourists would be a start

"Smart operator"=Actually occasionally listens to his multitude of advisors, and doesn't believe he's a reincarnation of Winston Churchill.

 

[likesfish]

we arn't exactly expecting Bismark its a fairly low hurdle with a ramp attached hunt the c has to get over to be better than boris.

 

[bellaozzydog]

Only a certain type of Brit. If you're the type who's into lying by a pool at utterly vulgar desert hotels and clicking your fingers at Pakistani/Indian waiters who wouldn't earn enough money in a month to buy the drink they just served you, Dubai is probably right up your street.

This x 200

 

[kebabking]

It may not have done his studies much good if he got all his research from the Internet

he should have researched whether the game is worth the candle.

researching gangster-capitalism in Russia is hazardous to your health, so is researching internal repression in the UAE - he knew that by reading the title of his PhD proposal.

i have a great deal of sympathy for anyone spending 20 years in a UAE jail, but he is a massive fuckwit for getting himself in that position.

 

[tim]

We were under orders not to mention his case on social media, in case it made things worse.

Well he still has his head on his shoulders, whichvl beats having it underneath his arm.

 

[not-bono-ever]

I am not going to fully agree but he has spent a quarter of of his life in the region in various paid roles - going anywhere overseas under the auspices of critically examining a country’s security policy is very very risky- more so if that country is a paranoid shithole.

That old saying about everyone having a plan until you get punched in the head is prescient/ things can unravel very quickly in the UAE

 

[tim]

He's not Boris so that's a start I'd make a better negotiator than fucking Boris .
Trump would actually be more tactful and intelligent than boris

Trump would bully him free as did for the missionary in Turkey.

 

[teqniq]

Disgusting fucks. They should, in an ideal world be sanctioned but I'm not holding my breath on that one.