The restrictive drug laws of the Arab world are almost as renowned and infamous as their Asian counterparts. However the world could not look away in 2012 when an unnamed British man received the death penalty in the United Arab Emirates for drug dealing. The 21 year-old Briton was placed on death row for selling £260 (about $400) worth of cannabis to someone who turned out to be an undercover police officer. Pauline Crow of the Prisoners Abroad organisation said that while the case was tragic it highlighted the importance of being aware of and respecting foreign laws. The British Home Office meanwhile supported the prisoners plan to appeal the lethal sentence. Despite the insane punishments doled out for drug offences in the UAE, drug use in the country has risen by more than 500 percent in the past 20 years, with addiction prevention officials reporting children as young as twelve being treated for addiction in the Middle Eastern territory.
David O'Donoghue is a student and freelance writer from Co. Kerry, Ireland. His writing has appeared in the Irish Independent, Film Ireland, Ultraculture.com, Listverse and he is the former Political Editor for Campus.ie. He also writes short fiction and poetry which can be found at his blog/spellbook davidjodonoghue.tumblr.com
