In January 2010 Londoner Ayman Najafi was sentenced to one month in jail followed by permanent expulsion from the UAE for sharing a greeting kiss on the cheek in Dubai.

The incident happened on November 28th 2009 at a restaurant in one of Dubai's many tourist areas where a local Emirati woman and her two children were also dining. When Ayman and a group of friends were walking home, he and his friend Charlotte Adams were arrested, had their passports confiscated and were held in jail after the Emirati filed a complaint to Dubai's secret police claiming her daughter (reportedly as young as 2 years old) saw a misdemenour. Upon release a long court battle ensued and the case made headline news in Britain, causing huge stress for Ayman and his family.  

In March 2010 an Emirati Judge dismissed Ayman’s appeal in under 50 seconds despite contradicting statements made by the local woman with regard to what she saw that night. The Emirati was never cross examined, her children never reported to the police station and no witnesses were called to testify in Ayman’s defence despite several volunteering to do so, both that night and to this day.

Ayman, who continues to make a success of his career, faces imprisonment in Dubai's Central Jail where he will have to share a cramped cell with people who have been rightly sentenced for robbery and worse.  

It is not Ayman’s wish to change the laws of the country. He does however wish to be heard.

We, his friends and family, ask that you please sign this petition to let the authorities in Dubai know that Ayman has your support. We hope that Ayman will finally be given a chance to protest his innocence. Thank you

Links