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
…in Dubai? No one has a voice there
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.
I sure see that splattered all over the passport and travel office
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?
I don’t know about the UAE, but in the US, most states have some lower age of consent to sex for married people, and I assume that normally marriages from abroad would recognized. So I’d guess that as long as you were having sex with someone you were married to and it met that lower bar for age, you could still have sex with them.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marriage_age_in_the_United_States
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Age_of_consent_in_the_United_States
So, for example, for Illinois’s age of consent, the age is lower if the people involved are married:
Whereas normally, the age doesn’t go below 18.
I’d expect that Illinois would still potentially charge people who were legally married abroad to, say, a 14-year-old and then have sex with them in Illinois.
Specifically for immigration – not just visiting the US --it looks like US immigration considers whether marriage would be legal at the age in question in the intended state of residence.
https://www.uscis.gov/archive/uscis-strengthens-guidance-for-spousal-petitions-involving-minors
A related topic where legalities differ between countries: polygamy. I’m pretty sure that I recall reading that if you immigrate – not just the same thing as traveling to – the US, and are in a polygamous relationship, you are required to only choose one spouse to be your wife under US law.
kagis
Yeah:
https://www.quora.com/Does-the-US-recognize-polygamous-marriages-from-other-countries
EDIT: Under certain specific situations, some states have no minimum age for marriage in the US – one could, hypothetically, become legally married to a four-year-old in California. Under the Full Faith and Credit Clause, all states are required to honor marriages performed in other US states, so someone can become married in State A and then move residence to State B. Thus, I’m pretty sure that it’s possible to be legally married to someone in a state where one could not actually become married to that person, and still be legally prohibited from having sex with them while in the territory of that state.
All that post and you didn’t include that many US states have “Romeo and Juliet” laws, which the UK does as well, and which Dubai evidently doesn’t.
The differing laws between countries is the point here.
The UK doesn’t have “romeo and juliet” laws, but from what I hear, prosecutions for people who are close in age but one is over consent is rare
I too read every law of a foreign country before I visit them. /s
Word to the wise, there are countries you absolutely should read the laws for certain things.
Like Singapore. Watch out with things like ADHD meds which need prior approval.
I agree, but most people aren’t going to do more than search “important rules to know before visiting x”.
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.
let the lad get a piece of pussy smh