London-based dentist held in Dubai over complimentary glass of wine

Holman's ordeal may turn into year-long detention

A Swedish woman was held in Dubai for three days along with her four-year-old daughter after drinking a complimentary glass of wine, The Guardian reported.

Ellie Holman, a dentist who lives in London with her English partner Gary was denied water and forced to clean toilets, rights NGO Detained in Dubai has claimed.  The NGO, formed to help people held in the United Arab Emirates, said Holman was arrested on July 13 after consuming a single glass of wine served on an eight-hour Emirates flight from London.



Upon arriving in Dubai, an immigration official questioned Holman on her visa and asked if she had consumed alcohol. The woman was then told her visa was invalid and she had to immediately return to London.

Holman claimed the man was “dismissive and rude” when she asked if she could buy another visa and questioned her on consuming alcohol, which she admitted. She began filming the official using her phone, incognisant of how it constituted an offence. Holman was also unaware regarding alcohol consumption being proscribed in the UAE.

Both, mother and child were then taken into custody and their phones and passports confiscated. Holman was asked for a blood sample to ascertain if she had consumed alcohol and denied a phone to call her partner while being held.

She said the pair were made to sleep on a “filthy” mattress and she was told to clean toilets and floors. “My little girl had to go to the toilet on the cell floor. I have never heard her cry in the same way as she did in that cell,” she said.

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“The food [we were given] smelled like rotting garbage and neither Bibi or I could face trying it. I stayed awake for the whole three days. By now, Gary knew something was wrong and had flown to Dubai to look for me. Friends had found out I was in jail and tried to visit. Nobody was allowed to see us. We were not even told.”

After three days, she was released on bail but was told her passport would remain with authorities for the remainder of her trial. Holman said she has lost over £30,000 in legal fees and missed work.

“The UAE maintains a deliberately misleading facade that alcohol consumption is perfectly legal for visitors," Detained in Dubai CEO Radha Stirling said. “Tourists cannot be blamed for believing that the Emirates are tolerant of western drinking habits, but this is far from reality. It is wholly illegal for any tourist to have any level of alcohol in their blood, even if consumed in flight and provided by Dubai’s own airline. It is illegal to consume alcohol at a bar, a hotel and a restaurant, and if breathalysed, that person will be jailed.”



Stirling demanded the Foreign Office and the UK government do more to 'protect' British citizens, and claimed airlines were 'complicit' and needed to be held accountable.

Holman's ordeal, which saw both mother and daughter initially being denied food, water and access to a toilet, may turn into a year-long detention in Dubai while awaiting court hearing, the group said.

The UK Foreign Office and Dubai-based Emirates are yet to comment on the story.