DUBAI // An Australian woman who was jailed for adultery has been given leave to sue her own government for failing to provide advice over laws on reporting rape in the UAE.
Alicia Gali, 29, from Brisbane, was jailed for eight months after going to authorities with allegations that she had been drugged and raped by three co-workers at the Le Meridien Al Aqah Beach Resort in Fujairah, where she had been employed as a beauty salon manager.
MORE UAE NEWS: Our pick of today's top local news stories
Last Updated: June 7, 2011
UAE 'well-protected' from killer E coli outbreak Food safety officials say they are confident with testing procedures, while supermarkets say they do not import from affected regions. Read article
Briton's extradition to face Dh2m Dubai World charge likely today Michael Bryan Smith, accused of embezzling more than Dh2m from a property company, is expected to be extradited from Thailand after spending two years in jail there. Read article
Empty filling stations and the great fuel mystery Petrol retailers say the filling-station closures are necessary for 'technical upgrades' but there is little sign of maintenance at petrol stations in Sharjah, and fuel shortages persist. Read article
Sheikh steps in to save RAK sailing club Country's oldest sailing club will be demolished to make way for a new property development, but plans are afoot to rebuild the club 500 metres down the road. Read article
[ MORE UAE NEWS ]
She has already been given leave by Brisbane Supreme Court to sue the resort for failing to protect her from the attack, which occurred in June 2008.
Now, Ms Gali has been given leave to sue the Commonwealth of Australia, on the grounds that consular staff in Dubai failed to warn her that reporting a rape claim against a married man could lead to prosecution for adultery.
“This girl had been drugged, physically assaulted and raped by three men,” said Michelle James, a principal from Ms Gali’s legal firm Maurice Blackburn.
“In a distressed state she called the Australian government to help and that help simply wasn’t provided to her.
“She could have been advised to seek local legal advice. She certainly wasn’t told that she could be told that she could be sent to prison for reporting rape in the United Arab Emirates, and that’s the premise of our case.”
The application to launch legal action against the Australian government was filed at Brisbane Supreme Court last week and a hearing was scheduled this morning over whether leave should be granted to proceed with legal action.
However, Ms James said that the government consented to the case and proceedings were filed in the same court this morning.
She said it was still "early days" to say whether the government would contest the case.
However, a spokesperson for the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade this morning appeared to shift blame away from overseas diplomatic staff.
“Australian consular officials overseas are not permitted to provide legal advice or intervene in foreign legal processes,” the spokesperson said.
Maurice Blackburn is still pursuing a separate legal case against Ms Gali’s former employer Le Meridien Al Aqah Beach Resort.
The resort operator Starwood Hotels has previously denied that there had been any neglect and that it had supported Ms Gali throughout her eight month jail term.
Ms James said that the case was still in a pre-court stage and they had yet to receive any communication from Starwood Hotels on the matter.
mcroucher@thenational.ae
