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Dinchi Lar, 38, from Plateau State, is currently in jail for filming videos of UAE immigration officials abusing Nigerians.Detainee’s brother Benjamin told Godfrey George What did the family do with the case
Tell us a little about yourself.
My name is Benjamin Lal. I am from the plateau state. I work in Abuja.
What is your relationship with the Nigerian lady who was recently sentenced to a year in prison in the United Arab Emirates for filming an episode with immigration officials in the country?
I am that lady’s brother. Her name is Tincilar. She is 38 years old. It has been more than two months since she was sent to a Dubai jail by the UAE government. Today (Wednesday, November 9, 2022), she is still there. The (Nigerian) government stepped in at some point and tried to get her some attention to what was going on, but so far, it’s like we just have to deal with things on our own.
What the hell happened to put your sister in jail?
This is not her first time in Dubai. She has been to Dubai before. This time will be her second trip to Dubai, which complicates her life. She traveled to Dubai on August 30, 2022. On the 31st, she was at Dubai Airport. UAE immigration authorities came in and detained many Nigerians, claiming they were on family visas and could not be allowed into the country. They said she needed a family member to get permission. We have an older sister, Nanfe Lar, who lives in Dubai, which is why Dinchi got a family visa. She called Nanfi, who came to find out why she was being held hostage by Emirati immigrants. That came after hours of no response from the government. Dinchi has been travelling all day and is now required to spend about eight to nine hours at the airport, with no one telling her and the other Nigerians why they were being held; it must have been a crazy day for Dinchi.
After a long wait, Nanfe came to meet her at the airport and they (UAE immigration officials) did not release her until about 9 hours later. It was in the midst of all this stuff that I’m sure Dinchi panicked and made a video complaining about the mistreatment of her and other Nigerians by the UAE government. From the videos she made, there were plenty of people arguing with immigration officials about why they were being detained. Everyone was excited and wondered why they couldn’t enter Dubai with a valid visa. So she made this video and posted it on her Twitter explaining to the public what happened at Dubai Airport. This was after they were locked up for eight to nine hours.
You said the case was settled when Nan Fei got there. Why was Dinchi then sent to jail?
The incarceration occurred six days later. Her Twitter post went viral and people began to complain about the UAE’s mistreatment of Nigerians. The treatment is actually very unfair. They should have told them why they were being held in solitary confinement for a few hours instead of waiting nine hours before giving them a reason not to let them go. That’s not fair.
I’ll lie and say we know why she was detained. The country says they have social media laws that prohibit postings with images of people without their consent. It’s funny. The UAE government said it was a mistake to make a video of herself being detained by foreign immigration authorities. They say showing the faces of immigration officials in the video is a cybercrime. For me, this doesn’t fly. This is normal all over the world. In the United States of America, I see something similar. People say, “I’m doing this to protect myself and to be safe.” Anywhere in the world, except in the UAE, it’s normal for the person who detains you and doesn’t give you any explanation to show up, maybe.
Knowing nothing about social media laws, authorities contacted Dinchi on September 6, 2022, and told her that police wanted to see her. My other sister Nan Fei went with her to the police. They took her to Criminal Investigation and Intelligence. She notified the Nigerian consulate in Dubai. When she got there, the CIID detained her, claiming they were investigating things like her social media accounts. She worked with them; she even gave them her number. Then she told them she would take the video down, which she did. But they didn’t. When she left Dubai the next day, they stopped and detained her.
Has there been a court hearing?
Yes, Nanfe attended the court hearing on September 28. After having her (Dinchi) for a few weeks without a lawyer or exposure to public life. There is no lawyer for her. She can’t reach anyone. Nan Fei called, but her number couldn’t get through. On the day of the hearing, she did not get a lawyer, not even a public lawyer. nobody. She is cut off from everything and everyone. Tinkey can’t make phone calls.
The hearing was more like some kind of video call, as they didn’t take her out of the airport’s detention center. She has always been there. They just called her and asked her two questions: “Are you Dinchi Lar? Did you post on such-and-such?” That’s it. Even the statement written by the police was written in Arabic. She didn’t know what they were writing. It’s possible that they must have changed her statement and wrote something else without her knowledge. So they took her back to the detention center. With the help of a consulate representative, they were able to see Dingqi through the glass shield they had placed. That’s how they talked to her before taking her back to the detention facility a few minutes later.
Why didn’t the family arrange a lawyer for her?
When the consulate was unable to find a lawyer for her, we made provision for our own lawyer. We had to speak to someone as expensive as it was. We ended up contacting one for AED 15,000. When we wanted to pay, we learned she would be released. So, even though it was arranged, we delayed the lawyer. Therefore, they said at the hearing that they would deport her back to Nigeria because she was in a deportation centre. Later they said they were going to make a judgment. I would like to know how the court would make a judgment without a lawyer. There is no fair hearing. This is not your citizen; she deserves a fair trial and a lawyer. They just sentenced her, saying she was sentenced to a year in prison for cybercrime. What is cybercrime? Did she take down the video post she posted?
Has the judgment been appealed?
They won’t even let her appeal. They quarantined her, saying she had COVID-19, even after spending time with many people in the detention center. They said they would detain her for 10 days. On the seventh day, they took her out and said they wanted to use the facility. We don’t know what happened. Since their verdict, they have taken her to the prison block. When she came out of the isolation center, she had to send someone to see her sentence because there was no lawyer or legal representative. Ultimately, our attorneys appealed and said they were working on the case.
When was the last time you heard from your sister?
UAE authorities gave her about 45 seconds to a minute of talk time. It never exceeds three minutes. She didn’t have at most five minutes to speak. She can already talk to my mom. She’s been jailed for over two months and that’s the only way we can contact her. We couldn’t even reach her; she was the only one who could reach us.
What did she say about her time in prison?
Sadly, they’re playing emotional tricks on Dinchi. They upset her. She wasn’t physically tortured herself, but isolating her when she doesn’t have COVID-19 can be very painful. She has requested a COVID test, but so far, it has not been done. She just wanted to be strong. She didn’t do anything to hurt anyone. It was after that video that many Nigerians held at UAE airports were released and sent back to Nigeria. So, her videos help people. The UAE government has to answer many questions. Why should she be sentenced to a year in prison for the video she deleted? How did this video hurt anyone?
At some point, NigerThe government intervened through the Diaspora Council. How helpful is this?
After the sentencing, the (Nigerian) government stepped in. This comes after intense pressure from civil rights activists and organizations. Then, Representative Benni Lar, who represents my district — interestingly, we have the same last name — came in and said she didn’t know. All our attempts to meet her were in vain, but after a lot of pressure, she came in. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs also knows. As such, Mrs Ral said the government was considering a diplomatic application for Dinchi’s release.
How does your family feel about all this?
We are holding on well. We just want to be strong. It’s really difficult for families. My father is a retired soldier. He has served in the military for more than 20 years. He really broke down. It was tough for him, my mother and the whole family. We wake up every day terrified of what might happen to Dinchi. She is not safe; she is not free; she is in a strange land. She just left her job in hopes that she might travel to Canada, which is happening now. It’s really tough. But we hope, with the government’s involvement, they’ll kick Dinchi out.
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