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AP reports that Ryan Pate, a helicopter mechanic, took to Facebook while in Florida after a dispute over sick leave with his company and when he returned to Abu Dhabi last month, he was told to report to the police station, where he was arrested for breaking a United Arab Emirates law on slandering his employer. Pate was shown screenshots of the Facebook message and told his employer had filed charges accusing him of breaking wide-ranging Emirates laws that ban slander. The laws were introduced in late 2012 and make it an offense to use the net to mock or deride organizations and individuals. Pate spent about 10 days in jail and is now free on bail awaiting a March 17 trial. His supporters say he faces up to five years in prison and a steep fine if convicted. "I just couldn't register it in my head because as an American growing up in the United States, the First Amendment right is just ingrained in my brain," says Pate. "I never even entertained the fact that I would wind up in prison out here for something I put on Facebook in the United States."
Pate's congressman, Rep. David Jolly, intervened on his constituent's behalf, lobbying the State Department and Emirates officials for help. In a letter to the Emirati attorney general, Jolly emphasized respect for the sovereignty of the country, but argued because the posts occurred while Pate was on American soil, those laws shouldn't apply. "It is deeply troubling that Mr. Pate now faces judicial proceedings over an action that was done legally in his home country," says Jolly. Speaking via phone from his apartment in Abu Dhabi, Pate was remorseful. “I just want to apologize to everybody I dragged into this,” he said. “It is embarrassing, and I never meant for this to happen. I let my emotions get the better of me.”
(Score: 4, Interesting) by NotSanguine on Monday March 09 2015, @09:18PM
He was arrested because he was dumb. He should at least have expected to be fired for badmouthing his employer in a public forum. If you don't think so, why don't you go ahead and try it and see what happens?
Maybe I'm old fashioned, but it seems to me that any dispute I have with an employer is between the employer and me. There's no reason to drag something like that out in to public view unless this is a whistle blower situation or reporting a crime, in which case, a lawyer should be consulted before any action is taken.
What was this guy thinking? Apparently, he wasn't.
Whether or not it's appropriate for UAE to criminalize "defamation" is another question entirely. It seems rather harsh to me, and since I tend to speak my mind, I guess I won't be going there. But I don't take my own trained in prejudices to be the laws of nature.
As many folks here point out on a fairly regular basis, a corporation has only one responsibility -- to maximize profits for its shareholders. Allowing an employee to publicly harangue the company could negatively impact that goal. As such, why is it surprising that this company is using whatever resources it has at its disposal to stop that from happening again?
I'm not saying that the law is a good one and I'm not saying that this guy should go to jail, or even be fined. However, he should have expected repercussions from his actions. Just like that teenager [dailymail.co.uk] in Texas who got herself fired for acting like an idiot.
No, no, you're not thinking; you're just being logical. --Niels Bohr
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday March 09 2015, @10:49PM
Do you blame victims of other kinds of injustice just because they could have seen it coming too? Do you blame rape victims?
Oh, you do.
(Score: 4, Insightful) by NotSanguine on Tuesday March 10 2015, @12:09AM
Do you blame victims of other kinds of injustice just because they could have seen it coming too? Do you blame rape victims?
I realize that you're a troll, but I'll feed you this one time.
I don't "blame" him, per se. However, he made a poor choice and now he is being held responsible for that poor choice. Your reference to rape victims is completely inflammatory, as no coercion was applied to this employee.
For the record, consent is not optional. Any activities with others that are not consensual is assault. If such activities are sexual in nature, it's rape. If someone engages in such crimes they should be prosecuted vigorously. Full stop. Is that "old fashioned" enough for you?
Unlike rape, no one coerced this person to post negative stuff about his employer on a public forum. No one held a knife to his throat and forced him to post negative comments on facebook which included (according to him [huffingtonpost.com]) "he called his bosses "backstabbers" and warned other contractors not to work for them."
As I said, and I'll even quote myself so you can read what you chose to ignore previously:
and
And just for giggles I'll throw in one of my favorite Heinlein quotes too:
So you feel that this guy should not take responsibility for his speech and actions? It's not victim blaming, it's reality. Newton's Third Law applies, metaphorically speaking of course.
Although we have the right (at least in the United States) to say almost anything we want, if someone objects to what we say, others can legally take actions (whether that be more speech, filing a lawsuit, etc.) in response to it, and we must deal with that. The right way to do so (IMHO) is to take responsibility for one's actions (including speech) and proceed accordingly.
I merely pointed out that when this guy publicly excoriated his employer, he should have expected them to respond. That his employer used the laws of the UAE to push criminal sanctions is, IMHO, morally reprehensible. At the same time, common sense (which you don't appear to have) would tell us that blasting your employer publicly could have negative consequences.
Since you are almost certainly a troll, and no amount of discussion will give you pause (since all you really wish to do is rile up others -- although why that should give someone pleasure, I have no idea), this is your one chance to prove me wrong.
Have a wonderful day!
No, no, you're not thinking; you're just being logical. --Niels Bohr