United Arab Emirates has a strict social and moral code and as such, foreigners often fall on the wrong side of the law. Raffi Nernekian, a Lebanese man living in Dubai, was arrested for wearing a Marc Jacobs designed t-shirt featuring a nude Victoria Beckham. The tee was designed as part of a skin cancer awareness campaign and Beckham is covering her breasts with her hands.

In this case, another local man was offended by the shirt and got into an arguement with Nernekian at a bakery they were each a patron of. Nernekian left to change and upon returning to the shop, he found police waiting for him.

“Mr Nernekian was subsequently jailed for offending public decency for a month, a sentence upheld on appeal. He will be deported after serving his sentence, even though he has lived in the city for five years.”

The moral code in the U.A.E. is very strict and there is little room for appeal. Clothing cannot be obscene, transparent, have offensive slogans or pictures or indecently expose body parts. While the U.A.E. does have a very large influx of foreign travelers for both recreation and business, many people forget that this is a country with very stringent decency laws and they will not allow outsiders to escape their penalties.

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