Sir, – A court in London has found that Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum, the ruler of Dubai, orchestrated the abduction of two of his children as well as imprisoning them ("Dubai ruler had daughters abducted, London court finds", World, March 6th).
The focus of the court was on the abduction of Princess Shamsa from Cambridge in 2000, and also the abduction by commandos of Princess Latifa in 2018. Princess Latifa later stated that she was forcibly returned to Dubai and was tortured under the direction of Sheikh Mohammed.
What makes this case particularly disturbing is the fact that former president and UN human rights chief Mary Robinson met Princess Latifa after she was abducted, and made a video with her, telling the world that Princess Latifa was a “troubled young woman”. The human rights group Detained in Dubai stated that it was astonished that Mrs Robinson could be so gullible, that she could blame the princess for being “troubled”, and that she went as far as congratulating the United Arab Emirates for providing Princess Latifa with medical care. It should be noted that Mrs Robinson is not medically trained and is not qualified to have made any medical assessments based upon visiting Princess Latifa.
Now that the truth has come out, will Mrs Robinson apologise for her disgraceful actions? – Yours, etc,
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DERMOT COOPER,
Causeway Bay,
Hong Kong.