Faulty translation may lead to Dubai prison term

IsrA Canadian anti-narcotics official facing drug charges in Dubai fears he may be jailed for up to four years because of poor translating, according to Canadian media.

In a letter addressed “to whom it may concern” and printed in the Ottawa Citizen, Bert Tatham, 35, alleges that his testimony was not translated properly at his trial.

And he now fears he will be wrongly convicted for drug possession and drug-trafficking.

“I was not confident that those who took down my answers were fluent English speakers,” he writes. “In fact, despite my protests, I suspect that virtually the opposite of what I told them was recorded as my statement.”

The letter also describes a possible misunderstanding he believes occurred during an interrogation at the Dubai airport.

“For example, my telling them about being exposed to drugs in my work … became, `I used drugs in Afghanistan,’” he writes.

“My lack of any knowledge of having hashish … became, `I forgot I put it in my pocket,’” he writes.

Read more...