Sands (thelandofsands.com), and Ben Short (benshort.blogspot.com). Also blocked are
Wikipedia pages that contain information about religiously sensitive content such as
Fitna, a film produced by Dutch politician Geert Wilders and considered by many to
be offensive to Islam, and the Wikipedia page about the Islamic prophet Muhammad,
possibly because the page displays drawings of the Prophet.
In March 2009, censors blocked access to the Web site Ahmed and Salim
(ahmedandsalim.com), an Israeli Web site that posted video episodes considered offensive to Arabs and Muslims. 33 The UAE also blocked access to the YouTube links where
the video clips appeared. The UAE’s TRA ordered the blocking of the Web site and the
YouTube links only a few days after the content appeared online, apparently because,
in addition to the content perceived as offensive to Islam, one of the characters was
dressed in traditional Gulf attire and the UAE flag appeared in several scenes. 34
Interestingly, several Web sites on Nazism, Holocaust denial, and historical revisionism were blocked. These include the Web site hitler.org and that of the Institute for
Historical Review’s publishing arm (www.noontidepress.com). Also blocked was the
Web site vdare.com, which is often described as carrying anti-Semitic content. Meanwhile, the state continues to deny access to all Web sites on the Israeli country code
top-level domain ‘‘.il.’’
Testing done in 2008–2009 also revealed that UAE filters still target social networking sites, video- and photo-sharing sites, bookmarking services, and blogging services. However, filtering of these Web sites has not been consistent. For example,
Livejournal.com, a free service for blogging, was blocked in the UAE in June 2008,
apparently because it was categorized as a dating site in the database of Secure Computing, a commercial filtering product. The UAE uses SmartFilter, a product of Secure
Computing, to block access to various content categories including dating, pornography, sex, and gambling. 35 Access was restored a few weeks later.
Similar to 2006–2007 testing results, 2008–2009 testing revealed pervasive filtering
of pornographic and LGBT content. The 2008–2009 results also revealed blocking of
previously accessible Arabic forums, which are commonly used to facilitate the exchange of Arabic sexually explicit content.
Compared to 2006–2007 testing, fewer Web sites relating to sexual health education
were found to be blocked. For example, previously filtered Web sites such as circumcision.org and sexualhealth.com were found accessible, though others in the same categories are still blocked. Some Web sites containing provocative attire (lingerie.com)
were still filtered. Web sites promoting alcohol and drug use or facilitating online
gambling or dating were also blocked in large numbers, and many Arabic-language
dating sites or Web sites that target Arabic users (e.g., www.arablounge.com,
www.gaymiddleeast.com/country/uaemirates.htm) have been added to the blacklist.
Nudity, even if in an artistic context and nonerotic, is censored (an example is the
Arabic magazine www.jasadmag.com).
United Arab Emirates
595
Wikipedia pages that contain information about religiously sensitive content such as
Fitna, a film produced by Dutch politician Geert Wilders and considered by many to
be offensive to Islam, and the Wikipedia page about the Islamic prophet Muhammad,
possibly because the page displays drawings of the Prophet.
In March 2009, censors blocked access to the Web site Ahmed and Salim
(ahmedandsalim.com), an Israeli Web site that posted video episodes considered offensive to Arabs and Muslims. 33 The UAE also blocked access to the YouTube links where
the video clips appeared. The UAE’s TRA ordered the blocking of the Web site and the
YouTube links only a few days after the content appeared online, apparently because,
in addition to the content perceived as offensive to Islam, one of the characters was
dressed in traditional Gulf attire and the UAE flag appeared in several scenes. 34
Interestingly, several Web sites on Nazism, Holocaust denial, and historical revisionism were blocked. These include the Web site hitler.org and that of the Institute for
Historical Review’s publishing arm (www.noontidepress.com). Also blocked was the
Web site vdare.com, which is often described as carrying anti-Semitic content. Meanwhile, the state continues to deny access to all Web sites on the Israeli country code
top-level domain ‘‘.il.’’
Testing done in 2008–2009 also revealed that UAE filters still target social networking sites, video- and photo-sharing sites, bookmarking services, and blogging services. However, filtering of these Web sites has not been consistent. For example,
Livejournal.com, a free service for blogging, was blocked in the UAE in June 2008,
apparently because it was categorized as a dating site in the database of Secure Computing, a commercial filtering product. The UAE uses SmartFilter, a product of Secure
Computing, to block access to various content categories including dating, pornography, sex, and gambling. 35 Access was restored a few weeks later.
Similar to 2006–2007 testing results, 2008–2009 testing revealed pervasive filtering
of pornographic and LGBT content. The 2008–2009 results also revealed blocking of
previously accessible Arabic forums, which are commonly used to facilitate the exchange of Arabic sexually explicit content.
Compared to 2006–2007 testing, fewer Web sites relating to sexual health education
were found to be blocked. For example, previously filtered Web sites such as circumcision.org and sexualhealth.com were found accessible, though others in the same categories are still blocked. Some Web sites containing provocative attire (lingerie.com)
were still filtered. Web sites promoting alcohol and drug use or facilitating online
gambling or dating were also blocked in large numbers, and many Arabic-language
dating sites or Web sites that target Arabic users (e.g., www.arablounge.com,
www.gaymiddleeast.com/country/uaemirates.htm) have been added to the blacklist.
Nudity, even if in an artistic context and nonerotic, is censored (an example is the
Arabic magazine www.jasadmag.com).
United Arab Emirates
595