Monday, October 14, 2013

Transparency makes its mark in Dubai standoff

The dramatic events of Sunday, when a woman walked into the offices of Dubai's Public Prosecution and threatened to blow herself up, illustrate how much ground both Dubai Police and the UAE national security agencies have covered in recent years in the field of crisis management.



The relative operational transparency of both bodies, their swift dissemination of the facts and their appropriate use of social media, ensured the authorities were able to stop a rumour mill that could easily have wheeled out of control. In the process, they soothed public fears about a possible suicide bomber being at large in Dubai.
Zulfiya Hamraeva from Uzbekistan eventually turned herself in after 13 hours of negotiations.


...After negotiators persuaded the woman to give herself up, Dubai Police used their official Twitter account to announce that the situation had been resolved and quell rumours that the woman had been wearing an explosive belt.

Read more: http://www.thenational.ae/thenationalconversation/editorial/transparency-makes-its-mark-in-dubai-standoff#ixzz2eKi3pwjU
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