Abu Dhabi – The UAE authorities will soon start using electronic tags for convicts involved in minor offences.
The alternative penalty would only apply to convicts sentence years in jail without including the mandatory deportation.
Under the new measure, convicts could be put under house arrest instead of serving the jail terms behind bars.
The security authorities would rely on the Global Positioning System (GPS) electronic bracelets to track down the location of convicts round the clock and ensure their house-arrest situation.
The UAE authorities issued a federal law last September, officially legalizing the use of electronic bracelets to monitor prisoners, convicted in minor cases, while serving alternative penalty under house arrest.
The new alternative measure will not be enforced on prisoners convicted over repeated crimes, drug traffickers or sex offenders.
The police would visit prisoners, under house arrest, to check the electronic bracelets and write updated reports.