B.C. Man Awaits Ruling On Dubai Drug Charges

UNITED NATIONS -- Counting the days before Dubai judges rule on drug
charges against Vancouver anti-narcotics official Bert Tatham, his
family is alarmed about the sentences that have been meted out for
the possession of far smaller amounts of drugs.

Dubai courts recently sentenced a British man to four years in jail
for the possession of just 0.07 grams of hashish. An Italian received
the same sentence for carrying a mere 0.01 grams.

Tatham, carrying 0.6 grams of hashish and two dried poppy flowers,
was arrested in April on his way through the tiny Arab emirate. He
was returning to Canada after anti-narcotics work in Afghanistan.

At his trial this week, his lawyers argued he was in possession of
the substances for work-related reasons.

But while sources familiar with the case revealed Friday that a
senior Dubai official has expressed sympathy for Tatham's defence
argument and has been looking for a reason to release him, the case
has been complicated by the emirate's zero-tolerance policy on drug offences.

A three-judge panel will rule Tuesday whether Tatham, who remains in
detention, is guilty of drug possession and possession with intent to
distribute the drugs.

Dubai's penal code, a mix of Islamic Sharia law and British law,
dictates a maximum of four years in jail for possession. A 1996 law
says trafficking is punishable by death.

"We're hoping for the best, but I'm concerned his chances are only
50-50," said Tatham's worried father, Charlie, of Collingwood, Ont.

Tatham graduated from the University of British Columbia with an
earth sciences degree, then worked in forest management. After
returning to college to study satellite imagery, Tatham got a job
that took him to Africa and Central America, interpreting what
satellite pictures tell about such concerns as drought and the
production of drug materials.

In 2005, Tatham signed a six-month contract with the United Nations,
analyzing the extent of drug cultivation in Afghanistan.

"That's where he learned just how big the problem was, and how drugs
were really driving things over there, and also around the world,"
said the elder Tatham. "So when he came back to Canada, he was
restless, and decided to return to Afghanistan to a job that amounted
to managing a team of Afghans who would work with farmers, government
officials, aid agencies and NATO to try to get the drug problem under control."

Based in Kandahar, Tatham was involved in poppy eradication and
projects to encourage farmers to switch to other crops.

"People who know Bert in Kandahar would be aghast if they knew where
he was right now," said his father.