"Sharia benefits men, not women," says Afsana, "and the irony is that Bruno is Christian, I am Muslim, but he used it against me." When she was charged with kidnapping, her passport was confiscated by the police.

Most of the British tourists I spoke to in Dubai appeared to have no idea that human rights abuses exist in this modern, seemingly liberal city. Certain activities, such as alcohol consumption, are glossed over in Dubai in order to attract Western tourists, but the rule of law is strict sharia — as some Britons have discovered to their cost. A number of UK citizens have been imprisoned and even tortured in Dubai jails for adultery or even kissing on the beach.

The UAE is certainly not a democracy. It has a small suffrage of chosen people who vote for a parliament which has no constitutional power. Each emirate is an absolute monarchy. Dubai has been ruled by the Al Maktoum family since 1833. The current ruler, His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, is also the vice president and prime minister of the United Arab Emirates.

More than 600,000 UK residents flock to Dubai every year to soak up the sun and the opulence. Dubai International Airport provides 147 direct flights per week from the UK. According to the Dubai department of tourism and commerce marketing Dubai saw an increase of 6.6 per cent in UK visitors in 2012 and further growth in 2013.

But for all the gloss that makes Dubai appear to be a liberal state, the inhumane treatment of women under sharia is shocking. Which is why I was pleasantly surprised to hear, while researching the status of women in the UAE, of a government-sponsored service for victims of domestic violence. The Dubai Foundation for Women and Children (DFWC) was established in 2007 by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid. It is the first licensed shelter in the country, and provides services for women suffering domestic violence and sex trafficking, and for child abuse victims.

In 2012, a year after leaving Lachaux, Afsana sought refuge in the DFWC. However, she and two other women to whom I spoke, who had escaped to the DFWC, cast some doubt on whether the service always operates in the best interest of the victims.

During my visit to the DFWC I was taken aback by how well-resourced the centre was. Having travelled much of the world researching violence towards women and children I have visited a number of refuges. The facilities have never matched those I found in Dubai.

Situated in the middle of the desert, opposite a prison, and next door to the ministry of foreign affairs and immigration detention, the centre comprises several large buildings and external play areas. Gardeners and builders were hard at work as I walked through to reception, having been vetted and searched by the security guards at the main entrance. The high walls were topped with barbed wire. I was shown around plush, well-furnished offices and meeting rooms by Ahmad Mamdoh, the communications director. I asked who funded the centre and its services, but he brushed away my question.