Good warning to idiots not to take these things lightly. Ignorance of the law is no defence. Generally agree with Nomerci, Happy & Britex.

Nic said "... obviously did something wrong but the punishment speaks loads about forgiveness from the religion in question.
I am not religious but I always assumed and as mentioned by Nomerci, religion is about kindness and forgiveness, obviously the one in question is not.
Its all about revenge, punishment and fear. How could this religion be perceived as welcoming with reactions like this one!"

Permit me to say that this could be flawed understanding. IMHO, there are 2 sides to this - justice and mercy. Justice was what was meted out by the courts. Mercy is where a pardon is granted due to whatever reasons that the Sovereign deems fit in his absolute discretion. (Sovereign here is HRH the Emir. For UK, it'll be HRM the Queen, etc.) Applies anywhere in the world where there is a rule of law and a sovereign.

And the perception that there's hanky panky to get that pardon for some people can also be flawed as the Sovereign acts on verifiable information received from a variety of parties for a well rounded, well informed decision. Transparency is important but total transparency, like total freedom - will be anarchy. Cannot be totally transparent as any information can be twisted around to any agenda.

Having said that, it is of course, very good to highlight concerns and get feedback for decision makers to consider.

It is suggested that people (generally, not anyone in particular) should not criticize Qatar out of ignorance or bias borne out of frustration.

Re: the story - definitely more that meets the eye. Difficult to verify unless the woman had a witness with her. The workers there corroborated each other's story so the courts have to accept that testimony. That was fair and that's clear when people detach from their emotions and consider objectively.