Alexa

No they don't...because these young people wear clothes that do not cover their shoulders and knees... (Just to connect back to the subject of the thread...)

Autonomy

Some of this comment sums up my feelings on this whole UAE dress code thing... fine - it's "your" country and you should have the right to have a dress code drawn up if that's what you feel is needed.

As to how it will be worded and who will enforce it, distribute it and what effect it will have - well that's "your" problem to deal with.

I can only speak from my 8 years in Dubai and can pretty much vouch for the fact that about 95% of the time everyone I know would have been within such a dress code in public places such as malls, on the street etc. Beaches, clubs etc - not always, but even then quite often fine.

It's my opinion that that the vast majority of incidents that are getting people upset are from tourists or very new expats (from Russia, Lebanon, Eastern Europe foremost with a few not too bright Brits and other Western tourists). I really don't believe that longer term expats from any country partake in much if any dress code violations - just my thoughts on that...

With the dress code hashtag campaign - I also find this interesting with some of the hateful comments and attitudes. Plus threats to report people to the authorities for simple disagreements. I serious think that if an expat started such a campaign they may well be arrested for such actions rather than lauded in the press...

Which brings me to articles such as this - http://www.thenational.ae/lifestyle/...t-common-sense

As an Emirati, I can't stay quiet when I hear a cry for help - and the "decent dress campaign" from my Emirati sisters is just that. The campaign is portrayed as an infringement on the freedom of those who obviously don't care about our cultural values.

That's not how I see it...

I am sure nobody will deny that the UAE is showing great respect and tolerance towards guests coming from different cultures, and that we try to make them feel as comfortable as possible.

This really makes me feel that this is just short of saying "If you don't like it then leave" - thanks for the tolerance, but did you invite us all here in a way?

Lastly - all the effort and coverage being afforded to this quite insignificant topic is depressing - if locals and others spent more time into getting legislation and community / governmental action on more important matters such as worker welfare and conditions or animal protection and stray animal population humane management then these would be more productive and also important to uphold from an Islamic view point I'd believe.

Anyway - we'll probably never agree...

Alexa

Exactly!

Ronnie Biggs

Classic!! He has the whole internet to find some dirt on British people and he comes up with that guy.....

Patsy Stoned

As it has always been darling.... until they grew up and got proper jobs

desert_dwellers

No, actually they do, but you seem to be of the opinion that there are more important and pressing issues in this world than to worry about morality and sexual behavior, even though the latter has a direct impact on children's right (which is quite so often overlooked), the right to know, for example, who the biological fathers are. Unfortunately such rights nowadays, do not seem to be important enough and thats why they dont exist in the law.

A single lady can wake up one morning, decides that having a child round the house would be a good idea, goes on an evening out , checks the blokes in the club out and picks up the guy with the right physical attributes, drives home (or jumps onto the back seat), get pregnant and produce a child into this world. If this child later on asks his mother who his father is, and she replies 'don't you ever ask this question again', the law unfortunately would be on her side because her right to sexual freedom is first priority.
It just so happens that In other systems the priority is the other way round!!!

desert_dwellers

Its not about throwing dirts, the guy stated clearly that he is not generalizing, he is talking only about a few.

OleJanx

Dirts?

norsk

I'm not saying the above scenario is good behaviour nor justifiable for any reason, but I don't think it actually happens a lot. Most women are usually hung up on having a connection with the guys they have sex with you see. Of course there are some that are just sluts, but are actually fewer and further between than you think.

Anyway only about 50 years ago when people were supposedly more morally sound, they were still screwing around and women got pregnant. The difference back then was that they just told their husband it was their kid. Nobody gets hurt right? Except for maybe the kid who grows up with the wrong dad, and if he/she is really unlucky his biological dad passed on some genetic issue which is never discovered and the kid suffers an early death...Was that better?

You are consistently arguing that western society is bad, but I have yet to see any arguments from you (or others) why the extreme modesty you long for is so much better. So have you actually got any good reasons?

norsk

maybe he meant 'throwing darts'?

OleJanx

Perhaps he does, amongst other random things he appears to be throwing about.

mathematist

Some fairly decent posts on this page. If anybody states that Western society or specifically the UK is 'bad,' I'd disagree. There are many good things such as human rights for all (most of the time), the right to appeal for things and you could say a sense of justice to name a few.

Of course, there are other pressing issues in the UAE that also require urgent attention but due to people, in particular the (influential) locals who turn a blind eye not wanting to upset or step on the wrong toes of anyone. Even they are acutely aware of being 'flagged' up if you get my drift and that's what I think anyway in this...

Also, I'd probably suggest avoiding links to youtube as it may weaken any argument for both sides and somebody else posts a counter link and going round in circles...

Furthermore, I'd be the first to say Muslims score many 'own-goals' in all walks of life and really do set a bad examples to guests from the UK and elsewhere who may well be experiencing life in an Islamic based country for the first time.

But but but, coming back from the park and heading towards the car today, a British family, brummies by their accents, of 3, parents and possibly a grown up daughter were coming in at sunset. I was busy packing the stuff in the back of my car and I heard 3 year old next to my car saying to his pops "dad, why isn't that lady wearing a shirt?" How odd, unless he is a reader of this thread, he even knows what is acceptable or not so to say it's mainly tourists who violate the code here is inaccurate. Probably 50-50 I'd say

norsk

The thing that I think confuses and annoys people more than anything else is the fact that they will turn a blind eye at half the bars in parts of Dubai are effectively brothels and then at the same time get their knickers in a twist about something which to most western people will seem pretty minor like the discussion about dressing modestly.

And I don't think anyone in their right mind thinks that it should be acceptable to walk around a mall in a bikini or similar (and I have never seen this happen), but some of the examples of what clothing is deemed unacceptable are frankly ridiculous.

Have they not heard of taking things one step at a time? You can't blame the 'offenders' when a way of dressing which was considered acceptable (or at least ignored) for years is suddenly no longer allowed just because a small part of the society started a twitter campaign.

If the government of UAE decide that there should be a dress code (or god forbid a dress law) then you have to educate people about it before starting to uphold it.

Some of the comments I have seen on twitter are very similar to the witch hunts a few hundred years ago. It's gone way past being about reason or logic, it's only about proving a point with persecution and threatening with punishment.

</rant over>

lullabelle

Has anyone seen a person in a mall in a bikini? I never have.

I guess the worst I've seen was a lady of Arabic appearance - and I would guess Lebanese - in a very, very short skirt and vest top. She looked more ridiculous than offensive as she was rather advanced in years. Plus most of the models promoting things are wearing tiny bits of tight clothing. So many mixed messages. Yes, lots of teens wearing tiny shorts but I wouldn't expect anything less of them. You're supposed to rebel in your teens and the opportunities to rebel are few and far between in the UAE. Might as well get your legs out! I certainly did when I was 15 and, amazingly, managed not to turn into a slag. Who knew?

I've seen people on twitter saying they've seen women's shaving marks...Really? I've never seen that even on the beach. there's so much hysteria. And Norsk is right, it is exactly like a witch trial. It's always women they are shrieking about and even expats are threatening other expats with the police. Pram and toys. Pathetic behaviour.

desert_dwellers

I actually don't defend any society (I know all about the crap in the Arab world). The argument which took many turns actually started when it was hinted that women generally who wear the Hijab are either less informed or less educated so I stood up to disprove that rubbish. I am indeed a critic of the western society but I don’t brand it as a bad society, there is quite a difference between the two stands. I have my own convictions regarding morality and what they are, hence I have some serious disagreements with some of the western values, like the free sex issue (from which stems all other differences) we've just discussed but I don't think it would be fair on this thread to further discuss such matters.