Expat being harrasad

I've just come from Carrefour at Villagio where I saw a pregnant lady (don't know if it is your wife or not) wearing long capri/pedal pusher type pants (end below the knee - perfectly respectable). However, she was also wearing a sleeveless tank top which effectively displayed her bra straps and was extremely form fitting (given that she is probably 8+ months pregnant.

IMHO, that type of top is unacceptable. I know it's uncomfortable to be that pregnant at the best of times but surely she could throw a big shirt (maybe a man's cotton short sleeved shirt) over her shoulders, it wouldn't have to be buttoned up - sure, her tummy will still be on display but not her bra straps/shoulders.

Even in North America I would have considered this to be a sloppy way to dress in public (I'm not a fan of other people's bra straps) let alone in a conservative society where we are cut a lot of slack for a lot of different things we do that would not be acceptable for a female in this country.

JMHO

Can we change the world? No..... never.... Really wondering how the world is still surviving. The local lady has no right to ask your wife about her dress code in a mall unless she is a police officer. Similarly, your wife should be wearing decent clothes when she goes out alone if she desires repect in this society where people of different ethnicities are living.

This is an isolated case. The lady who objected must be having a problem. Arab regulations dictate decency in dress, but other than Saudi Arabia, I have never heard expats being harassed for scanty dressing. Generally Arabs are quite tolerant about western dressing and we must appreciate that.

I'm not sure if there is any law saying how the woman should dress ...

and even sometimes i see in malls ladies with sleeveless or mini-skirts ..

I have been living here for more than 15 yrs and i have never read a law about how woman dress .. otherwise some lawyer plz should tell me which article is that ..

Not in the Law !! wow then women can wear anything they want mini skirts or sleeveless .. or wutever ... As long as there is no law ..

I just called again. My wife is wearing a long short under her knee; and she is pregnant she will not wear tight cloth.

My wife called the Police and told them and that lady claled the police as well. My wife now get angry pretty fast due to pregnancy.

The police called again my wife and he made it clear that she shouldnt have spoken in that way but told her not to wear offending cloth. My wife told him that she is not.

But aside from all this, what strikes me is that shops all over Doha are selling shorts and tight cloth?? WHY!!!

In KSA, the law is clear - here it is not!

Thanks for all your clarifications

I do appreciate this peaceful country and love working and living in it; but sometimes it feels humiliating that locals can at any time undermine us.

Regards,

It’s pathetic how some Qataris (I assume she’s black or Bedouin) under the delusion that they have the power to deport. Deportation comes only with the minister of interior approval & signature.

maybe she's a jealous arab lady not qatari-original qatari with position in ministry explained it politely(shows an ID)and will never mention deportation.

Well Mindraider u can do what i do.. if someone approaches you to reprimand u or something bcz ur arab.. trust me they dont know for sure if u are or not they are assuming based on how u look..

well if u are fluent in another language other than arabic then just look at them with questions marks and talk in a non arabic language..

it works for me :D

you guys his wife is pregnant so im guessing she's definitely not in something tight.. but i guess whatever she is wearing accentuates her stomach and is probably in straps thats why she got the comment..

Just make sure ur wife is conservative to a degree when out.. just to avoid hearing anything.. less of a headache.. at the end she can wear whatever shew wants but if u want to avoid a headache go for a t-shirt or wide shoulder straps instead of spaghetti straps.. go for knee lenght or longer skirts and shorts instead of shorter.. etc..

To be fair on your wife, it is hard to dress decently especially if she's heavily pregnant. Having said that, so long as she isn't wearing tight or revealing clothes (the shoulders have to be covered, and at least down to the knees need to be covered) then everything should be ok!

Is there a clear law about this? Where can we get it.

The ironic thing here, is that locals harras arabs but dont do this for Europeans and US citizens.

if your wife follow the guidelines on how to dress in Qatar she should be okay. What dress she wear? tight top and short skirt? sorry dont mean to be rude but thats not acceptable according to the law here.

It really depends on how much wasta the woman does have. Depending on her position in the ministry, yes, she could deport your wife and you.

Tell your wife to cover shoulder, and always try to wear skirt / trousers at least knee length. And not wearing tight top. She should be fine.

Ramadhan also coming, it is more advisable to dress more conservatively.