Two posts in two days! Wonder how long I can keep this up? I thought today I would talk a little bit about Arabic women, and how women are perceived here. Many people have said to me that they would not visit Dubai because of the oppression of women. I would like to set the record straight in that regard. Dubai is nothing like its neighbouring Islamic countries. Life is much more liberal here, much more like a Western country in many respects. Women have the freedom to do pretty much anything they want to do. They drive cars, can walk around unescorted, hold down jobs, hold government posts, own businesses, and wear whatever they want, within the laws of decency, of which more later. Women are very well treated in Dubai. Some shops have women-only checkouts, and will endeavour to have lady shop assistants to help ladies. When applying for residency and so on, female applicants were usually processed by female staff, and ladies are sometimes given priority in queues. One of the big parks here has a ladies-only day, on Mondays. Husbands seem to treat their wives with the utmost courtesy, and will extend that courtesy to other women as a matter of course. Feminists would be apoplectic here.
Traditional Muslim clothing for ladies is the burqa. There are, of course, a lot of women here who do wear the burqa, although not so many wear the full face version. Some do, of course, but many more have their faces on show. What many people don't realise is that they choose to wear it, and they only do so when they leave their residence and go out in public. Underneath, they wear normal clothes, like anyone else. The picture on the right gives you some idea. Another point to note is that these women all carry designer handbags - Vuitton, Hermes and the like - and more often than not are dripping with gold and other jewellery. Even teenage girls walk around in Rolex watches and Cartier jewels. And, yes, they are the real thing. They buy vast quantities of clothing and shoes and seem particularly fond of buying lingerie. They like fashion and accessories, like women everywhere, and carry iPhones, tablets and the latest technology. They drive Ferraris and Maseratis, though it must be difficult in their full Arabic clothing. They seem to saunter around the Mall here in groups. It's not uncommon to see ten or more of them, all out together, sometimes with children, sometimes not. It can be quite unnerving to find yourself in the middle of such a group. You start to feel a bit like an extra on the set of The Sound Of Music. You begin to wonder if, at any moment, they might suddenly break forth with a verse of "How do you solve a Problem like Maria?" But of course they don't!
One feature of these little squads of burqa-clad ladies is that they sweep through the Mall like a tidal wave and won't move aside for anyone else. You might move aside, and have nowhere left to go, perhaps next to a wall, but still they keep coming, and would sooner knock you over than walk around you. If they have pushchairs, they are even more dangerous. I try to keep well clear, as I'm fed up now of being barged into by some Mother Superior lookalike with an iPad. it's not like I'm invisible, after all! It must be a cultural thing, although it is slightly annoying!
From my observations while swimming, I have come to the conclusion that a great many Arabic ladies can't swim. I have witnessed several of them as they keep to the shallow parts of the pool and clutch buoyancy aids tightly. I put this down mainly to the type of swimwear these ladies wear. As mentioned earlier, they go out in public almost entirely covered up, which presents something of a problem when they want to use the pool. They usually wear the swimming burqa. Yes, that's right, there is indeed such a garment. Imagine a pair of winceyette pyjamas, with a hood, topped off with a knee-length tunic, and you're there. It's no wonder they find swimming difficult. It must be nigh on impossible to move through the water wearing something so cumbersome.
Family life is valued highly here. Children are doted on, especially male children, who are often treated like little emperors. The mothers don't usually discipline their sons, leaving that to the fathers. As a result, there are large numbers of what you might kindly call spoiled brats running around, wanting their own way and whining if they don't get what they want. But the fact is, they usually DO get what they want. Very young children seem to have their own phones, iPads and the like, and I saw one very small girl tottering around carrying a huge Canon camera with a big zoom lens attached. She seemed to be photographing things at random. These children are always immaculately dressed, too. The Mall has a good many shops devoted to children, from baby equipment and toys to designer clothing. Would you dress a two year old in an Armani suit? How about a silk Versace gown, complete with diamond studded shoes? They're all on sale here, and many more besides, and they cost an absolute fortune. I can't see the point of it at all.
But I digress. How, then, are Western women viewed here? For the most part, we are treated with deference. There are many nationalities here. Huge numbers of people from India, Pakistan, Malaysia and the Philippines come here to work, and they work mostly in the service industries, if they are female. Go to any restaurant here and you will be served by someone from one of these countries. Such nationalities are at the bottom of the pile here, and are not accorded a great deal of respect. On the other hand, if you are American, European or Australian, you are treated with utmost respect. Some of the hotel and restaurant workers almost bow to you, and it is faintly embarrassing sometimes. They will automatically hold doors open or step aside for you, and call you Ma'am or Sir, and they seem very anxious to please. They have no concept of the fact that they are, or should be, the equal of any of their customers, which is a shame. Some Westerners virtually ignore them, or look down on them, which I find despicable. But some of these Westerners have no respect for anyone. Take, for example, the dress code. Yes, there is a dress code here, and we are reminded of it on posters at the entrance to malls and other public buildings. They simply ask that you dress modestly - shoulders covered, knees covered, nothing revealing and so on. They accept that at the beach, or for swimming or other sports, exceptions need to be made, for practical reasons. Can't see anything wrong with that, myself. Yet every day I see non-Arabic women strolling around in skimpy outfits, taking no notice of the fact that they are guests in someone else's country, and a Muslim country at that. Yes, it's very hot here, but that would make it even more sensible to wear loose, light clothing, to protect yourself from sunburn if for no other reason. But no, they swan around in very revealing clothing, showing far too much flesh, apparently oblivious to the existence of any sort of modest dress code. Most of the Arabs turn a blind eye to this, even though they are probably offended. Very occasionally, however, someone will push things too far. One woman was escorted from the Dubai Mall by security personnel because she was walking around in a bikini. She was asked several times to cover up, but refused, then complained that she was not being respected! What did she expect? I'm sure you'd be asked to leave any shopping mall in Britain, too, if you turned up there in your swimwear.
In general, then, women have it easy here, when compared with many other places. It's true to say that this is still a male-dominated society, but women are far from oppressed. Quite the opposite, in fact. Men here see themselves as the patriarchs, the protectors of women, and personally I can't see an awful lot wrong with that.
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