The Islamic Cultural Centre, Fanar, is organising a campaign targeting dress code in public places, Gulf News reports. The paper says the campaign is in its infancy, with the centre calling for interested parties to meet with them to discuss how to proceed.

Nasser Al Maliki, Chief of Public Relations at Fanar, said:

“The amount of immodest clothing is growing in public places, especially shopping malls. Such foreigner behaviour conflicts with our traditions. We do not want our kids to be exposed to it or learn from it, and that’s why we will start this campaign.”

Fanar’s move follows a grassroots campaign launched two weeks ago by a group of Qatari women which aims to educate expatriates to dress without offending local sensibilities.

The debate over dress is a sensitive one here; residents from all walks of life weighed in earlier this month on our hot pants post on how expectations should be measured and conveyed.

Gulf News notes that there are fears that a widespread campaign could adversely affect Qatar’s public image as it prepares to host the 2022 World Cup.

What do you think?

Credit: Photo by Omar Chatriwala