Qatar 2022 World Cup: Conservative Qataris show their fangs

On the Instagram accounts of models and fashion superstars, the emirate of last month Qatar it looked like a glittering party.

High-heeled designers attended exhibition openings and fashion shows in downtown Doha. Celebrities, including a prominent gay rights activist, snapped selfies on a lively dance floor.

“As-salaam ‘alykum Doha”proclaimed Dutch model Marpessa Hennink on Instagram, using the traditional Muslim greeting.

The reaction was immediate. Qataris jumped on the net for vent your anger for what they called dangerous and depraved revelry, saying this it threatened Qatari traditional values ahead of the 2022 FIFA World Cup. The hashtag in Arabic, Let’s stop the destruction of our values (Stop the Destruction of Our Values), had been trending for days.

A conservative emirate

The episode highlights the tensions tearing apart Qatar, a conservative Muslim emirate that restricts alcohol consumption, prohibits drugs and stifles freedom of expressionas he prepares to welcome the crowds possibly revolt for the first World Cup in the Middle East.

“Our religion and our customs prohibit indecent dress and behaviorMoheba Al Kheer, a Qatari citizen, said of the avant-garde artists and flamboyant models who mingled with Qatari high society in late October. this kind of people“.

World Cup organizers say everyone is welcome at the tournament. Foreigners already outnumber nationals 10 to 1 in Qatar.

Some Qataris they are liberal and open mingle with foreigners. Many are enthusiastic about the tournament. But human rights groups have expressed concern about how the police will deal with violations of foreigners who are lovers of Islamic laws which punish public drunkenness, sexual relations outside marriage and homosexuality.

Qatar, a tiny country on the Persian Gulf that it once was a dusty port of pearlstransformed almost at lightning speed into an ultra-modern center after the increase in natural gas in 1990. Expatriates, including Western consultants and engineers and low-paid construction and janitorial workers from South Asia, flocked to the country.

Skyscrapers of glass and steel, luxury hotels and large shopping malls soon sprang up in the desert. In an effort to diversify a carbon-based economy, Qatar’s ruling family has bought stakes in industries ranging from finance and technology World Cup to the French soccer team Paris Saint-Germain and real estate in London.

The sister of the ruling emir, Sheikha Al Mayassa Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, became one of the world’s leading art buyers. Her mother, Sheikha Mozah bint Nasser Al-Missned, is a global style icon who has bought several luxury brands, including Valentine.

Sunni origin

But even as Qatar, one of the richest countries in the world per capita, looked to the West for inspiration, it was faced with internal pressures to stay true to its Islamic heritage and Bedouin roots. The clan more powerful from Qatar he is originally from the interior of the Arabian peninsula, where the ultra-conservative form of Sunni Islam is known Wahhabism.

Qatar’s rulers have tried to strike a balance appease their citizens and conservative tribes and strengthen soft power as a major global player.

two speeches

“Doha’s religious discourse in front of its citizens it is very different of his liberal speech to the West,” said Mohammed al-Kuwari, 38. “You can’t always be successful at both.”

The great attention to the World Cup – which forces Qatar to do it make access to alcohol more flexiblecreating fun places for fans and complying with FIFA regulations promoting tolerance and inclusion- increases the risks.

In previous years, the World Cup has made the host countries at the biggest party in the world, with merry crowds drinking to excess and group parties. When emotions run high, fans can be euphoric or rude and violent.

Euphoric fans, a taboo

IS it will shock peaceful Qatarwhere this kind of behavior It is taboo and virtually unheard of. Doha is not known for its nightlife. Despite its rapid development over the years, its entertainment offer remains scarce and its public spaces limited.

Some foreign fans are worried about Qatar’s progress will handle the hordes of drunken fans on the streets, given the country’s laws on public decency and strict limits on the purchase and consumption of alcohol.

anti-gay sentiment

Swearing and making offensive gesturesdressing immodestly and kissing in public can lead to legal proceedings in Qatar.

Anti-gay sentiment is deeply rooted in society, as in the rest of the Arab world. A senior security official warned him rainbow flags could be confiscated to protect fans from attack for promoting gay rights.

Fan concern is evident on recent Reddit message boards: “How can the government know if someone is gay?” “How bad is it to wear shorts (they can stop me)?” “Is it true that people who say negative things about Qatar on social media get arrested?”

At the same time, conservative Qataris are wondering how far their society can adapt to host World Cup hosts. Doha intends to organize itself giant electronic music festivals. The authorities say so they will turn a blind eye against infractions such as public drunkenness and which will only intervene in the event of destruction of property and threats to public safety.

“I hope the World Cup does not deprive society of its religion, morals and customs,” said a 28-year-old Qatari who spoke on condition of anonymity out of fear of reprisals.

He said he was comforted by the promise made last month by the Shura Council, the country’s advisory body, that the authorities “will ensure the building of a strong society that adheres to their religion” and they will reject “any excessive behavior” that violates local taboos.

But, as the tournament fulfills the vision of the country’s Emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, to develop the country, experts say, Qatar’s small population You have no choice but to accept whatever happens.

The emirate does not admit dissent. Qatar’s oil and gas wealth has generated a social contract in which citizens benefit from a welfare state from the cradle to the grave and political rights are below state paternalism.

“If Qatar wants to be on the world map, it has to respect global norms and values,” said Andreas Krieg, an adjunct professor of security studies at King’s College London. “The government will remain firm on some issues e the population will align“.

Al-Kuwari, the citizen, was more energetic.

“There is fear,” he said. “If a citizen thinks of criticizing, a sentence awaits him (prison).

The author is a reporter for the Associated Press.

Translation: Elisa Carnelli