New York Times ridicules Qataris
May. 14th, 2010 10:34 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
qatarperegrineToday's New York Times published a rather biting article about the conflict between Qataris and non-Qataris in Qatar: Affluent Qataris Seek What Money Cannot Buy.
Qataris' and non-Qataris' stereotypes of each other is something I've been thinking about a lot this summer, between the Lisa Clayton kerfuffle and the recent arguments over on Mimiz Blog about whether Qataris are discriminated against in the workplace here.
So it's nice to see the New York Times addressing something that I think IS a hot issue here (their last article on Qatar having been a little random)... but the way they go about it makes me cringe a little. I think it'd be more interesting for them to have dug deeper into Qatarization and its effects, or the role of nationality in expats' experience of Qatar, rather than just making mocking digs about people's restaurant etiquette.
The main things I've heard discussed about this locally are (a) the unrepresentativeness of the Qatari interviewees, almost all of whom are high school dropouts, and (b) shock that the NYT got these quotes on record. I am completely unsurprised that a director at QSTP would privately feel that "Qataris are very spoiled," but utterly astonished that he would say so to a New York Times reporter. (Some even suspect they might not have known they were on record.)
Qataris' and non-Qataris' stereotypes of each other is something I've been thinking about a lot this summer, between the Lisa Clayton kerfuffle and the recent arguments over on Mimiz Blog about whether Qataris are discriminated against in the workplace here.
So it's nice to see the New York Times addressing something that I think IS a hot issue here (their last article on Qatar having been a little random)... but the way they go about it makes me cringe a little. I think it'd be more interesting for them to have dug deeper into Qatarization and its effects, or the role of nationality in expats' experience of Qatar, rather than just making mocking digs about people's restaurant etiquette.
The main things I've heard discussed about this locally are (a) the unrepresentativeness of the Qatari interviewees, almost all of whom are high school dropouts, and (b) shock that the NYT got these quotes on record. I am completely unsurprised that a director at QSTP would privately feel that "Qataris are very spoiled," but utterly astonished that he would say so to a New York Times reporter. (Some even suspect they might not have known they were on record.)
Another anonymous poster
Date: 2010-05-17 10:17 am (UTC)Are Qataris upset because they don't like everything that was written? Are they offended that someone has an opinion that runs counter to their own? Do they find it offensive that someone should say anything negative, or at least not overtly positive, about them?
All in all it does point to a culture of person who is spoilt and unused to not getting everything their own way all the time.
Money can't buy you favourable coverage in the New York Times, but mature, grown up people get over it, rather than starting Facebook groups and kicking and screaming (in a virtual, online environment) like petulant brats.
For the record I thought the article was biased, poorly written and not fit for publication in the NYT. But I still did find the overall content interesting and not far from my own experience.
I've been here for 5 years, and intend to stay on longer, and in that time I too have sadly come to the conclusion that on the whole, Qataris do not respect foreign workers. They are discriminated against not just in behaviour, but in the law - exit permits being a prime example of this. There is no meaningful legal protection for labourers and workers whose rights are abused, and seemingly no ethical or moral imperative by bosses to treat them fairly or decently.
Re: Another anonymous poster
Date: 2010-05-17 11:11 am (UTC)One hopes for a followup dealing with what's behind face value.
Re: Another anonymous poster
Date: 2010-05-18 09:39 am (UTC)