Why the hate for Qatar when people flock to Dubai?

[piddocktrumperiness]

I 'm not quite getting why people are quick to criticise Qatar and its human rights record and treatment of LGBTQ+, when every country in the gulf does the same. This government is in bed with the Saudis, sold lots of landmarks to the Qatari Royal family and many brits are quick to emigrate to Dubai. We even accept sponsorships from these countries.

For the record I'm not condoning any of these Gulf regions- I believe they are all equally bad and treat not only LGBTQ+ badly, but every nationality that is not white American/European/Australian.

I just don't think you can pick and choose- you either state that you condemn all of these regions, or you kind of keep quiet. If the World Cup was held in the Emirates, with most of the games in Dubai, I don't quite imagine the same criticism take place?

So why is the news singling out Qatar?

I find the idea that you want to impose your world view on every country in the world and refuse to go to countries where people have different ways than the uk utterly revolting. What on Earth is wrong with everyone? It isn’t in anyway admirable to refuse to step out of your bubble and interact with other people who have their own way of life.

1. Are you honestly saying that Western European countries are either perfectly equal and have good human rights records?
2. There remains a huge difference between travelling to - for example - Indonesia, which certainly has all kinds of issues, but at least it's a not a fake and environmentally devastating playground, kept afloat by destructive and corrupt oil money, and slave labour imported en masse from other countries, mostly under false pretences, to benefit a privileged Emirati and Anglo/European few (and some Asian men, but rarely Asian women).

As per pp, I would not go to either, but the spotlight is not on both.

I know people who have lived in Dubai for probably tax reasons and have got along with it. I would not personally but each to their own . Qater seems a step on from this and I shan't be watching. Dh probably will but he is a bit pissed off with eg Beckham taking money for promoting it & certainly will not be buying any funny little flags etc . If England do well - well I will bet you he will with it but despite Qatar not because of it. By the By the language my Dh uses about Fifa would be fruity even by MN standards 😊

Holding the World Cup in Qatar is a travesty. It should have been canceled when the female worker was arrested for being raped.

i would never travel to Dubai and doubt the judgment of any woman who voluntarily crosses that border.

They are both appalling and I'm amazed anybody would visit either.

Women not being independent adults free to make their own choices without the permission of a guardian is not imposing a worldview. Our sisters are being held prisoner behind those borders. Qatar and the UAE may not be as bad as some, but they are bad enough.

If you have an issue with their laws, your issue is with the religion. We all know most religions are outdated but they don't change. For a law to change there, the religion needs to change and it won't. This is why I said we (the West) won't win this one. As sad as it is, it's a fact.

Well, we can actually. We stop our reliance on oil and then we refuse to have anything more to do with the nasty homophobic monsters and leave them to it.

Women in Qatar must obtain permission from their male guardians to marry, study abroad on government scholarships, work in many government jobs, travel abroad until certain ages, receive some forms of reproductive health care and to act as a child's primary guardian, even when they are divorced.

^

Yeah, not for me.

All the Gulf countries are pretty disgusting but I guess people are making a fuss about this because it's a high profile event that is culturally and emblematicly important to a lot of the world's population.

I'm gay and don't want to go somewhere it's illegal to be gay. If you have a problem with that, you're the one who's revolting.

It's important to embrace different cultures and viewpoints, like the stoning of gays and subjugation of black and non-penis owning people. You know, real worldly stuff.

But Brexit stopped all that. Now I got no culture or worldly experiences. Thanks Obama.

*WTO RULLLEEEES

This. With fucking bells on.

Would you visit the USA?

Slavery is still legal if you are in prison.

Quite a few states have no minimum age to get married.

Would you visit the USA?

Nope.

I know what you mean OP. When celebrities broadcast that they go to Dubai for their hols, to me it makes them look incredibly shallow that they ignore the inequalities going on there.

The World Cup nor any other large sporting event is not in Dubai. I do agree with the sentiment the OP expresses and never go there for a holiday or indeed have never considered several other places because of either their laws/views on same sex relationships or towards women.

I avoid Turkey because of the behaviour of local men towards women as well.

But is it not the case that 1) Qatar on a practical note is just too hot and 2) - this surely has to put DB into a different league of what he will do to earn a few more millions . I do think when it was announced many thought it was a bizarre decision,

I think the same people who feel strongly about Quatar also would not like Dubai. I went to Dubai recently - would never have chosen it as a holiday destination but it was a convenient place to break up a gruelling trip back from Australia. Stayed there 4 days and was glad to leave. It's a fake place where the over the top customer service veils an unpleasant society where a lot of people working there are discriminated against because of their colour, religion, sexuality etc.
Having said that, I was surprised to see a gay couple openly holding hands at the mall. I guess they turn a blind eye if you are rich enough. Anyway, I won't be returning to Dubai as aspects of it are deeply unpleasant to anyone with a strong moral conscience.

I wouldn’t choose to visit either country, but I will be watching matches.
When Saturday Comes have a great wall chart for anyone else struggling to navigate the balance between loving football/hating FIFA corruption/not wanting to back the Qatar regime.

The news is singling out Qatar because a major, newsworthy event is about to happen there.

Plenty of MNetters advise against Dubai for holidays on the same grounds, but they're usually ignored or are told they are killjoys. However, they exist. But it's not a headline issue because there isn't a story as big as the men's football World Cup to hang it on.

The actual footballers, and by extension the regular commentators, were a bit stuck with this. But it's been interesting to see which others - such as perfomers at the music festivals, have chosen to play there

You seem to be completely overlooking the conditions for the non white people living in Dubai. Is it ok so long as white people are allowed to be gay? What do you think would happen if an Indian person was gay? White people are treated well in Dubai so long as they follow the rules and keep spending a lot of money. It’s not the same for other ethnic groups.

This!

Unfortunately these countries have oil and gas and are very rich and we need them for that.