I was on twitter this morning about to get off and start studying when a link tweeted by Fatma Al-Nasr drew my attention which was basically an article published by the New York Times yesterday on the 13th May.
If you guys did not find it offending well I certainly have and I for one am not going to keep quiet about it.
Here is the article which was published under the name “Affluent Qataris Seek What Money Cannot Buy” by Michael Slackman ->
Click here to read ArticleI recommend that you read the article first before reading my response to understand the whole idea of why I actually took time off my study schedule to write this
He begins his article by painting a picture to the reader of how
“all Qataris” are just so well off and have the best lifestyle by saying
“Citizens of Qatar appear to have it made. They tend to drive big cars, live in big houses and get big loans to pay for big watches and an outsize lifestyle. They have an army of laborers from the developing world to build a sparkling skyline and to work whatever jobs they feel are beneath them. And their nation has enough oil and gas to keep the good times rolling for decades.”
Then he simply asks “So why do so many people here seem so angry?”
1. We’re angry because you speak without enough proof, for example he quotes people speaking against Qatar without any proof to things he says like this
“Qataris are very spoiled,” said Mohammed Saffarini, a non-Qatari Arab who serves as research director for health science at Qatar’s Science and Technology Park. “They are only valuable in this cultural and political context,” he added, contending that Qataris often lacked the skills, education and qualifications to be competitive in many other economies.”
“Qataris are very spoiled” he said. You can’t say all Qataris are spoiled, remember Mister Mohammed Saffarini you’re talking about 15 % the population here, I’d agree with you if you said some are spoiled which could be like 5% but aren’t there spoiled people in every country?
Isn’t that human nature? If you’re going to start talking about spoiled people then you’re actually talking about 25% of the world population, I bet there are people who are very spoiled from your own country as well.
Secondly, HOW DARE YOU SAY
“They are only valuable in this cultural and political context,” he added, contending that Qataris often lacked the skills, education and qualifications to be competitive in many other economies.”
M.S. has no right what-so-ever to say “Qataris” does he have any proof that all Qataris lack skills other than cultural and political!
Did he not meet
Dr. Hassan Rashid Al-Derham Vice President for Research in the department of civil and architectural engineering in Qatar University?
Did he not hear of
Hamad Bin Salman Al-Thani a Qatari Artist who can paint/picture you better than any professional camera can ever?
Did he not meet the young Qatari Student
Eman Saleh Al-Shmari who won many prizes ranging from 1st to 2nd place in many articles about identity and health matters?
What M.S. said is
highly offensive to many creative and talented Qataris. I listed the ones I know personally and I bet there are hundreds of Qataris out there with many other kinds of creative and amazing talents and skills
2. The writer then talks about Qatar’s world class reputation in international relations, art and higher education and brings in Dr.Momtaz Wassef response saying
“It’s all a sham; it’s all a veneer,” said Dr. Momtaz Wassef, who was recruited from the United States to serve as the director of biomedical research for the Supreme Council of Health. Now he says he is disillusioned with Qatar and is planning to leave. “They never admit they make a mistake,” he said. “They only say they are the best in the world.”
Dr. Wassef’s wife asked that he not be quoted until he left Qatar, but Dr. Wassef would have none of it. “I don’t give a hoot,” he said, clapping his hands together for emphasis.”
So basically, He is saying that
everything you see about Qatar in the educational, art and international relation is an illusion?
Well excuse me Dr. Momtaz Wassef have you not been in Education City yet?
Have you not seen the many schools recently built giving free education to Qatari’s and Non-Qatari’s all together with all the best and high-tech resources all for Qatari’s and Non?
Qatar is doing its best in giving everyone the best education they can by building the best school and teaming up with the best universities in the world and if they cannot do it here, they offer scholarships out of Qatar as well which is fully financed and give monthly allowances, so tell me who does that?
Next on the list is International Relation, I have a question for Dr. Momtaz Wassef,
Do you have a T.V. at home? Do you read the news papers? Do you take part in any political conversations? If so, I`m sure you’ve heard about the war in Lebanon 2007!
Qatar was the first country to jump and try to make peace and as a result thousands of lives were saved.
So, Is that an illusion? Something Qatar made up to give itself a good reputation in front of the world?
In Dr. Momtaz’s words Qatar never admits it’s wrong? So can you please give me proof for that, when did we make a mistake and not admit it? And most importantly can you please tell me who said we think we are the best in the world, I mean you did say “THEY SAY” so can you define they for me?
Moreover, IF, IF and IF Qatar said they were the best, then I think they earned that title for all the right reasons. 3. The writer then tells a story of how Qataris are rude to foreigners by telling a story of a Qatari driver and a Canadian driver
“I am Qatari, and this country is for me,” a driver shouted as he forced his way into a parking space that a Canadian driver had also been trying for. “This is my country.”
Now, I`m not a journalist and don’t know much about journalism but I think that he made a mistake not naming those 2 people, I mean how could he want the reader to believe such story? It has a high probability of being a “lie”,
I`m not saying all Qataris are angels and do not make mistakes but I for one am not going to believe this story, because there is no proof to it being true.What i`m going to believe is that Qataris get called “Terrorists” when they walk in foreign streets minding their own business and
I speak of experience.4. He ends his article speaking of how a Qatari woman Moza Al-Malki is wrongful and wronged at the same time.
She is wronged because of she lost her position when someone else was hired in a center that she had set and she was wrongful when she asked her Filipino servant to walk around the mall carrying her bags as she enjoyed breakfast.
It seems as if this article was written to make Qataris, no Middle Eastern, no Arabs, no wait “Muslims” look bad
All I have to say in the end is that not all people are good and not all people are bad, and if Moza Al-Malki will be the one representing “the bad” side of Qatari Women to the world on the New York Times, then I`l lbe the one setting “the good” side of Qatari women on my blog, the Filipino woman that works at my house is well treated and respected by my sisters and I, she sits on the table with us during meals , and the smallest example for us respecting her is the fact that we call her “Ate” and Ate is a Filipino word used for Respect, which means Big Sister.
I am not saying that Moza Al-Malki is a bad person, I don’t know her to judge her, but from what is written in this Article I believe that she is just a victim just like the whole Qatari population in this article.
To conclude, I just want to say that people should stop looking at the bad side and most importantly stop saying things about others without “Enough Proof”
Qatari’s do their best to help everyone, including non-Qatari’s, so stop being envious about what Qatar is offering for its people because it is the country's right towards us!
And like Ibrahim Al-Muhairy said
“Everyone is getting what they – DESERVE – and more”
In the end, I am nothing but a young Qatari student who just has a lot to say, you can go against me or just be with me, it doesn’t matter because all what I wrote over here is an opinion and an opinion can never be wrong or right.
Thanks for reading,
Sarah. A. Al-Derham
