I feel pity for all the young Saudis who wear Western dress in the evenings but find themselves obliged to wear Saudi dress during the day at school, college or in the workplace. The practice has led to many complications, the least being greater financial burdens on families.
Our youth find themselves unable to wear what they like during the day and can’t overcome a morbid feeling of being inferior to others because of the type of dress imposed on them. This makes them seek recognition for themselves. I also feel sorry for security officers who are trying to locate a suspect involved in a crime. Police reports speak of a suspect wearing a white thobe and red gutra — now imagine anyone trying to locate a person with only that as a description! In the past when attending Exercise Day, elementary school pupils were allowed to come to school in sports dress. It made them feel happy and enthusiastic about school. However, the event has since been cancelled and young children are now required to come to school wearing sports dress under Saudi national dress which makes them appear a bit uncomfortable. The children are required to cover their bodies from head to toe as if showing any part is something to bring shame to them and their school.
Intermediate and high school students are required to bring their sports wear inside a plastic jacket. It is thus not uncommon to see such clothes disappearing from school for various reasons or being borrowed by other students in a clear violation of hygienic and public health regulations.
The sports teacher is the only teacher who can be easily recognized since he alone is allowed to come to school in sportswear. The problem is that sports teachers are looked down upon when they have to go to government offices. Showing up in a government department wearing anything but national dress can prove risky.
In many cases, the teacher is forced to return home to change his clothes before coming to the government office to attend to business. The stark contradiction lies in the fact that the same government official who refuses to deal with a Saudi teacher wearing sports clothes does not feel embarrassed when dealing with a non-Saudi, obviously not in Saudi dress. It is now common to see foreigners wearing Saudi national dress; many in fact do this in order to avoid being caught for violating the Kingdom’s immigration laws.
In the United Arab Emirates, on the other hand, foreigners are banned by law from wearing the country’s national dress. The move was intended to protect the country’s identity.
