What is your experience in this matter?

blacklion
By blacklion

People behaving badly...

Dear Sir,

I refer to the letter of ‘An Annoyed Expat’ (Gulf Times, August 5) and I too, would like to highlight to you that I have personally encountered this rude behaviour, be it queue-cutting or queue-jumping. Just go to any supermarket and try for yourself. You will encounter this type of behaviour while waiting for your fresh produce/fruits to be weighed and priced, or, at the information counter of a telecommunication company which requires one to queue up.

We are faced with queue-cutting or queue-jumping on a daily basis.

Just a few days ago, while I was paying at a pharmacy, the cashier had taken my credit card and items (to be scanned), a Qatari lady just came right up and placed her items on the cashier’s counter. By now, she’s completely in front of me (she did this by squeezing herself in!) while the cashier was trying to finish my transaction and my receipt. When I asked her if she wouldn’t mind letting me finish my transaction, she looked at me like I was from outer space.

The other rude behaviour is, Qataris tend to cut in when one is in the middle of a conversation with a shop assistant/customer service rep etc.

The above behaviour has undoubtedly created a very bad image for Qataris and I dare say that most expats have experienced rude behaviour at least once. Qataris can take the attitude ‘this is my country and I do as I please’, or they can rise above this and hopefully move on to be more courteous and polite while shopping.

Something which adds to this problem is the fact that shop assistants/cashiers deal with everybody at once and they are not trained to deal with customers on an orderly basis.

‘A disheartened expat’, (Name and address supplied)

Taken from this link http://www.gulf-times.com/site/topics/article.asp?cu_no=2&item_no=51475&...

By pissedoff• 16 Jul 2006 08:21
pissedoff

I'd like to start off by saying that most qataris are ignorant and selfish. I have seen several times qataris treating the labor force like slaves. They think that when they pay you they own you. This really saddens me to see ppl treated this way. I lived in oman for several yrs and never encountered such rudeness and immoral behavior by the local omani arabs. But now in qatar its the complete opposite. These guys drive like maniacs, i'd describe the driving as "Might is Right"! That goes to all you qataris driving Land Cruisers, Hummers, Patrols..... The police over here need to enforce traffic violations by giving heavy fines. In canada, if you dont let a pedestrian cross on a crosswalk and a cop sees you its a $600 fine! Motorbike stunting is $300. But this still wont correct these rich qataris. They need to have a license de-merit system where after several traffic violations your license gets suspended. These rich morons drive like the own the road!

The other day i went to get my son's visa extended at the medical centre, the qatari at the door treated us like crap and yelled at us. They dont have proper signs and information of documentation to brought for visa extensions. The qatari said "OUT OUT, GET OUT". This totally pissed me off! I kept asking him what documentation i needed and he kept talking nonsense. Non-arabs are human too u know!! So these qataris need to stop treating everyone else like animals! I am also a muslim, so i am not giving a biased opinion. These qataris are uneducated ignorant selfish animals and need to be shown how difficult it is to make hard earned money

As soon as i get a job in another country i am outta here. It doesn't mean that if you a build a bunch of skyscrapers in qatar it will make them advanced! A human's interaction and behaviour with others is what counts! Americans can be rude but not canadians!! These qataris need to travel around the world to see the difference in ppl's attitudes. Its easy money and selfish pride that has ruined these ppl.

By lilipink• 22 Mar 2006 16:24
lilipink

-everything shutting down at 10pm

-having no place to go out to that doesn't involve food

---------???.lili.

By novita77• 22 Mar 2006 15:46
novita77

5 things i like living Qatar :

- free tax money

- good school for my son

- good social life

- can afford 2 cars (previously we lived in Singapore, and cant even afford a car).

- can afford to live in a villa (not sure for how long), we lived in 3 bedroom flat in Singapore and sharing with another expat.

5 things i hate in Qatar :

- the driving

- the heat (not a big deal because i always away most summer)

- ....

- ....

- ....

I cant find 5 items on here ... so i think i am staying in Doha for now. Hehe...

By dweller• 7 Feb 2006 10:11
dweller

Dentist, having made the remarks "Whenever you hear the word ALL from someone, know that this person knows nothing about the issue".

Was it intentional or tongue in cheek that you closed with the very next sentence "Good luck to you all"

By jbravo69• 14 Jan 2006 00:41
jbravo69

Yeah there are good and bad people...but what I have seen time and time again its really shitty...

qatari kids spitting and hitting their maids. I mean kids like 10 or something. I have seen it many times in the malls...

So I guess the problem has deeper roots. Maids cannot teach a child whats good and bad. Parents should take part but mostly qatari parents dont do it i guess...

And personally i am sick of this qatari retarted attitude of queue jumping, thinkin they own people, and everything in between...makes me sick...

By PatGund• 13 Jan 2006 14:40
PatGund

The older Qataris I've encountered have been the spirit of courtesy.

The younger ones, well, the less said the better.

By butterfly• 30 Dec 2005 09:43
butterfly

Too right, good and bad behaviours are found in every country, not only in qatar.

Nice to have a qatari giving opinions. Keep them coming, qatari 74

By qatari74• 29 Dec 2005 14:13
qatari74

First of all wellcome in Qatar

only one thing i want to say it the Good and the Bad

not in Qatar its in all country ........and this is the first time

i now we (Qataris) dont pay any thing ...sorry for short comments

coz i will trvel after 2hours...............bestwishes for all

see u later

By dentist• 29 Dec 2005 06:23
dentist

I remember now my own experience when I first lived outside Egypt for the first time ever.My father used to work in Oman and I had to go there for high school.I was the only Egyptian in the class,all other classmates were Omanies,one Kwaiti,one Jordanian and another Sudanese.

When I was first introduced to the class I could see they were not happy at all...I could see that look in their eyes "Oh,here comes another arrogant Egyptian to show off with his grades"...it is very well known that Egyptians usually kick asses at school in the gulf areas.

Anyways,the first month I got the highest marks on the the monthly report,second month;same thing...I was so happy I thought that could be a good way to make friends,to show them how good I was,but on the contrary,this ended up with a biiiiiiiiig fight,they started abusing me,making up stories about me being a chicken and a coward (high school kiddish stuff you all know very well)...and in the end I had to kick a few guys butts...and I got expelled for 2 weeks from school.

Those two weeks were the turn point in my relation with these people,my father gave me a very good advice I can still remember till this day "Don't expect people who are less than you to be hapy for you when you keep showing off all the time with your grades,you need to show them that they could be better than you sometimes"

After that I made two friends at the class who were Omanies,we are still friends till today after 14 years,best friends...when I brought them closer to me and invited them to my house to study together,they improved noticingly and started getting the second and third places and also getting appreciation certificates for the first time in their lives.Their parents were so happy and they always appreciated my help.

OK,boring story???!!!!! Not interested??!!! Sorry.

My whole point is that sometimes it's good to show the Qataries that we are here to benefit from their great land (some way or another)...expats always keep talking about how big their sacrifice was and how bad their lives are in this country and that this country will not survive without the expat geniouses...well,believe me it will...so you better just leave a good foot print on this land that many years from now someone my thing of you and say "one day there was this great lady/man who helped improved this or that"

Arrogance of some Qataries is nothing but a come back at the arrogance of some expats.

By blacklion• 26 Dec 2005 07:25
blacklion

Dear All,

It is very difficult for me to side in both the optimist and the pesimist sides. Because I have seen both the arrogance and the humble side of Qataris. But one thing Yahya and dentist should bear in mind is may be its difficult for non-arab expatriate to mix with Qataris as you have been advising in this and other threads. There coulde be a barrier like language, culture, and religion. Bot for sure its not good to generalise as ALL Qataris have the same behaviour. I would say some of them really needs to learn things or should adjust themselves with the current situation in this country.

However, one thing I am very happy about is, it is always good to develop a culture of discussion. Because its the key for any problem be it a social or a personal problem. Its good to know that we are talking about this problem. and I hope Qataris are also reading this too. They must know how these expatriate who came here to develope their country feel about them. I would have been more happy if they can express their feeling in this thread without being offended. This can help all of us to develop a healthy and positive society. but as i have said the key to any of our social, economical and other problems is DISCUSSION.

By yahya• 25 Dec 2005 22:58
yahya

I would add, it is very easy to fall into arrogance ourselves by thinking we're somehow above others because of their personal flaws (arrogance being just one of them).

I know not everyone on this blog is Muslim but a maxim from the Muslim scholars of the classical age suits us nicely here.

They said that it is obligatory to give one's brother 70 excuses for a flaw one sees in him. If one cannot think of any, then one should see it as a mirror unto one's self and correct that action in themselves first.

The Prophet Muhammad (God bless him and give him peace) said that during his night ascension he saw people having their lips cut off with scissors of fire. When asked what had led them to this terrible chatisement they replied that they used to command the good but neglect it themsleves and forbid the wrong but do it themselves.

Sorry if it's too heavy on religion for you guys. Just a little incentive for those of you who do care about these things.

Peace out,

Yahya

By dentist• 25 Dec 2005 19:07
dentist

Well done Yahya,

I also would suggest that people should have a positive attitude towards the society they're living in.

It's a good thing to make friends,think of ways to make friends here in Doha,socialize rather than keep complaining about life and people here.

Arrogance is a very crucial thing when you try to deal with,if you attack it you might just provoke it more and more.

The best way to fix arrogance is by trying to address the reasons why this someone is arrogant.

Somepeople are arrogant because they have better degree or certifiocate than you,others are arrogant because they have more money than you,others are arrogant because they come from richer countries even though they might not be worth trash but still they are arrogant.

So one needs to diagnose the reasons for arrogance before criticizing it.

I beleive the arrogant Qataries you are talking about are the most benign type of all,simply because all they need is just little respect and education.

Many expats come to this country and think of Qataries as a bunch of camel riders who have just became rich all of the sudden...well,even though this might be a true fact yet we need not to address it with an enveying heart,just be happy for them and start thinking how we can help them best use this money to build a civilization.

Don't forget that many Qataries are very highly educated and very well brought up,but again expats don't want to acknowlege this fact because it is a sort of threat to their careers.

I think it is just a Tea-Time conversation when the Karwa official said "ALL" felons or abusers are Qataries,my advice to you is whenever you hear the word "ALL" from someone,know that this person knows nothing about the issue.

Good luck to you all

By yahya• 25 Dec 2005 07:13
yahya

Rudeness??? Agreed.

Well, I agree: there are a lot of rude Qataris. But I don't think that this is something inherent to them or anything like that. Rather, what we have here is a case of too much too fast. Like the old sheikh said, a generation ago they were riding camels and living in tents.

It may sound ironic, but perhaps this is just another ugly face of what cultural colonialism often does to native populations. Perhaps the only reason the Qataris aren't suffering from the same degredations that the aboriginal people's of Canada, the U.S., and Australia currently face is that the British occupied just a little too late in this region - just as the world was starting to frown on conquering other peoples for your own interest. Though admittedly, arrogance is among the worst of degredations. But I have certainly met my fair share of arrogant and hot-to-trot North Americans (at home and abroad) who have found themselves in the same nuveou riche (is that how you spell it?) circumstances. I come from an area full of people like that.

But complaining about this in this forum is not going to solve anything. It will just make us all bitter and make us less happy and less easy to deal with. Just do something about it or keep quiet. What's the old addage? "If you can't say anything nice, don't say anything at all." I would add, "unless you intend by your speech to change something." Otherwise, it's just wasted breath.

Speaking of breath, it would probably do us all a lot of good to take a few moments every day to just breath. The benefits of "watching one's breaths" have been advocated for years by health professionals and for millenia by spiritual teachers. That's something we can do for OUR temperments, which, whether we like it or not, probably allow us to take advantage of people ourselves from time to time. Controlling our own temper is probably the best way to deal with others'. If breathing exercises seem to "new-agey" for you (even though they're quite ancient and universal to many philosophies) do something besides commercialized fun to let out some of those things you have bottled up inside you. Go for a walk in your neighborhood (to see the humanity on people's faces). Paint. Kick the hell out of a punching bag (one of my personal favorites) or exercise in the way that suits you best. The most important muscles to exercise though are the ones in your cheeks. Smile. Smile. Smile. Smile to yourself, smile to your friends, and (especially) smile at strangers. (If you're a man, don't do this to strange women. If your a woman, don't do this to strange men.) It will brighten your day and theirs so much. If you've never done this before, you'll probably have to fake it. That's o.k. it becomes natural after a while. (But if you start to get that freaky "Throne Room of Trinity Broadcasting Network" "Stepford Wife" smile please stop and reassess your reason for smiling).

Of course, we should never forget pray for the arrogant in this society. Arrogance is one of the most terrible states in which a human can exist because it prevents self criticism and, thus, advancement in all the important facets of life. May God make us all better people. And God alone gives success.

Peace out peeps,

Yahya

By Qwerty• 25 Dec 2005 05:27
Qwerty

I recently spoke with a senior manager of Karwa (Government Transport Company)…he told me that all the customers that are banned are Qatari, all the customers that have run away without paying their fare are Qatari, all the customers that verbally abuse the switchboard staff are Qatari.

Unemployment amongst Qataris is in excess of 35%!

When Qatar University did a survey amongst Qatari managers a few years ago, more than 25% admitted that they would always put their own business interests first before there designated jobs.

I know that a number of companies that whom employ Qataris hardly ever actually see them…they breeze in to collect their salaries etc and that is all. The company’s managers are actually happy with this, as they have told me that they are more trouble than they are worth.

It is shame, a real shame, but as somebody previously mentioned, the majority of Qataris have know sense of value of money. I remember an old Qatari gentleman once told me that one generation ago they were living in tents and riding camels!

By dentist• 23 Dec 2005 10:08
dentist

Well, I guess here's something for you to do while you are home..Instead of being sorry for yourself that you are stuck here,just try to think of 5 good reasons why so many people and so many expats are flowing to Qatar...note that many of them have had other working experiences in other countries...come on butterfly,you must be smarter than that,I'm sure your good heart will help you find 5 good things (just five)...when you do, you will find out why I am so enthusiastic about Qatar.

Good luck to you.

By butterfly• 22 Dec 2005 08:33
butterfly

Yes Dentist, I have said that most are gentlemen, and I truly believe so.

Many expats should learn manners. Qatari men are doing just fine when it comes to manners and politeness.

The horrible ones are normally older, and I believe they are so rude because it is probably distressing to see your country getting filled up with foreingners. But hey, I've seen worse. At least here the foreigners work like nuts, in my country and others, we work to fed the foreigners with our taxes.

Yet, I cannot think of 5 reasons... but as I said before, it was a big mistake coming here. But I'm stuck, I cannot just leave.

By dentist• 22 Dec 2005 07:11
dentist

Don't you guys think you are being unfair to the Qataries??

I deal with them on daily basis...i see a lot of them,and I am telling you,they are really nice and kind people.

I have met so many Qataries who are willing to help you just because you are a stranger in their country (they call it the Arab Hospitality).

Many Qataries are willing to learn and they want to work hard to prove themselves but then they are faced with the selfishness of many expats who are scared that oneday they would be replaced by a Qatari who is more qualified.

Guys just take it easy on these people,they are building a country,just help them instead of pulling them back.

There is just too much criticism about Qataries who did so and so and I can hardly find someone praising any good quality these people have here.

For all of you who are not pleased with life here take my advice; "If you can't think of 5 good things about this community then you are making a big mistake by staying here,just get on the next plane and go home,don't even wait till you ship your belongings"

NO I AM NOT A QATARI BY THE WAY

By unknown• 21 Dec 2005 14:16
unknown

I have come across many racist qataries. They do believe they have the devine right to do whatever they want, in the supermarket, mall, office, and on the road. OMG i still stunned by how so many qatari kids got licences??? So many accidents everyday, so many die, so much money they dont care if they cancel a brand new car cuz they will just buy another one and another... etc. When will they change, who knows, its not lack of education its ignorance, and selfishness, everything was iven to them on a platter so easily, they dont know the true woth of a riyal. What will they do when its all gone?

By suzan• 20 Dec 2005 20:00
suzan

Once my husband and I went to this shopping mall, and we just went to have lunch and spend some time together. When I chose what I was gonna eat, I went to order. There, was a male Qatari ordering before me, and while I was waiting my turn, I watched him order.

The restaurant style is you order the ingredients for your meal, so when he was choosing the ingredients, he was talking in a very rude way to the chef. The Qatari asked once for an ingredient, but the chef just didn't pay much attention and the scene just started! "I told you I want that didn't you hear me?" I was "Oh!"

I really felt bad for the chef and the rest of the staff. When my turn came, he smiled at me all the time because I was being nice to him. I don't know what can be harder than treating others in an ethical and polite way. Don't they sometimes put themselves in their position? or is it that they do not put themselves because it will never happen?

Discrimination takes place a lot here in Qatar, but hope one day all that changes. I've been told that all women from the Gulf, specially the Saudi's are worse than the Qatari's ladies.

Hope they can improve in their thinking and their behavior.

By butterfly• 20 Dec 2005 08:30
butterfly

Funny that you mentioned that, bitter, because I have heard it many times before and I never really believed it. Wow.

I have heard of many getting absolutely paralytic in a hotel's bar and then refusing to pay the bill on the grounds that they do not drink alcohol. Lol, that's so funny. Anyway, I don't know if it's true.

What is true is that the legal system needs to be a fully independent body, I am so sceptical about it.

Sorry you have been ripped off. I have too.

Stay sharp. Trust nobody.

By Bitter• 20 Dec 2005 04:25
Bitter

Most Qataris believe that they have a divine right to everything in life at no cost. If you spend a day in the court beside the Corniche, you will witness case after case of Qataris owing money, be it for cars, other goods, or services. Most retailers or traders will never take a check from a Qatari. All DVD rental outlets charge Qataris the cost of the DVD for rental, why you ask…because if they only paid the normal rental they would not return the DVD(s).

I once accepted a check from an Al Thani (female), it bounced! When I went to Capital Security to make a case (it is illegal to bounce a check here), the Major in charge refused to write anything formally, saying that he would deal with it. It took me more than nine months to get my money, paid in dribs and drabs!

So many Qataris leave restaurants, petrol stations, and shops without paying. In the case of restaurants, it is not unknown for Qataris to threaten the manager that they will have them closed down for some violation etc.

You may think that I sound bitter, well I am. I have been ripped off before by Qatari’s and I know others who have suffered as well.

By blacklion• 18 Dec 2005 15:00
blacklion

I have noticed Qatari men are very discipline. I have seen them in many situations they are by far better than the females. They are better than the expats. To be honest its the expats sometimes who doesn't have manners, especially the arab expats. But Qatari Men are really gentle. But the females, yes they need to learn some manners. If you go to an office where there is a Qatari female secretary or customer service assistant, then you will definitly have a bad time. The men and the women have different manners.

Its true shop keepers or sales girls or men working in shop are affraid of the Qatari female, because they just shout and mistreat them for no reason, I have noticed that. I think they will get used to it when Qatar expands, they will learn on how to live with everybody.

By gringo nordestino• 18 Dec 2005 12:12
gringo nordestino

I hate when I`m waiting for someone to leave the parking in City Center , and one qatari just come and take the place , even if I was almost moving in. Just go in Saturday or Friday to City Center Mall :) , you need to bee patient.

Now I just park in front of Carrefour , on the sand .

I hope in few years this will be different :)

By butterfly• 18 Dec 2005 08:21
butterfly

Ha Ha Ha!!! I've already raised the issue in this website and the response was that people behaves badly in the west too.

Manners is a beautiful thing, it shows that you have class, style. Sometimes you can have lots of money, but no style. That's sad. In my case is pretty much the opposite, have little money, but manners are most important to me.

I've noticed that the worst offenders are often females, qatari men can be gentlemen if they want to.

Shop-assistants are too scared to even breath, let alone tell someone to wait for her turn.

Maybe is just lack of education, maybe some people haven't been able to keep pace with the rapid development of Qatar. I don't know. But it is very irritating, isn't it?

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