Spit it out

spitA while ago I ranted about how spitting is a disgusting habbit and it’s visible that some nationalities have the tendancy to do it more than others. It may be the norm in some countries, but culturally in Qatar, it’s seen as offensive, rude, and filthy. Yes if you see a Qatari do that he’s either uneducated or really had to spit and didn’t have a choice.

I wrote about how I wish there was a law that penalised spitting. Voila! The government has done just that. It’s now 500 QR if you’re caught spitting. Now we just need the police to actually…. police it… So it’s with that, I saw that we need to use the commission structure and give them 5-10% of penalties. Problem solved.

After searching for a suitable image to go along with this post, I found that no spitting signs are common in China, America, Singapore, India, and Korea.

Article here

  • http://qatariadventures.blogspot.com Sybil

    OMG, that is hilarious! I find spitting repulsive, as well, but when I see five small children standing in the seats of SUV’s everywhere I find that heartbreaking. I know, that is an entirely different subject that Doha must tackle. One problem at a time. Love the post and the sign! I hope you don’t mind if I decide to report on this, too :)

  • Kei

    absolutely!
    Oh and I’m planning on doing a little segment on child safety :)

  • http://eye-kare.blogspot.com Ahmad

    I saw the sign in the street ( on those awesome new screens around the Corniche) and it made me happy !

    Finally a law for this ugly habit !

    i just hope that they enforce it, unlike what happened with littering !!

    By the way, whoever wrote that sign, clearly, doesn’t know how to write in Arabic ! The Arabic translation is very wrong (both grammar and spelling).
    I guess one of the non-arabs did his best and came up with something.

    (i’ll add it to my collection of Arabic writing mistakes for future blogs)

  • Kei

    lol I think it’s just a joke. Lat taf fil. :P

Freedom of Expression

    Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights which the Qatari Government is a signatory of states: Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any medias and regardless of any frontiers.

    The Emiri Decision Number 86 of the year 2007 on the establishment of the Doha Free Information Centre marked yet another step towards establishing a State of rights and freedom of speech. The decision stipulated that the Centre be a non-profit organization, headquartered in Doha City, and have the authority to establish other affiliated centres inside and outside Qatar. It is worth mentioning that His Highness the Emir issued a decision in 1998 annulling the ministry of information, giving birth to a new era of freedom of speech where censorship was removed from local media.