Qatar National Sports Day

This year, Qatar National Sports Day was on February 12th, to which residents and locals were encouraged to participate in sports and activities to raise awareness on living healthy lifestyles. Aspire Park, Corniche and Katara were clustered with people. At Aspire, there was a competition among the Civil Defense, kids activities and informational sessions and, for those who missed the point completely, people who came with picnics of unhealthy food.

National Sports Day, although a social concept, has a lot of ethnic meaning in terms of sharing cultural practices and perspectives. Ethnicity means common characteristics including ancestry, history, language, religion and a shared cultural heritage. Therefore, what most residents don’t understand is that apart from having the day for health motivation, it’s also supposed to motivate more cultural ways to participate in the community. 

The Emir and Heir Apparent also participated in the event by riding a purebred Arabian camel at Um Ethnaytein. Qatar News Agency reported that the Emir’s important taking part came due to; “HH belief in the importance of sports and its significant role in the lives of n the lives of individuals and communities; and contributes to revive the sports of parents, grandparents and authentic Arab heritage.” The ironic thing was that the day mostly revolved around setting Guinness world records rather than participating in sports that involved “authentic Arab heritage.” For example, Qatar set the Guinness world record for the largest number of players in a five-a-side non-stop football match and having the largest football (or soccer ball) ever at 38-foot-high.

My opinion on what the main idea behind National Sports day comes from the importance of community participation and in terms of improving health, the sociological theory of social change, meaning the alteration of the social order of society. In an interview I conducted for my Media Storytelling class project on health and the growing issue of diabetes in Doha, I found that “[the] National Health Strategy reported that 71% of all residents are overweight, including 75% of Qatari’s. 40% of Qatari’s are obese compared to 32% of all residents.” Therefore, the slowly growing awareness of improving Qatari’s health was a major sociological problem for health experts to address in Qatar, one of which was the result of National Sports Day and what I think was the reason of importance for the Emir and the Heir apparent to show their participation as of equal importance.

 

Social Change Meets Local Resistance

I was looking out the window today thinking about what social changes have occurred in Qatar that I can talk about? I mean, compared to revolutions that are happening all over the Arab world, there seemed to be nothing going one, plain and simple. But as the cars passed by in front of my eyes, I thought, “wait a minute, if it wasn’t for that gas in those cars right now, this place would look different in everyway possible.” That is dramatic social change that started seventy years ago, and is still occurring day-after-day.

            In the past decade Qatar faced huge developments. Construction sites covered larger parts of the city than established buildings. The population has grown dramatically in the process, creating an increase in traffic and pollution. Urbanization was clear too, as people from villages in the outskirts of Doha moved to the city center to secure a job and improve their lifestyle. All of that change was fueled by a growth in the economy and a government that opened up the country to the world after many years of isolations.

Translation: "Where are you man! At last the VISA is out we're going to Doha!!

 And we and the sheep, chicken, and fish will be pals in one plate!!

            However, not all locals accepted the degree of openness to the world. Some believed that the country is growing too fast, and others saw that it is important for  change to be adaptive to the local culture. For example, the recent introduction of pork in some markets in Doha caused some furious heads to speak up in radio through Watani Alhabib Sabah’alkhair show, or through blogging and social media. A group of online activists called for a national boycott to the The Pearl where pork would have been sold in open restaurants for the first time. Some cartoonist expressed their own views in the local newspapers on their own way (see picture above)! And rumor says it, the government had decided to listen to those concerns and limit down the selling of alcohol and pork in the country. Nothinng official come out yet.