Stereotyping outrages British women

Dubai: British women in Dubai say a minority of "badly behaved" visitors give the British a bad name.

Expatriates spoke out after the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) issued travel advice, stipulating that Britons shouldn't "bare all" while abroad, including going topless on beaches.

Claire Johnson, 31, housewife, said: "It [the report] makes it sound like we're all commoners. From what I see we all behave well out here, it's a minority of people coming here on holiday who don't know what they're getting into."

Other female British expatriates said European nationalities were more likely to go topless on beaches.

R.S. said: "I hate it when I go on holiday in Europe and see loads of women doing it [topless] & However, I don't agree that it should just be Brits who are targeted. It's more a European issue than a British thing."

Gulf News readers also reacted to the report.

Abir Ahmad Ansari, Pakistani expatriate, was strongly offended by the focus of the report on British women alone. "Many people of other nationalities practice indecent behaviour. Why does the report [Gulf News] focus on British [tourists] alone?"

Editorial comment - Page 10

See also Page 3