Reasons for banning belly dancing a mystery

Doha: The Qatar Tourism Authority denied banning belly dancing at hotels in the country.

"We have not issued the ban on belly dancing. The directive might have come from some other source," a spokesperson for the Authority said yesterday.

An employee of a five-star hotel said the directive came from the Qatar Television and Radio Corporation, but corporation officials said they were not aware of the decision.

"The Qatar Television and Radio Corporation has issued the guideline. They are in charge of setting all the guidelines regarding music, entertainment and dancing," the employee said, refusing to provide further details.

Questioned about the reasons for stopping belly dancing, staff at hotels said the authorities issued a directive banning belly dancing. "Hotels say belly dancing has been banned. It is a pity, I used to take my guests to these shows to get a flavour of Middle eastern culture," said a German resident.

It is not clear what prompted the ban. A restaurant manager at a five-star hotel said hotels were given no reasons for the decision.

'We do not understand'

"We have insisted on continuing the show and we have asked the hotel chain to intervene with the authorities but it was of no use," he said.

"We do not understand why they banned belly dancing. Many of our regular guests were upset."

However, not all residents were disappointed. Some welcomed the ban saying that belly dancing is an art and dancers were not up to the task. "I attended a belly dancing performance and I was disappointed. The dancer was a non-Arab and extremely vulgar," said a Qatari.

Before the ban, most belly dancers here came from Brazil and Eastern Europe, hotel staff said. The dance was not artistic, he added.

"Eastern Europeans perform for as little as 150 dollars per night, while an Arab belly dancer commands several thousands. However, I doubt the reason for the ban has to do with the quality of the performances."