The most widely circulated “story,” or tale, in the Gulf this summer claims that two Qatari sisters travelled to London with their children and domestic workers to spend their holiday. While they were in the British capital, one of them received a life changing message from Paris: her luxurious Hermès bag was ready for collection.

The two sisters, according to the story, answered the call and travelled to Paris, leaving the children, the eldest of whom was six years old, in London with the two workers. The workers, in turn, allegedly left the children in Hyde Park and fled. The children were supposedly rescued by a Qatari woman who happened to be there, and she informed the police. Because the two Qatari mothers were accused of neglect, the fascinating story continued, British social services have allegedly continued to keep custody of the children until this moment and have refused to return them, despite the diplomatic efforts of the Qatari embassy.

I am not exaggerating when I say that this story kept us on edge for two weeks. A number of Gulf intellectuals and influencers engaged with it by writing opinion pieces and recording moralising videos, all expressing their anger and shock. At least until Sky News Arabia, for which it deserves thanks, investigated the story and contacted the London police to ask about its details, only to discover that it was entirely fabricated. The person who created the rumour did not spread it without a purpose.

Why were the two alleged mothers Qatari?

Many harmful narratives and generalisations are created about Gulf women, sometimes unfortunately even by people from their own societies. They are portrayed as materialistic women obsessed with appearances, like the Hermès bag that the two fictional sisters supposedly abandoned their children for. They are depicted as greedy and demanding women who consume everything in their path like the yellow monster in the game Pac Man, leaving men with nothing. They are portrayed as irresponsible women who provide only for themselves and care only about their own concerns.

They are also portrayed as shallow women lacking substance, whose biggest challenges are where to spend their summer holiday and how their tan will look. They are described as reluctant workers who cannot tolerate the burdens of employment and who “take over” positions that men are supposedly more deserving of, only because Gulf governments insist on empowering women.

They are portrayed as intellectually lazy women who do not think outside the box, who will never be seen in government jobs, for example, breaking through bureaucratic restrictions, and who will never establish and successfully run a start up after retirement. They are portrayed as delusional women who fail to realise that all the women of the world surpass them in beauty, morals, and elegance, yet still believe they can compete with them.

In one way or another, Gulf women endure these attacks and even rise above this “propaganda,” returning stronger after illegitimate blows are directed at their reputation and dignity.

It seems that malicious individuals have now resorted to using the most devastating weapon in their arsenal, represented by the false story of the two Qatari women: directly attacking Gulf women’s motherhood and portraying them as women who merely give birth, then hand their children over to the nearest available domestic worker, only to reclaim this “human deposit” once the child turns 18.

A final note

In general, while Sky News Arabia made an effort to verify the authenticity of the story, it saddened me that some Gulf media outlets, Gulf in name only, published the falsehood without verification and allowed misogynistic messages against hardworking Gulf mothers, both inside and outside the home, to be circulated.

Disclaimer: The opinions expressed by the writers are their own and do not necessarily represent the views of Annahar