Wearing shorts in public deemed indecent attire and punishable offence
Cairo: Wearing shorts in public is a punishable offence in Saudi Arabia, an activist has said.
“Above-knee shorts is an outfit deemed outraging public decency,” Badr Al Zayani, an ex-head of the Saudi Public Decorum Society, Thouq, added.
He cited a 2019 law that incorporates penalties for appearing in public places wearing “indecent” attires.
“There are many types of shorts. And there are people who do not distinguish between these shorts,” he told Saudi state television Al Ekhbariya.
“There are shorts for playing football, basketball and swimming as well as for walking,” he explained.
He urged young people to note that public places are different from beaches. “Public places have their dressing codes,” he said.
In 2019, Saudi authorities started enforcing a law, officially dubbed the Public Decorum Code, promising penalties of fines and imprisonment for public misconduct deemed offensive or dangerous to people.
According to this law, wearing “indecent” outfits or those displaying offensive images, symbols or phrases is punishable by a fine of SR5,000.
Get Breaking News Alerts From Gulf News
We’ll send you latest news updates through the day. You can manage them any time by clicking on the notification icon.
Dear Reader,
This section is about Living in UAE and essential information you cannot live without.
Register to read and get full access to gulfnews.com
By clicking below to sign up, you’re agreeing to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy
Forgot password
or