Picture used for illustrative purpose only.

Gulf Today Report

The government of the Sultanate of Oman has decided to fine anyone who does not wear the white dishdasha, after a government decision earlier this month to preserve the Omani heritage.

On the streets of the Sultanate, Omanis used to wear the traditional clothes  which consist of a long no collar dishdasha and a head covering, which differs from the other GCC countries as it is a turban of different colours, wrapped in a special way.

At the beginning of January 2022, the Omani Minister of Commerce, Industry and Investment Promotion, Qais Bin Mohammed Al Yousef, issued a decision related to the Omani dishdasha, stipulating a ban on importing or designing traditional Omani clothes, compromising them or making any modifications to them which may harm the Omani identity.

According to the decision, a fine of not exceeding 1,000 Omani rials ($2,600) will be imposed on anyone who violates the provisions of this decision. The fine is doubled in the event of a repeat violation.

A source at the ministry affirmed that the specific specifications set by the ministry require that the dishdasha is without a collar, and that the main pieces of it are externally and visible to the eye, besides being made of a single-coloured fabric.

The authorities warned several times last year not to harm or abuse traditional Omani clothes by sewing, drawing or printing logos or trademarks of foreign clubs, placing a drawing that violates the public taste or merging designs between the sleeve and dishdasha with shapes and models which harm the looking of the traditional Omani costumes.”