DUBAI // Social workers are finding it harder to place abandoned boys with Emirati foster parents, who prefer girls.
The parents' choice is due in part to the custom that requires Muslim women to cover up in the presence of men who are not relatives, which means that when a boy reaches puberty his foster mother must wear a hijab and avoid being alone with him.
As a result, it is harder to find foster families for abandoned boys than girls, said Afaf Al Marri, who chairs Sharjah Social Services.
"Boys, when they become 14 or 15 years old, they cannot stay with us - haram," said Amal Shehab Ahmed, from Dubai, who chose a girl when she decided to take in an abandoned child. Her daughter Sheikha is 4. Ms Ahmed also believes girls are easier to bring up. "They listen to you, they do what you want, they help you, everything."
Dozens of children are found abandoned each year. A 2010 report by Unicef found there were more than 700 "children of unknown parents" in the UAE.
Sharia forbids adoption so an abandoned child cannot be given another family's name, but they can be fostered. Only Emiratis can foster abandoned children, who receive UAE nationality.
The report by Unicef, the United Nations Children's Fund, found that about 440 children were cared for by foster families and the rest were in institutions. It did not break down the statistics by sex.
Dubai Grand Mufti Dr Ahmed Al Haddad said there was no need for a mother or her daughters to cover up around a male foster child when he was small.
"But when he grows up to become an adult, women in the family must not reveal their attractive attributes in his presence, or be with him all alone," Dr Al Haddad said.
"To them, he remains a foreigner. They have been kind to him when he was a child, now he takes care of himself."
The rule applies in reverse with female foster children, he said. When a girl reaches puberty, she must cover up in front of male members of the family and avoid being alone with them.
Foster mothers can avoid the issue by breastfeeding the child before he turns 2. The boy then "lives normally as a member of the family", Dr Al Haddad said.
But not all foster parents prefer girls. Hala Kazim took in a baby boy who is now a teenager, and said his sex did not influence her.
"I just wanted to adopt," said Ms Kazim, from Dubai. "To me, it didn't matter if it was a boy or a girl … there was a click between him and me when he was a baby."
At Dar Zayed orphanage in Al Ain, sex-specific requests are not a problem because there are more families than eligible children. Last month there were two eligible foster children and 10 families on a waiting list, said general manager Salem Al Kaabi.
Dar Zayed allows foster parents to take in only children younger than 2. Older children live in villas with Dar Zayed "house mothers".
In 2009, a Dar Zayed adoption committee member said girls were far easier to place in new families than boys. She suggested that could be because parents thought girls were easier to bring up.
Dr Al Haddad encouraged families worried about taking in a male foster child to consider the breastfeeding option.
"When a woman breastfeeds a male baby he becomes her son by breastfeeding, and by the same token becomes her husband's son and a brother to her natural sons and daughters," he said.
If the foster mother is unable to breastfeed, her daughter, sister or sister-in law may breastfeed the child, as long as he is under 2, Dr Al Haddad said.
vnereim@thenational.ae
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How to avoid crypto fraud
- Use unique usernames and passwords while enabling multi-factor authentication.
- Use an offline private key, a physical device that requires manual activation, whenever you access your wallet.
- Avoid suspicious social media ads promoting fraudulent schemes.
- Only invest in crypto projects that you fully understand.
- Critically assess whether a project’s promises or returns seem too good to be true.
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Winners
Best Men's Player of the Year: Kylian Mbappe (PSG)
Maradona Award for Best Goal Scorer of the Year: Robert Lewandowski (Bayern Munich)
TikTok Fans’ Player of the Year: Robert Lewandowski
Top Goal Scorer of All Time: Cristiano Ronaldo (Manchester United)
Best Women's Player of the Year: Alexia Putellas (Barcelona)
Best Men's Club of the Year: Chelsea
Best Women's Club of the Year: Barcelona
Best Defender of the Year: Leonardo Bonucci (Juventus/Italy)
Best Goalkeeper of the Year: Gianluigi Donnarumma (PSG/Italy)
Best Coach of the Year: Roberto Mancini (Italy)
Best National Team of the Year: Italy
Best Agent of the Year: Federico Pastorello
Best Sporting Director of the Year: Txiki Begiristain (Manchester City)
Player Career Award: Ronaldinho
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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How to protect yourself when air quality drops
Install an air filter in your home.
Close your windows and turn on the AC.
Shower or bath after being outside.
Wear a face mask.
Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.
If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.
Dubai Bling season three
Cast: Loujain Adada, Zeina Khoury, Farhana Bodi, Ebraheem Al Samadi, Mona Kattan, and couples Safa & Fahad Siddiqui and DJ Bliss & Danya Mohammed
Rating: 1/5
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Everybody%20Loves%20Touda
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Squid Game season two
Director: Hwang Dong-hyuk
Stars: Lee Jung-jae, Wi Ha-joon and Lee Byung-hun
Rating: 4.5/5
If you go
The flights
There are direct flights from Dubai to Sofia with FlyDubai (www.flydubai.com) and Wizz Air (www.wizzair.com), from Dh1,164 and Dh822 return including taxes, respectively.
The trip
Plovdiv is 150km from Sofia, with an hourly bus service taking around 2 hours and costing $16 (Dh58). The Rhodopes can be reached from Sofia in between 2-4hours.
The trip was organised by Bulguides (www.bulguides.com), which organises guided trips throughout Bulgaria. Guiding, accommodation, food and transfers from Plovdiv to the mountains and back costs around 170 USD for a four-day, three-night trip.
RACE CARD
4pm Al Bastakiya – Listed (TB) $150,000 (Dirt) 1,900m
4.35pm Dubai City Of Gold – Group 2 (TB) $228,000 (Turf) 2,410m
5.10pm Mahab Al Shimaal – Group 3 (TB) $228,000 (D) 1,200m
5.45pm Burj Nahaar – Group 3 (TB) $228,000 (D) 1,600m
6.20pm Jebel Hatta – Group 1 (TB) $260,000 (T) 1,800m
6.55pm Al Maktoum Challenge Round-1 – Group 1 (TB) $390,000 (D) 2,000m
7.30pm Nad Al Sheba – Group 3 (TB) $228,000 (T) 1,200m
Mumbai Indians 213/6 (20 ov)
Royal Challengers Bangalore 167/8 (20 ov)
If you go
Where to stay: Courtyard by Marriott Titusville Kennedy Space Centre has unparalleled views of the Indian River. Alligators can be spotted from hotel room balconies, as can several rocket launch sites. The hotel also boasts cool space-themed decor.
When to go: Florida is best experienced during the winter months, from November to May, before the humidity kicks in.
How to get there: Emirates currently flies from Dubai to Orlando five times a week.
SPECS
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The%20specs
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The specs
Engine: 1.5-litre 4-cylinder petrol
Power: 154bhp
Torque: 250Nm
Transmission: 7-speed automatic with 8-speed sports option
Price: From Dh79,600
On sale: Now
Armies of Sand
By Kenneth Pollack (Oxford University Press)
Brief scores:
Toss: Sindhis, elected to field first
Pakhtoons 137-6 (10 ov)
Fletcher 68 not out; Cutting 2-14
Sindhis 129-8 (10 ov)
Perera 47; Sohail 2-18