DUBAI – Dubai has banned cross-dressing in public places after complaints of dozens of “transvestite tourists” in the city’s shopping centres.
Police this week detained 40 “cross-dressing tourists”, the Gulf News reported, quoting police as complaining that transvestites were frequently being spotted.
“This is against the UAE’s traditions and social values,” said General Dhahi Khalfan Tamim, adding that action would be taken against any man or woman who behaved like the opposite gender in public.
More than half the population of Dubai are expatriates, with 100,000 of them hailing from Britain. More than one million British people visited as tourists last year.
The move against tranvesticism comes after a British couple was arrested for allegedly having sex on a public beach.
Since then undercover police have been patrolling beaches to crack down on those whom they accuse of behaving “in a lewd mannerâ€.
