Ask An Omani! This week, "what's with the creepy teenage boys hanging around playgrounds and leering at Expat women? And what should they do?

Yes folks, another question for "Ask an Omani!"... thanks to our resident Omani expert, Omani Dreamer. This week, those annoying and rude Omani teenage boys who hang out at parks.

Why do these young men late teens/early 20s, hang around children's playgrounds intimidating and taking photos of the women, esp. any Western women (dressed very conservatively)? And what would you advise them to do to stop them doing it, as it is so disrespectful and, well, creepy.

Expat Moms and Teenage Boys at the Playground

Lets say you decided to take your children to Al Qurum park, Al Riyam park, or the beach playground and were faced with the following:

You spot three teenage boys, who are definitely too old to be in the playground, approaching your zone because they just "have" to play in the swings, slide down the slippery slide, or struggle to hang on the monkey bars with your kids. Never forget the stares and the giggling followed by the tossing of a few inappropriate words (with limited English capabilities).

At this stage, you (expat mom) feel very uncomfortable, but try to ignore them. But teenage boys with lots of hormones just need that extra excitement, which is when you will start hearing the "SNAP"…giggle…giggle.. "SNAP"… more giggle… giggle… and… "We ..You... Picture"… giggle .. giggle..

Well, sorry moms. I know you are wondering "WHY!?" in agony thinking that there is a logical reason for this behavior beyond the regular "sexual frustration", but unfortunately, it is just that! .. ohh, seeing white flesh (no matter how minimal) adds to that excitement!.. Rare is always extra special!

But never give up! As, I, Reality, have a solution that will end your misery! It is simple, easy, and available to all expat moms!

Put on a serious face.. (just like this .. 0_0! .. wide eyes and pissed) and look directly at them. Take out your cell phone.. (slowly for dramatic effects) and

SNAP SNAP … (make sure your phone is not on silence) make a phone call.. and utter the word .. POLICE.. (be loud and confident.. just like Denzel Washington, and you can say pawlece too for extra special effects) ….

The result?! … the dishdasha held up to the knees and skinny legs flying everywhere... "RUN RUN"…

Bad boys, bad boys, what you gonna do...

Strange little story today in the Tribune about juvenile crime. As per usual, no analysis.

It seems Omani youth are getting naughtier, and no surprise, mainly boys.

I'd still like to see one of the papers start a half decent court report.

No mention of course of the group fight & stabbing that took place in a local night club a couple of weeks ago, and that resulted in the subsequent death of some Omani youth.[Actually, later turns out stabbing was in Shatti, not in the nightclub. oops. As I had to tell the staff 'The floggings will continue until moral improves' UD] Its now a regular occurance in many of the pubs that groups of Omani lads fuelled by heineken and vodka red-bulls will find something to start a fight about.

I still insist the immature behaviour of most Omani late teenagers/20s is due in large part to a simple lack of sex combined with unemployment. Because it's so expensive to get married these days (~5000 rials dowry + ceremony etc), and the girls also want a guy with a decent job, most Omani boys have no real hope of marrying until their late 20s or early 30s.

And when you've been flushed with testosterone from the age of ~13, that's a long time to wait. Meanwhile you can drive a lowered VW Golf pimped up with pieces of Chinese plastic really fast, cruise Shatti, stare at the expat women, watch downloaded or blackmarket porn, and defend your manhood in the bars.

1,115 crimes by juveniles in 2007
By Khalid Al Amri
Muscat: The number of juveniles who committed crimes in the Sultanate in 2007 amounted to 1,115 compared to 1,059 in 2006, said HE Hussein Bin Ali Al Hilali, Prosecutor-General in a special statement to Oman Tribune.

“The growth in the number of juvenile crimes does not necessarily mean a growth in the trend as it may reflect alertness by the officers in tracing those involved in such crimes. The general prosecution investigated 23,701 cases in 2006 including 1,059 compared to 24,285 in 2007 including 1,115 by juveniles,” he added.

As for the major crimes by juveniles, Al Hilali pointed out that they include simple harm 225 incidents and 215 of them were committed by boys and 10 by girls. The number of theft crimes in 2007 amounted to 240 including 211 by boys and 29 by girls.