‘Image laundering’ Saudi Arabia will also perform at Paris Fashion Week

Saudi Arabia, which is considered a conservative country that values ​​Islamic traditions, will also step into the Paris Fashion Week stage.

AFP reported that Saudi-born designer Muhammad Ash will open his brand’Ash Studio’ show at Paris Fashion Week on the 6th (local time) for the first time after being named as an official member of the Paris Haute Couture Guild.

Asi, who left Saudi Arabia 30 years ago, has pursued a career abroad and has been worn by celebrities such as Beyoncé, Penelope Cruz and Cardi B.

Asi told AFP that her haute couture show at Paris Fashion Week was “the pinnacle of my career.”

Analysts say that the reason why Saudi fashion has attracted attention is that Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has focused not only on fashion but also on movies, sports, video games, and tourism to improve Saudi Arabia’s external image over the past few years.

Crown Prince Mohammed, a powerful figure in Saudi Arabia, is promoting the ‘Saudi Vision 2030’, which diversifies the economy away from oil, and is trying to break away from Saudi Arabia’s conservative image by allowing women to enter and drive at soccer stadiums.

Saudi Arabia also announced plans to hold its own fashion week in October last year to raise its profile in the fashion industry. In addition, Saudi elites have spent huge amounts of money to host private events for world-class luxury brands in their country.

The Saudi National Fashion Council forecasts that apparel retail sales will grow 48% between 2021 and 2025 to $32 billion (about 42 trillion won), thanks to private sector growth.

Burak Khakmak, CEO of the National Fashion Council of Saudi Arabia, told AFP that a stable foundation has been laid for the fashion business in the country.

However, critics say that such a move is aimed at laundering Saudi Arabia’s external image, which is represented by democratization retreat and human rights violations.

In Saudi Arabia, democracy is said to have greatly retreated since Crown Prince Mohammed seized real power. Political freedom is almost deprived, and it is evaluated that ruthless imprisonment and torture are being practiced against opponents of the regime.

In particular, the assassination of Saudi dissident journalist Jamal Khashoggi in 2018 caused great controversy.

In addition, while homosexuality is illegal in Saudi Arabia, it is pointed out as a kind of irony that there are many gay designers in the fashion industry and the LGBTQ community is influential.

German journalist Suzanne Koelbl, an expert on the Middle East, said: “Saudi authorities know that many designers are gay,” and their approach is simply “to ignore” it.

Koelble described Crown Prince Mohammed’s policies as “a well-planned, long-term reform process” and evaluated that “Saudi people tend not to be revolutionary, but many, especially women, are being given new and great opportunities.”

(Source: Yonhap News / Translation of an article : James from JT News)