A group of angry youth gathered in front of the Ritika Shoes store in Tripoli. (Credit: Michel Hallak.)
BEIRUT - The Lebanese brand Ritika Shoes, has once again apologized in a statement published Wednesday evening, following the controversy that erupted over the use of names considered sacred in Islam, stating that they have removed the controversial names from all communication.
In a second statement published a few hours after the first, and while some of its stores were attacked mainly in Akkar (Northern Lebanon), the brand responded to the "violent campaign" against it, assuring that the choice of women's names to name some of its products was made "in good faith and without any connection to a religious or historical context." Ritika Shoes once again offered its "sincere apologies to all those who felt offended or provoked" by this marketing campaign, "which was in no way intended to harm a historical or religious figure or compromise the beliefs of any party."
Recognizing an "error," the company announced that it had taken "measures" and removed the controversial names from the products. On the brand's website, no names were indeed listed on the various shoes presented, although they are still visible in the URLs. Furthermore, "the marketing policies adopted" by the company have been "completely revised."
The controversy erupted after a lawyer filed a judicial complaint against the brand. It quickly escalated when groups of men attacked the company's stores in Akkar, while the court of appeal of Northern Lebanon had some of these establishments closed.