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Qatar 2022: Amid ongoing human rights concerns, World Cup chief promises host country will be ‘tolerant’ and ‘welcoming’


Nasser Al Khater, the tournament’s chief organizer, insisted Qatar had been treated “unfairly and unfairly” since winning the right to host the tournament 11 years ago.

Responding to Cavallo’s fear, Al Khater said: “On the contrary, we welcome him here in the state of Qatar, we welcome him to watch even before the World Cup… No one feels threatened. threatened here, no one feels unsafe.”

He added: “The notion that people don’t feel safe here is untrue. I’ve said this before and I say this again to you, everyone is welcome here. . Everyone is welcome here and everyone will feel safe here. Qatar is a tolerant country. It’s a welcoming country. It’s a hospitable country.”

Al Khater stands in Doha's Khalifa International Stadium in 2017.
In October, Welsh football fan James Brinning told CNN Sport that he “wouldn’t feel safe” going to Qatar if Wales were to qualify for the World Cup on account of his gender.

“It’s really upsetting to think about it because I could have been a part of such a great moment in the history of Welsh football if it had happened,” he said.

This is not the first time anti-LGBTQ legislation has been raised around a major football tournament.

In June, European football’s governing body UEFA refused request to light the Allianz Arena in Munich in rainbow colors for the Euro 2020 match between Germany and Hungary under anti-LGBTQ legislation passed by the Hungarian parliament.
Then on the eve of the 2018 World Cup, the UK Foreign Office pre-tournament warning that members of the LGBTQ community face “significant risks” when traveling to Russia.
And football isn’t the only sports community raising concerns about Qatar’s anti-homosexuality laws. Before Formula One’s Qatar Grand Prix on November 21, Lewis Hamilton, who would go on to win the race, was widely praised for wearing a helmet with the Proud Progressive flag – a redesigned and more encompassing version of the traditional rainbow flag – emblazoned with with the words “We stand together.”
A clock in Doha counts down the days until the World Cup begins.

Al Khater acknowledged that Qatar has a stricter approach to public display of affection than other countries, and when pressed by CNN about the country’s laws, Al Khater declined to say that the counted as illegal, just saying “like many countries”. – Same-sex marriage is illegal in Qatar.

“In different countries, there is more leniency towards public displays of affection,” he said.

“Qatar and the region are much more modest, and Qatar and the region are much more conservative. And this is what we ask the fans to respect. And we are sure that the fans will respect that. … We respect different cultures and we expect other cultures to respect us.”

Over the past decade, Qatar has also come under pressure related to the treatment of migrant workers involved in the construction of World Cup stadiums, with the International Labor Organization (ILO). recently said that the state is inadequately investigating and reporting workplace deaths.

Earlier this year, Barun Ghimire, a human rights lawyer based in Kathmandu whose work focuses on the exploitation of Nepalese migrants working abroad, told CNN that the plight of Nepalese laborers is “particularly grieving in the Gulf.”

Grandfather speak, added: “The Qatar World Cup is truly a bloody trophy – the blood of migrant workers.”

However, Ghimire emphasized that the blame should not be solely on Qatar. He said that the government of Nepal and other countries are also responsible for not providing workers with proper protection in their destination countries.

In a report released this month, the ILO said at least 50 Qatari workers died in 2020 due to a data-gathering flaw by the country’s agencies that prevented the organization from issuing a Categorical figures for the number of fatal occupational injuries.

In a statement, the Qatari Ministry of Labor said that “the figures reported in the media about the deaths of migrant workers are misleading”, while Al Khater also denied that there was gaps in Qatar’s reporting of labor-related deaths.

“Our location is clear… They have contractors, they have a worker benefits team in place,” he said. “If there’s a death, people will know about it. It’s not something you can hide.”

The Guardian reported earlier this year that 6,500 migrant workers have died in the country since Qatar won the right to host the World Cup in 2010, most of them working for low wages, dangerous labor, often work in extreme hot conditions.

The report, which CNN has not independently verified, did not connect all 6,500 deaths to infrastructure projects for the World Cup.

Al Khater reiterated that he denied the accuracy of the report, saying: “I completely deny The Guardian’s claims.”

He added: “This is something that needs to be made clear. Absolutely clear. The number of deaths on work-related World Cup stadiums is three. There are just over 30 deaths. non-work-related deaths.”

The past few years have seen Qatar implement labor restructuring policies.

The state funding system, known as kafala, was dismantled last year, partly allowing migrant workers to change jobs before the end of their contracts without the consent of their employers. labor.

Qatar has also introduced a non-discriminatory minimum wage of $275/month for both migrant workers as well as domestic workers – a policy it claims is a first in the region. .

“The progress made in the previous 10 years by the state of Qatar cannot be compared with any progress made anywhere in the world in such a short period of time,” Al Khater said.

“The enactment of laws usually takes a very long time. It was passed very quickly in the state of Qatar. They were moved quickly to ensure that they were implemented.”

Several national teams, including Denmark, Germany and Norway, have outstanding human rights issues before the World Cup.

Denmark is the latest country to do so after announcing that two kit sponsors would give up brand space on players’ training kits in lieu of messages highlighting human rights issues. in Qatar. The country’s football federation also said it would minimize the number of trips to Qatar to avoid promoting events around the World Cup.

Player rallies will likely continue during the build-up to – and throughout – next year’s tournament, which Al Khater said organizers won’t stop happening.

“Are we worried about it? No, I wouldn’t say we’re worried about it,” Al Khater said.

“But I think these players have a responsibility and these federations have a responsibility to make sure that when people take up positions, they are being positioned correctly and reflecting reality.

“Because regardless of what people feel is true, people need to recognize progress, they need to recognize the responsibility the state of Qatar has taken on its shoulders to make progress, enact legislation, protect protect workers’ rights, their welfare.”

Tuesday marks the start of the Arab Cup with the participation of 16 teams from across the region. It will also see two World Cup venues – Al Bayt Stadium and Ras Abu Aboud Stadium – inaugurated on the opening day of the tournament.

As for the Qatar 2022 organizers, it provides an opportunity to try out several World Cup venues ahead of next year’s competition.

“This is going to be a big test and it’s going to be a very useful test,” said Al Khater.

However, next year’s tournament will be on a different scale than the Arabian Cup, with more teams, more fans and more eyes watching around the world.

Meanwhile, 13 countries have now qualified for the tournament as the extended countdown for Qatar 2022 begins.

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