World Cup has helped Qatar strengthen employee rights, says organiser

Qatar acknowledges there are gaps in its labor system however the World Cup has allowed the nation to make progress on points associated to employee rights, Mahmoud Qutub, a member of the event’s organizing committee, mentioned on Thursday.

Qatar, the primary Middle Eastern nation to stage soccer’s showpiece occasion, has come beneath extreme scrutiny from human rights teams over its therapy of migrant staff within the run-up to the event, which kicks off on Nov 20. Despite Qatar’s efforts, the Council of Europe mentioned extra outcomes have to be seen. “The number of tragic accidents continues to run into the hundreds. And enforcement of new rules isn’t sufficiently effective. Workers don’t have the right of assembly,” mentioned Lord George Foulkes, who chaired the listening to.

Qutub, the Supreme Committee’s govt director of staff’ welfare and labor rights, mentioned that the labor panorama in Qatar had modified considerably since FIFA awarded the World Cup to the Gulf state in 2010. “We embarked on this journey after we won the World Cup bid. There was an acknowledgment at the time that gaps existed. We have demonstrated through our various ecosystems that meaningful steps can be taken to fill those gaps,” he mentioned. Qutub was one of many audio system at a public parliamentary listening to on the safety of staff’ rights in Qatar, organized by the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe in Strasbourg.

A 2021 Amnesty International report famous that hundreds of migrant staff had been nonetheless being exploited, an allegation denied by Qatar, with Qutub including that the Workers’ Welfare Standards launched in 2014 had helped defend labor rights. “We recognize there are shortcomings. This was, after all, the reason why we pursued the World Cup bid awarding the World Cup has done a lot of service to Qatar, the region, and the globe,” Qutub mentioned.

Rights teams have additionally pointed to homosexuality being unlawful in Qatar and the way legal guidelines discriminate towards girls and LGBTQ+ people.

Lise Klaveness, president of the Norwegian Football Federation, mentioned: “We have but to discuss a number of the elephants within the room: guaranteeing unbiased investigation of unexplained deaths. “We demand that security, respect and rights for LGBTQ+ individuals and basic respect for ladies’s soccer must be non-negotiable necessities for internet hosting the most important sports activities event on the earth.

“The positive changes need to reach more than the 2% of workers the Supreme Committee covers. And the changes need to be lasting before we can talk about any legacy.” Nasser Al Khater, the chief govt of the 2022 World Cup, has mentioned LGBTQ+ followers coming into the nation wouldn’t have to fret about “persecution of any sort”, describing Qatar as a “tolerant country”. However, Klaveness desires soccer’s governing physique to take a stronger stance.

“There have been many discussions with FIFA about many things, and we have had many promises which have yet to be fulfilled. Dismissals, delays, and hollow commitments just aren’t good enough on this issue. FIFA must now use all its leverage to get changes implemented,” she added