Migrants are big winners of Qatar’s World Cup success...
WORKERS’ conditions and human rights have improved significantly in Qatar after the Gulf state won the bid to host next year’s World Cup, says a report.
This was the conclusion of the independent sports think tank Fifa Ethics and Regulation Watch (FERW), which carried out a survey among migrant workers.
However, the think tank could find little evidence that Fifa itself was responsible for the improvements, which the report’s author said was a “missed opportunity” by football’s ruling body.
The report found that global media focus on the emirate has had a much greater impact.
Asked, “Is the World Cup helping to improve human rights and labour conditions in Qatar?”, 95 per cent of the migrant workers polled said yes.
Other questions about the reforms, overseen in part by the UN’S International Labour Organisation, found a majority (53 per cent) saying their working environment and treatment had improved. However, one in six said the law needed further enforcement and one in eight said they had not felt any benefit.
Robert Oulds, the report’s author, said: “We came to the project with an open mind, but aware of conflicting press reports about the situation on the ground.
“Some painted a dystopian image of the emirate, while others a rose-tinted one.
“We were able to identify, then verify through interviews with ordinary workers, that there had been significant legislative and regulatory improvements in recent years, with these being felt by all migrant workers, not just those working on the World Cup stadiums.
“Disappointingly, we found little or no evidence that football’s governing body had been part of this change, and that these improvements had been driven by three factors, namely the ruler of Qatar, the substantial body of work undertaken by NGOS such as Amnesty or the International Labour Organisation and the scrutiny of the emirate and its treatment of foreign workers by the international media.”
He continued: “One area we found that did require further work was ensuring that the improvements were being fully implemented. As our survey shows, while a clear majority had felt the benefits of the changes, some had not.”
Some four in 10 believed laws had not been implemented “effectively”.
The report contrasts with China, which will host the Winter Olympics next year.
The report’s author concludes that China has gone backwards in terms of human rights, the security crackdown in Hong Kong, forced imprisonment of the Uighurs, Tibet and threats towards Taiwan.
Mr Oulds continued: “The difference between the improvements in Qatar and the worsening situation in China is stark.
“In one, an existing desire to change has been turbo-charged due to the scrutiny of the international community. In the other – which prevents many NGOS from openly operating within their border, restricts the internet and blocks journalists from freely reporting – the situation for ordinary people has at best stayed the same or at worst, deteriorated.
“This is why we believe improving human and worker rights must be hardwired into all future bids, with sanctions up to and including having the event
removed.”
‘We came with
an open mind’