Brussels, 14/02/2014 (Agence Europe) - In a public hearing on 13 February, MEPs and association members called on Qatar to respect human rights - especially those of migrant workers and footballers. Qatar has been criticised for the working conditions of thousands of migrant workers who are involved in the construction of infrastructure for the Football World Cup in 2022 (no minimum wage, slow payment). It has also been criticised because European footballers are blocked in the country due to the Kafala - a sort of sponsorship system that prevents workers from entering or leaving the country without the authorisation of their employer. “Qatar is a slave state (…). Migrants have no dignity in their work”, said the secretary general of the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC), Sharan Burrow.
“The international community must respond so that the situation becomes more humane and so that human rights are respected”, Burrow stated. According to the representative from the European External Action Service (EEAS), Benoit Chapas, the EU institutions are trying to establish closer links with the Qataris on human rights, and to determine how they can bring assistance - including technical assistance.
The Fédération internationale de Football Association (FIFA, football's world governing body), represented by Theo Zwanziger, was criticised for its choice of Qatar, but Zwanziger stated that a “World Cup can also enable long-term improvement including on working conditions”. He gave assurances that FIFA “will not close its eyes and will not accept that the workers have such disastrous [working] conditions”. He asked for FIFA not be singled out and called for cooperation and support from the other organisations. FIFA expects a strong position from the political and economic world, he added, calling for a political dialogue between the member states and Qatar on the Kafala.
Europeans have called on companies to invest more in the protection of workers. In the view of Jonas Baer-Hoffman, from the FIFPro professional players association, “sport can't be asked to settle all the problems. The economic world must take its responsibility”. The chair of the European Parliament's sub-committee on human rights, Barbara Lochbihler (Greens/EFA, Germany), stressed that the “construction companies, including those coming from the EU, must ensure that workers' conditions are in place. The construction companies must not elude their responsibility in relation to workers.”
Baer-Hoffman and Lochbihler called on sports organisations to include respect for human rights in their choice of places for sports events. FIFA and the Olympic Committee should have their “own human rights policy”, said Lochbihler. “The Olympic Games or a World Cup are events sufficient to motivate a country to change if it wants to host them”, added Baer-Hoffman.
Lochbihler announced that a European Parliament delegation will visit Qatar in March. (CG/transl.fl)