During a mission of MEPs to Doha on 21-23 April, accompanied by EUROPE, many Qatari officials expressed their disappointment about the lack of support from Europeans on the respect of human rights at a time when Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt have been imposing a blockade on Qatar since June 2017.
The head of Qatar's national committee on human rights, Ali bin Samikh Al-Marr, will speak to the European Parliament's sub-committee on human rights this Thursday to give details of his country's situation.
The four aforementioned countries accuse Qatar of supporting terrorism by financing Hamas and the Muslim Brotherhood. Qatar defends itself by saying that these countries are concerned about the country's political independence and openness of democracy, particularly because of the programmes of its television channel Al Jazeera.
"We hope for a position from the European Parliament. Imagine that this happens to another country (...) the international community must think about this", the head of Qatar's Consultative Assembly, Ahmad Bin Abdullah Bin Zaid Al-Mahmoud, told the members of the Friends of Qatar delegation (an informal European Parliament group). "We need you to stand alongside justice", he said.
"This crisis is a collective punishment against the population", Qatar's Foreign Affairs Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani stated. He is to visit the European Parliament in June. "What bothers us is the segregation of families", the head of the Qatari Assembly stated.
The blockade has an impact on the freedom of movement, especially on family meetings and religious pilgrimages, with Saudi Arabia being home to two of the three holy places of Islam. According to Najwa Al-Thani, a researcher on international cooperation at the national committee on human rights, there is also incitement to violence and hatred, especially via social media.
"We want you to support the victims and stand alongside them", Ali bin Samikh Al-Marri said, adding that he was "disappointed" by the response of the European Parliament thus far. "We have talked to them. They are neutral in the crisis because of their interests in Saudi Arabia or in the other countries. But I do not understand how they can accept the violations of human rights", he added.
"It is difficult to look at a rich country as a victim. It is not something you think about", said Ramona Mănescu (EPP, Romania), the head of the Friends of Qatar group. "It is difficult for us to pass from a country with human rights problems within it to a victim country", she added. "Whatever the political reasons behind the blockade, we must stand alongside the victims", she nevertheless said.
The MEPs from the delegation have committed to working on a resolution highlighting the human rights violations suffered by the Qataris.
However, according to Mănescu, it will be difficult to have her peers accept such a resolution when the world has far more critical situations. "The Parliament can facilitate mediation", she instead highlighted, proposing to bring the stakeholders in the crisis around the table for a debate. "It is not a question of saying whether they are right or wrong, but of listening to them", she said.
Improvement of foreign workers' rights
The Qataris find the EU's silence all the more unfair as it has criticised the shortcomings on human rights in their country. This emirate has been the subject of criticism regarding the working conditions of its workmen on worksites for the 2022 football World Cup or the sponsoring of foreign workers, whom they made dependent on, if not slaves to, their boss in terms of freedom of movement.
"Qatar is using the blockade to improve its human rights", Najwa Al-Thani said, although 80% of the workers in the country are foreigners.
According to Ali bin Samikh Al-Marri, the government has been working on a system of salary protection since 2013 and it is now obligatory for salaries to be paid into a bank account. In December 2015, a law also reversed the Kafala system (of sponsorship), which has been replaced with a contract. New standards have also been introduced in the construction sector to protect workers.
Furthermore, in November 2017 the government agreed to cancel the permit for leaving the country. "Much progress has been made. They have changed laws and are implementing them (...) Everyone recognises that Qatar has resolved most of its problems in terms of human rights", Mănescu acknowledged.
The International Labour Organisation has stopped its proceeding against Qatar for violation of respect of working conditions for immigrants, in connection with the 2022 World Cup.
According to the Qataris, the blockade has enabled their nation to become stronger. "After ten months, they (Ed: the four countries imposing the blockade) have achieved nothing. We have achieved resilience and independence. We are proud of our country", the foreign minister stated. This crisis "has made Qatar change from a country to a nation – a small one, but proud of itself and of its development", he added.
The many portraits of the emir that have appeared on buildings in Doha over the last ten months is evidence of this.
Developing relations with the EU
In the face of this situation, Qatar has had to find new trade partners to replace its Gulf neighbours. "The blockade has increasingly opened up our economy", Energy Minister Mohammed Bin Saleh Al-Sada stated. "After the blockade, it will be difficult to return to a limited number of suppliers", he added.
"When it is lifted, don't go backwards. Go further with your new partners, in terms of trade, but also of policy", Mănescu advised, adding that the blockade offered the possibility of discussing greater cooperation between the EU and Qatar.
While Doha is already an important supplier of liquefied natural gas for several member states, Mănescu said the EU wanted to diversify their sources of energy supply.
In addition to economic cooperation, the Qataris would like to develop family tourism, especially for Europeans. To facilitate their visits, citizens of 80 nationalities (including those of the EU countries) can now deal with their visa formalities directly at Doha airport – and this has been the case for several months. The Qataris would like Europeans to do the same for them in return. (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)