FIFA: Money VS Human Rights

On the 20th November 2022, the FIFA World Cup will kick off in Qatar. This will be watched by billions across the world but the wealthy host nation’s poor human rights record is likely to deter many female and LGBTQ+ fans from attending. Meanwhile, the event’s $200bn expense pales next to the widely reported human cost of migrant workers who have lost their lives erecting the nation’s new football stadium in order to host the World Cup.

In 2010, the Former Fifa President, Sepp Blatter announced that Qatar had won the bid to host the 2022 World Cup

So how did a country with one of the world’s worst human rights record win the World Cup bid?

Qatar will be the first country in the Middle East to host the World Cup. The controversy surrounding this arose when the country was labelled as a “high risk” host by FIFA due to it’s dangerously hot temperatures and lack of sufficient facilities. Despite this, an overwhelming majority of Fifa executives still voted in favour of Qatar, beating the likes of USA, Australia, Japan and South Korea.

In 2011, former FA Leader Lord Triesman accused representatives of Trinidad and Tobago and Paraguay and two other FIFA executives of “inappropriate and unethical conduct” including soliciting and accepting bribes from Qatari officials in the exchange for support. for the country’s for the World Cup. In addition, Phaedra Al-Majid, a whistleblower, claimed that Q paid $1.5 million each to former FIFA officials from Côte d'Ivoire and Cameroon to secure their votes. FIFA cleared Qatar of any wrongdoing in a report released in 2014, but a 2021 AP investigation later revealed that Qatar had hired a former CIA officer to spy on FIFA officials who had chose the World Cup host in 2010.

Qatar’s Human Rights Violations

Qatar criminalizes sexual activity between men and women of the same sex. The sentences may include a possible maximum sentence of death by stoning.

Sexual activity between persons of the same sex is prohibited by the Penal Code of 2004, which criminalizes acts of "sodomy” and "sexual intercourse" between persons of the same sex. The Qatar Constitution designates Islam as the state religion and Islamic law as the primary source of legislation. As such, in addition to the Penal Code, Qatar applies an interpretation of Sharia Law that criminalizes sexual activity between men, which can be punished with the death penalty.

There is some limited evidence from law enforcement in recent years, but reports are rare. In recent years there have been some reports of discrimination and violence against LGBT people, however reporting of incidents is limited due to the inability of the LGBT community to speak openly about their identities.

In October, ahead of the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar, Human Rights Watch reported that security forces arbitrarily detained and ill-treated LGBT people in detention in the country . Human Rights Watch interviewed six LGBT Qataris, including four transgender women, one bisexual woman and one gay man. They all said officers from the Preventive Security Department held them in an underground prison in Al Dafneh, Doha, where they were verbally and physically abused, including slapping, kicking and beating until they bled. One woman said she lost consciousness. According to those interviewed, the security officers also verbally abused them, extracted confessions and denied the detainees access to legal counsel, family members and medical care. The six said they were forced to sign promises that they would "cease immoral activities". Further reports in October claimed that Qatari police regularly used gay dating apps, to catch gay men to engage in sexual acts. and physical violence before being arrested.

In November, an official ambassador for the Qatari World Cup described homosexuality as “damage in the mind”. In an interview with German broadcaster Khalid Salman, a former Qatar international footballer, said “They have to accept our rules here. [Homosexuality] is haram. You know what haram means? . . . I am not a strict Muslim but why is it haram? Because it is damage in the mind.

Labour Conditions

Qatar's expatriate workforce (around 1.2 million workers, mostly from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal and the Philippines) make up 94% of the workforce but enjoy the least legal and economic protections in the country. The Guardianwarned in 2013 that up to 4,000 workers could die during World Cup preparations due to safety concerns and mistreatment, and claimed migrant workers were being denied food, water, decent wages and safety measures . The workers later confirmed these allegations to Amnesty International, adding that they were subjected to verbal abuse, threats and deprived of basic labor rights. In 2014, The Guardian reported that the number of migrant worker deaths increased rapidly as construction activity in Qatar continued.Although Qatar introduced new reforms to the Kafala system in 2020, including allowing workers to change jobs without needing their sponsor's permission, a non-discriminatory minimum wage across the country, and the abolition of the exit residence permit forced them to leave the country: millions of foreign workers have already suffered to prepare Qatar for the World Cup.

Learn more about Qatar’s Labour Conditions on Amnesty’s Website below:-

What Is Happening Now?

FIFA has written to the 32 teams taking part in the World Cup, telling them to "focus on football now". They said football should not be "drawn into ideological or political battles" or "taught moral lessons.” In response to this, ten European Football Associations including England and Wales stated "Human rights are universal and apply everywhere"..

England captain Harry Kane and the nine other team captains will wear "One Love" armbands to protest Qatar's anti-homosexuality laws.

Although internal and external controversy threatens to overshadow the event, the 2022 World Cup will nevertheless take place in Qatar. The continuation of this year's cup begs the question: if human rights abuses weren't enough to justify canceling the event, what would it take? Perhaps it's time to reevaluate the human cost that the world of international sport normally gives rise to.

- Megha Banerjee