As the 2022 World Cup draws to a conclusion, worldwide rights organizations have rekindled their criticism of Qatar and FIFA regarding the exploitation of thousands of migrant workers who were responsible for the construction of stadiums and other event infrastructure.
The final of the World Cup will take place on Sunday, which also happens to be Qatar National Day and International Migrants Day.
“However good the football has often been, the tournament has come at a heavy cost for hundreds of thousands of workers,” Steve Cockburn, the head of Amnesty International’s economic and social justice program, said in a statement that was provided to CNN. “They have paid illegal recruitment fees, had their wages stolen, or even lost their lives,” Cockburn added.
In addition, he stated that the employees and their families “earned compensation” from the authorities.
“We are still waiting for FIFA and Qatar to commit to providing compensation for everyone who made this World Cup possible,” he said. “We are extremely grateful to everyone who contributed to the success of this event.”
Critics have stated that FIFA president Gianni Infantino’s comment ignores the sacrifices of migrant workers, who are frequently subjected to harsh and squalid living and working conditions. Infantino made his comments on Friday, when he praised organizers and volunteers for staging the “best World Cup ever.”
A number of organizations, including Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, Equidem, and Migrant Defenders, as well as others, have demanded that Qatar and FIFA do more for the migrant workers who were responsible for the delivery of the World Cup.
Additionally, the Ukrainian presidential administration has taken issue with FIFA’s refusal to broadcast a message of peace from President Volodymyr Zelensky in the days leading up to the final.
“FIFA has a human rights policy with clear rules protecting human rights, but far too often, FIFA sided with its wealthy partner Qatar against the most vulnerable,” said Minky Worden, the global initiatives director at Human Rights Watch. “FIFA has a human rights policy with clear rules protecting human rights.”
Worden also stated that the labor reforms enacted by the government in Qatar “came too late” and were either “too narrow” or “weakly executed,” which prevented many foreign workers from benefiting from them.
“This World Cup in Qatar will surely be remembered, but for all the wrong reasons: as the most costly sporting event ever—aand the most lethal,” she added. “This World Cup in Qatar will be remembered as the most expensive sporting event ever—and the most fatal.”
Organization representing workers’ rights Following the conclusion of the World Cup, Equidem made a request to Infantino, asking him to support the development of an autonomous migrant worker centre in Qatar.
Over the past two weeks, the attention of the whole world has been focused on Qatar, a little country that is just slightly larger than the state of Connecticut. However, the country’s human rights record has been under increased scrutiny as a result of its hosting of the World Cup. In addition to drawing harsh condemnation, the deaths of migrant labourers in the country in the years running up to the competition have also come under fire.
Over 30,000 foreign workers, most of whom were males from south Asian nations such as India, Pakistan, Nepal, and Bangladesh, were brought in to work on the construction of stadiums, according to figures provided by the government. Additionally, the state on the Gulf of Mexico developed its airport, as well as new hotels, rail lines, and roadways.
This week, Malcolm Bidali, co-founder of the Nairobi-based Migrant Defenders and a former security guard in Qatar, told CNN that he was worried about the plight of migrant workers after the spotlight of the World Cup moves on. Migrant Defenders is an organization that advocates for the rights of migrants around the world.
“As we speak, we still have people not getting paid; people are still living in cramped conditions; and we still have people facing physical, verbal, and sexual assault; discrimination; long working hours; and horrible working conditions,” said Bidali. “We have people still facing physical, verbal, and sexual assault, and we have people still facing long working hours and horrible working conditions.”