Amnesty International warns of abuse in Qatar

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Amnesty International warns of abuse in Qatar

Qatar’s construction industry is rife with abuse of migrant workers who are “treated like cattle” and live in squalid accommodation exposed to overflowing sewage, Amnesty International said in a report on Sunday.

The country will host the 2022 World Cup, and Amnesty called on the world soccer’s governing body FIFA to work with Qatari authorities to stamp out abuses of workers who mainly come from South Asia.

“Our findings indicate an alarming level of exploitation in the construction sector in Qatar,” said Amnesty International’s Secretary General Salil Shetty.

“FIFA has a duty to send a strong public message that it will not tolerate human rights abuses on construction projects related to the World Cup. It is simply inexcusable in one of the richest countries in the world that so many migrant workers are being ruthlessly exploited, deprived of their pay and left struggling to survive. Many are taking advantage of a permissive environment and lax enforcement of labour protections to exploit construction workers.”

Amnesty is the latest organization to focus on the treatment of migrant workers in Qatar, following similarly scathing reports by Britain’s Guardian newspaper and the International Trade Union Confederation.

Amnesty said it had carried out interviews with about 210 migrant workers in the construction industry during two visits to the country in October 2012 and March 2013.

Reuters
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