Brussels, 4 September 2014 (ITUC OnLine): The ITUC has expressed serious concern for
the safety and welfare of two human rights investigators, Ghimire Gundev and
Krishna Upadhyaya, in Qatar. The two
British nationals were being followed and harassed by Qatari security agents as
they documented extreme violations of workers' rights in the Gulf state. They then disappeared as they prepared to
leave their hotel for Doha airport to leave the country on 31 August.
Sharan Burrow, ITUC General Secretary said "Qatar
seems to think that creating a climate of fear and intimidation will somehow
turn the eyes of the world away from its modern slavery economy. Hundreds of migrant workers, many of them
women, are languishing in Doha's detention centres simply for running away from
abusive and violent employers. Foreign
journalists have been detained for trying to report the truth, and state
repression is actually increasing in a country that already showed no respect
for basic human rights and legal standards."
Norwegian based human rights ngo GNRD, the employer of
the two investigators, is "deeply concerned that these employees, both
British citizens, may have been subjected to enforced disappearance and are
currently at risk of torture".
Meanwhile, FIFA is pushing ahead with preparations for
the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, with meetings scheduled for 8 September on whether
to hold the event in summer or winter.
"FIFA appears to have forgotten about the plight of
the hundreds of thousands of migrants building the World Cup infrastructure,
with a least one worker losing their life every day. Even the cosmetic changes to the kafala
system of servitude have been put back for as much as 18 months while the local
Chamber of Commerce decides if it will allow even these so-called reforms to see
the light of day. FIFA should vote again
on who should host in 2022 rather than dancing to the tune of corporate
sponsors and multinational construction firms at the expense of some of the
world's most exploited workers," said Burrow.
INTERNATIONAL TRADE UNION CONFEDERATION
ITUC OnLine
060/040914
Qatar: Human Rights Investigators Vanish, as FIFA Forges Ahead on 2022 World Cup
