As the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar comes to a close, HRW’s Rothna Begum and Minky Worden discuss the legacy of the games and the human rights implications with Equidem’s Dennis Dome.

In our weekly Twitter Space, HRW discusses labor conditions in Qatar and the fashion industry, and how to ensure better protection for those who make events like the FIFA World Cup and fast fashion products possible.

Workers, Families Speak Out as World Cup Nears

Ahead of the 2022 FIFA World Cup, LGBT Qataris are raising the alarm on abuses they have endured by security forces in Qatar. HRW’s Rothna Begum moderates this discussion with HRW researcher Rasha Younes and Qatari LGBT rights activist Dr. Nasser Mohamed.

On March 31, as FIFA convened its 72nd Congress in Doha, one speaker took a brave stance on the uncomfortable truth about human rights realities in Qatar. Lise Klaveness, the Norwegian Football Association president, directly called out the past failures of FIFA to protect human rights in the context of selecting FIFA to host the 2022 World Cup. Using the imagery of “the beautiful game,” she noted how “Human rights, equality, democracy, the core interests of football, were not in the starting 11 until many years later. These basic rights were pressured on as substitutes, mainly by outside voices.”

On April 1, the draw for the 2022 World Cup finals is set to take place in Qatar, which is hosting the tournament. This is a major event for football fans, who will be hoping for good luck and a favorable draw to help their favorite teams along the path to December’s final match. Sadly, it was often luck, rather than robust Qatari laws and protections, that has determined the fate of millions of migrant workers, many of whom were drawn to Qatar over the last decade for the allure (and often illusion) of higher wages, only to instead suffer terrible abuses at the hands of unaccountable and unscrupulous employers. The Qatari authorities have created and maintained a system that allows this to continue, without effective remedies for those abused.