BACKGROUND

Since 2010, when FIFA awarded Qatar the rights to host the men’s football World Cup tournament, there has been increasing scrutiny of the treatment of the millions of migrant workers whose labour is essential to its success.

Making up more than 90% of Qatar’s population, these workers came primarily from poorer countries in South Asia, South-East Asia and parts of Africa, in search of economic opportunities and the chance to earn money to send home to their families. But over the years, organizations including Amnesty International have documented how so many of these migrant workers had their dreams shattered after facing serious labour abuse and exploitation in Qatar. They often arrived in Qatar already indebted, having taken out high-interest loans to pay extortionate and illegal recruitment fees, while some were also given false promises about jobs and salaries.1

Once in the country, they were subject to the ‘kafala’ sponsorship system. Under this framework, foreign workers were essentially bound to their employer, who acted as their official “sponsor” (or kafeel) from the moment they entered the country and throughout their period of employment. To enter and be able to work in the country, migrant workers needed their employer to sponsor their visa, issue and renew their residence permits. The system granted enormous power to employers and left workers acutely vulnerable to forced labour and exploitation. Workers needed their employer’s permission to change jobs (technically known as a “No-Objection Certificate” or NOC), and they could be arrested and deported if their employers reported them as having ‘absconded’ from their job, cancelled their visas or failed to renew their residence permits, rendering workers undocumented in the country through no fault of their own. The kafala system effectively absolved the government from exercising its proper role in regulating employment and ensuring the protection of workers, and created a deeply imbalanced power relation between workers and employers.2 For years, reports of abuse from human rights organizations and others3 were rejected by the Qatari authorities, which sought to portray these accusations as isolated cases of exploitation.4 It wasn’t until 2017, following a complaint lodged against Qatar at the International Labour Office,5 that the government entered into an agreement with the International Labour Organization (ILO) to reform the country’s labour laws and bring them in line with international standards. The agreement included government commitments to overhaul the sponsorship system, improve health and safety protections and workers’ pay, increase access to justice and promote workers’ voice.6 As this briefing demonstrates, the reforms and initiatives enshrined in the partnership agreement have the potential to transform the lives of Qatar’s migrant workforce, and already have done in some cases. But the continued failure of the government to effectively implement and enforce these changes means that labour abuse and exploitation remain rife today. As we approach the Qatar 2022 World Cup, many abusive employers continue to feel emboldened by this lack of enforcement, act with impunity and make use of the

1 See, for example, Amnesty International, Nepal: False promises – exploitation and forced labour of Nepalese migrant workers (Index: ASA 31/007/2011), 13 December 2011, https://www.amnesty.org/en/documents/asa31/007/2011/en/ and Amnesty International, Nepal: Turning people into profits – abusive recruitment, trafficking and forced labour of Nepali migrant workers (Index: ASA 31/6206/2017), 6 June 2017, https://www.amnesty.org/en/documents/asa31/6206/2017/en/ 2 See, for example, Amnesty International, The dark side of migration: Spotlight on Qatar’s construction sector ahead of the World Cup, (Index: MDE 22/010/2013), 18 November 2013, https://www.amnesty.org/en/documents/mde22/010/2013/en/ 3 See, for example, UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, Report of the Special Rapporteur on the human rights of migrants, François Crépeau, Addendum, Human Rights Council, 26 Session, 23 April 2014, https://www.ohchr.org/EN/HRBodies/HRC/RegularSessions/Session26/Documents/A-HRC-26-35-Add1_en.doc; Amnesty International, Qatar: Abuse of World Cup workers exposed, 31 March 2016, https://www.amnesty.org/en/pressreleases/2016/03/abuse-of-world-cup-workers-exposed/; and Human Rights Watch, Qatar: Take Urgent Action to Protect Construction Workers, 27 September 2017, https://www.hrw.org/news/2017/09/27/qatar-take-urgent-action-protectconstruction-workers 4 Based on statements made by officials at the Ministry of Labour and Ministry of Interior to Amnesty International during a field trip to Qatar in 2012; Amnesty International, The Dark Side of Migration (previously cited), p. 8. 5 International Labour Office, Complaint concerning non-observance by Qatar of the Forced Labour Convention, 1930 (No. 29), and the Labour Inspection Convention, 1947 (No. 81), made by delegates to the 103rd session (2014) of the International Labour Conference under article of 26 of the ILO Constitution, Governing Body 331st Session, Geneva, 26 October - 9 November 2017, 31 October 2017, p. 2 and para. 3, https://www.ilo.org/wcmsp5/groups/public/---ed_norm/--relconf/documents/meetingdocument/wcms_586479.pdf 6 International Labour Office, Complaint concerning non-observance (previously cited), p. 31.

UNFINISHED BUSINESS:

WHAT QATAR MUST DO TO FULFILL PROMISES ON MIGRANT WORKERS’ RIGHTS Amnesty International

7

system’s loopholes to exploit their workforce. As for the government, it has yet to deliver on its promise to “align its laws and practices with international labour standards”7 and fulfil its obligations to respect and protect human rights for all.

7 International Labour Office, Complaint concerning non-observance (previously cited), p. 2 and para 4.

UNFINISHED BUSINESS:

WHAT QATAR MUST DO TO FULFILL PROMISES ON MIGRANT WORKERS’ RIGHTS Amnesty International

8