The number of workers killed in Qatar in the run-up to the World Cup was between “400 and 500”, a drastically higher number than previously announced, a Qatari official admitted.
According to the Associated Press, statements were made by Hassan al-Thawadi, secretary general of the Supreme Committee for Delivery and Legacy of Qatar, during an interview with British journalist Piers Morgan.
Al-Thawadi’s comments could add to human rights groups’ criticism of the cost to the country’s migrant workers of hosting the Middle East’s first-ever World Cup, when $200 billion (€19.3 billion) was spent on stadiums, subway lines and new infrastructure needed for the tournament.
Qatar’s Supreme Committee and government have yet to respond to a request for comment from the AP on Al-Thawadi’s comments.
In the interview – in excerpts already published on the Internet by Piers Morgan – the British journalist asks Al-Thawadi: “What is the fair, totally realistic number of migrant workers who have died as a result of the work they do for the World Cup? Football, in full?”.
“The estimate is around 400, between 400 and 500,” replied Al-Thawadi.
World Cup boss Hassan Al-Thawadi tells Piers Morgan that 400-500 migrant workers have died as a result of work on projects related to the tournament.
“Yes, improvements need to be made.”@piersmorgan 🇧🇷 @TalkTV 🇧🇷 #PMUQatar pic.twitter.com/Cf9bgKCFZe
– Piers Morgan Uncensored (@PiersUncensored) November 28, 2022
“I don’t have the exact number. This is something that has been discussed,” said the official.
However, this number has not been publicly discussed before. The reports of the Supreme Committee from 2014 to the end of 2021 only include the number of deaths of workers involved in the construction and renovation of the stadiums that will host the World Cup this Tuesday.
The total number of deaths released by the government of Qatar was 40. These numbers include 37 described by local authorities as non-work related incidents, such as heart attacks, and three due to workplace incidents. In another report, the death of an employee due to the novel coronavirus during the covid-19 pandemic also occurs separately.
Since FIFA awarded the tournament to Qatar in 2010, the country has taken some steps to review labor practices. This included the abolition of the so-called ‘kafala’ work system, which tied workers to their employers, who could decide whether workers could leave their jobs or even the country.
Qatar also approved a monthly minimum wage of 1,000 Qatari rials ($275 or €265) for workers and demanded food and housing subsidies for workers who do not receive these benefits directly from their employers. It has also updated its worker safety rules to prevent deaths.
“One death is another death. Pure and simple,” Al-Thawadi added in the interview.
Activists have called on Doha to do more, particularly to ensure workers are paid on time and protected from employer abuse.
Al-Thawadi’s comment also raises questions about the veracity of reports from governments and private companies about injuries and deaths of workers in the Persian Gulf states, whose buildings were built by workers from South Asian countries such as India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. Lanka.
Mustafa Qadri, executive director of Equidem Research, a labor consultancy that has published reports on construction costs for migrant workers, said he was surprised by al-Thawadi’s comment.
“That he comes now and says there are hundreds [de mortos], is shocking. They have no idea what is going on,” Qadri told AP.
Source: DN
