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Low-wage migrant workers in Qatar, one of the world’s richest countries, say they were forced to order food due to the country’s economic recession during the crown pandemic, The Guardian writes.
The newspaper has spoken anonymously to several foreign workers. They say they are at risk of losing their job, or have already lost it, and they should ask employers for help.
– The company said that they will not pay us in April, but that they would give us some money for food, but we have not succeeded. We got a tray of eggs and some oil a few days ago. That’s all, an Indian worker tells the newspaper.
He has been trapped in the industrial area of the capital Doha for almost two months.
– We are facing so many problems here. It is as if we are in prison, the worker tells The Guardian.
People living in Qatar told the newspaper that they are aware that this is happening. They say, among other things, that the Doha industrial area is closed and that employers cannot provide food to workers living in the area.
They do not want to comment for fear of retaliation from the state.
– Minimum of rights
Middle East expert Raina Maktabi says Qatar is most likely trying to force foreign workers to travel.
– The state wants to send non-citizens. They don’t want to give food to those who don’t have a job now, so it seems like trying to starve them out of the country, Maktabi tells Dagbladet.
She explains that foreign workers have minimum rights. It all depends on the employment contract.
– Contracts are often very unclear. Employers can only decide to fire you, and no one will criticize the plan because they know you can lose your job overnight. Then you just have to go.
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A golden ticket
Raina Maktabi has just returned from Qatar. She herself was ordered to return to Norway, but not everyone wants to go home.
– For many, a Qatar work visa is a golden ticket. Many come from countries that are much worse compared to how they are in Qatar. But the country does not want you if it does not need you. You have to have a job, she says.
During the crown pandemic it is also almost impossible to leave the country, as several countries have closed the borders.
Maktabi had the impression that foreign workers live in Qatar. She explains that people live together in miserable conditions. It could possibly explain the high number of Covid-19 infections in Qatar.
Video originally published at dagbladet.no/dbtv.no on 10/14/2015
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Qatar, home to more than 2 million labor immigrants, now has one of the highest infection rates per capita in the world, with almost 18,000 cases in a population of just 2.8 million. Most of these are foreign workers.
Bad conditions
Qatar has long been in the spotlight for its treatment of foreign workers. When the country was awarded the Soccer World Cup in 2022, one media agency after another was able to denounce criticism and human rights violations.
– Several large human rights organizations demand that Qatar clarify the rights of foreign workers. They want Qatar to set a minimum wage and give workers one day off per week. To me, it seems Qatar is really willing to do something about it, says Raina Maktabi.
Hundreds of thousands of impoverished guest workers have built hotels, roads and facilities that will make the Qatar World Cup a world soccer party by 2022. Hundreds have died, while both the championship and FIFA are being prosecuted on corruption charges.
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