Between 2014 and 2020, 414 people died in “ work-related accidents in Qatar, all sectors and nationalities combined “Said the organizers of the World, specifying the words of the secretary general of the Qatari organizing committee.
Asked on a British television program about the death toll among migrant workers working “ for the World “, Hassan al-Thawadi had mentioned Tuesday an estimate ranging from “ 400 to 500 people, adding that ” one death is already too many “. This numbers “ refer to national statistics covering the period 2014-2020 for all work-related fatalities (414) nationally in Qatar, all sectors and nationalities combined “said the organizing committee in a press release.
The Qatari organizers also reaffirm that there was “ three work-related deaths and 37 non-work-related deaths on Supreme Committee projects “, that is “ all eight stadiums, 17 out-of-competition venues and other related venues under the committee’s “. These figures were published in annual public reports between 2014 and 2021, the period during which most of the infrastructure work was carried out.
Since being awarded the 2022 World Cup in 2010, Qatar, a country of 2.9 million inhabitants, more than 80% of whom are foreigners, has been criticized for its labor legislation and the living and working conditions of its migrant workers unqualified. Doha has always denied the death of thousands of immigrant workers employed on construction sites linked to the World Cup, advanced by certain Western media and NGOs.
Minimum salary of 270 euros monthly
Qatar also highlights the reforms implemented in recent years, in particular the dismantling of the “kafala”, a sponsorship system which made employees quasi-properties of their employers. The emirate has also introduced a minimum monthly wage of 1,000 riyals (about 270 euros) and limited working hours during the hottest periods of the year.
A report by the International Labor Organization (ILO), which has an office in Doha, concluded that 50 workers died in workplace accidents in Qatar in 2020 and another 500 were seriously injured. However, the ILO notes shortcomings in the survey and census system and admits that this number could be higher.
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” Over the past decade, thousands of workers have returned to their country in a coffin, with no explanation given to their loved ones. Amnesty International commented on Hassan al-Thawadi’s remarks. “ Qatar’s extreme heat and grueling working conditions likely contributed to hundreds of these deaths, but, without thorough investigations, the scale of lives lost will never be known. added Steve Cockburn, an official of the NGO.
(With AFP)