6,500 Reasons to Boycott the Qatar World Cup 2022

The FIFA World Cup kicks off in less than 25 days but instead of excitement building, questions are being asked of the tournament holders, the state of Qatar. From flagrant, unabashed human rights abuses to how & why the state managed to secure the bid in the first place.

Reports are rife of corruption, bribery & manipulation of FIFA members who have the ultimate say on where the tournament is held. Although FIFA cleared Qatar of charges of corruption, almost everyone involved in the bidding & procurement process has either been fired or quit.

We might never know the ins & outs of FIFAs process, but we do know Qatar has a shocking record of human rights violations. Incredibly, more than 6,500 migrant workers have died in building the World Cup infrastructure so far.

Need any more reasons to boycott Qatar 2022?  

Modern slavery: Workers report companies withholding their passports, denying regular & reasonable wages, & subjecting them to dire working & living conditions, all breaches of the UN Human Rights Charter. Abusive labour laws give too much power to Qatari employers.

Human rights violations: Women are second class citizens in Qatar due to the country's strict guardianship laws. Homosexuality is illegal under punishment of death & World Cup protesters are warned that attempts to fly the rainbow flag will result in confiscation.

FIFAs lack of response: The association has been silent on human rights violations, finally reluctantly addressing the controversy in 2021 in a round table discussion with stakeholders. Incredibly, participants gushed about supposed 'improvements' in Qatari workers’ rights.

Death toll cover up: According to Qatari sources, 80% of deaths were as a result of ‘natural causes’, a truly unbelievable statistic as migrants are usually men in their prime. A more likely cause is unhygienic living standards, unsafe working conditions & excessive heat.

An international celebration of sport should never be held in a country where woman have fewer rights, LGBTQIA is punishable by death & workers are direly mistreated. Until 2005, children as young as 4 were used in Qatar as jockeys in dangerous camel races.  

Withholding your support for this round of the tournament helps in a few practical ways. Informing your network of these violations, raising awareness of the plight of migrant workers, not paying for FIFA merchandise, & avoiding pay-per-view games will hit FIFA where it hurts.

We in democratic nations have the luxury to choose what to watch & support. Whether you call it soccer or football, a tournament of corruption & disgusting treatment of migrants should never be cause for celebration.

For a small country Qatar is ignoring some big human rights.