Followers of mainstream media in the US and Europe cannot overlook the systematic
attacks on Qatar’s human rights record. Considering their intensity and harsh
rhetoric over the past few weeks, it is hard to think that these attacks are
not orchestrated in some fashion. Still, I doubt that they are. Unfortunately,
the mainstream media in the US, Europe, and the rest of world are more occupied
with the “topic” of the day, week, or month. So it happens that the taste these
days is World Cup, Qatar, and human rights.
اضافة اعلان
I stand firmly for human rights, but what bothers
me, and many other Arabs and Muslims, is ignoring everything Qatar has done to
successfully execute and deliver this important worldwide event.
Leading commentators, reporters, and writers, along
with some politicians in the US and Europe, reduced the event to allegations
about Qatar’s so-called “unacceptable” human rights record in regard to the
treatment of foreign workers, women, and the LGBTQ community. Much like the
rest of the world, Qatar can do better in those three areas. However, Qatar is
far from the ugly picture these mainstream media outlets made it to be. On the
contrary, over the past few days, Qatar has projected a brilliant picture of
what an event of this magnitude ought to be.
It is hard to adequately address the human rights
issues raised against Qatar, but it is important to call out the hypocrisy of
the mainstream media outlets and many politicians in the US and Europe.
It is estimated that Qatar spent close to $250
billion on preparations for the World Cup, most of which was directed to mega
infrastructure projects. Most of this money went to engineering design and
construction, and project management firms from the US and Europe.
Laborers working on these projects were employed by
these firms, not the government of Qatar. Yet, we did not see any significant
reporting calling out these firms for bad treatment of their laborers. That
aside, probably the work conditions of those workers were better than those of
the many “illegal migrant” workers in the US, Europe and the rest of the world,
which often violate most basic human rights. Most of these immigrants work in
hazardous jobs, are paid less than the minimum wage, and do not benefit from
insurance, healthcare coverage, and sick and vacation leave. And, while the
work conditions for illegal migrants in the US and Europe continue to
deteriorate, the work and living conditions of foreign laborers in Qatar have
improved tremendously over the past 10 years.
Over the 25 years I lived in the US, I met many
Qataris: young Qatari girls attending undergraduate and graduate STEM programs
in prestigious schools across the US; women professors from Qatari Universities
working on research and teaching in US universities; young and middle-aged
professional women holding leadership and managerial positions in private
Qatari businesses, government agencies, and higher education institutions
attending conferences and training events in the US.
Unlike their counterparts in the US and Europe,
especially minorities, Qatari women often have successful professional careers.
Unlike women in the US and Europe, I am not aware of any Qatari woman who is
working two minimum-wage jobs to barely support children abandoned by their
fathers and governments. Qatari women are well taken care of by their families
and government, and their lives at work and outside continue to improve.
Then, the issue of LGBTQ rights. Qatar never banned
members of the LGBTQ community from attending the World Cup, as wrongfully
claimed by many. On the contrary, for years, Qatar emphasized that all soccer
fans are welcome, regardless of background or sexual orientation. All that
Qatar and Qataris asked for from everyone is to respect their conservative
culture. Is that too much to ask for?
Qatar’s
conservative cultural and religious, Islamic or otherwise, beliefs and views
relative to homosexuality are shared by many countries worldwide. More than
that, most of these beliefs and views are shared by large proportions of
conservative populations in Europe and the US. Should we write off over two
thirds of the world’s population in these countries, and ban them from hosting
and participating in future World Cup events because of their conservative
beliefs and views relative to homosexuality?
Unfortunately, when it comes to human rights and the
Middle East, for decades mainstream media outlets in the US and Europe have
picked minor issues, rather than important ones. That is not surprising,
because real journalism reporting has retracted in the face of corporate greed,
limiting itself to the opinions of frequent friendly commentators and so-called
“subject matter experts”.
I would like to see real reporting in the US and
Europe about the human rights of Palestinians held for decades in Israeli
prisons, especially women and children. How about attempting to hold to account
those who used false pretenses to lead the world to invade Iraq and kill
millions of Iraqis in the process? What about the human rights of the people of
Gaza living in the largest prison in the world?
Middle East aside, how about the human rights of
millions of Americans whose retirement savings were ransacked by Wall Street in
2008? Since then, many of those retirees had to go back to work and those who
were about to retire had to postpone their retirement, some indefinitely. Yet,
we did not see any of the Wall Street gurus responsible for their economic
hardships being held to account.
How about the human rights of millions of hungry
children and families facing food insecurity in the US, while the pockets of
corporations and politicians are getting fatter? Unfortunately, the list of
human rights abuses of large magnitude is too long, yet they continue to be
ignored by the mainstream media, which tackle minor issues.
Over the past decade, Qataris have accomplished
great feats, presenting us with a world-class World Cup event. Let us thank
them for their hard work and unparalleled investments and achievements to make
our world a better place, even if it is for a short while.
To those who have been bombarded with false
messaging that made them hesitant, it is not too late for them to go visit
Qatar, where they will be welcomed with open arms by one of the most hospitable
people in the world. Visitors will be surrounded by the most diverse group of
soccer fans from all over the globe.
The world should celebrate Qatar’s achievement and
our diversity while cheering for some of the finest athletes in the world.
Ibraheem Tarawneh is CEO of Pi Square Consulting Inc. and former State of Ohio government
official.
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