Al Khater, head of the World Cup organizing committee: “The worker was where he doesn’t belong”
The umpteenth tragedy that befell a worker during the World Cup in Qatar, this time followed by an official statement from the “insiders”, the tournament’s big bosses. On Wednesday, Alex, a worker from the Philippines, died after being hit by a forklift while doing repairs at the resort. An incident that has not gone unnoticed and is now being investigated by the Qatari authorities. An initial response from the World Cup Organizing Committee said the worker was “on property not under his jurisdiction.”
natural event
—
Not only. Nasser Fahad Al Khater, Managing Director of the World Cup Organizing Committee, reacted irritably to the allegations of too many suspicious deaths of workers in Qatar at a meeting with journalists: “Do you want to talk about it now? I mean, death is a natural part of life, both at work and at sleep. Our condolences to the worker’s family. I mean it’s weird that you want to focus on that as the first question though. Al Khater further reminded that “everything that has been said about the deaths of workers is absolutely false. This issue, this negativity surrounding the World Cup was an aspect that needed to be addressed.” In short, journalists are in the crosshairs: “We’re a little disappointed that journalists have exacerbated this false narrative. And honestly, I think many need to wonder and reflect on why they’ve been trying to push the issue for so long.”
Investigations discontinued
—
Al Khater’s fierce statement has also provoked reactions from Amnesty International. Ella Knight, researcher on migrant workers’ rights, said: “Unfortunately, Mr Al Khater is wrong when he says that every fatal accident is investigated. That is simply not true. Qatar conducts investigations into workers’ deaths to no avail. Indeed , these circumstances be dismissed on the grounds that the large number of deaths were due to natural causes, without acknowledging the serious inhumane behavior towards workers working in extreme temperatures”.
December 8, 2022 (change December 8, 2022 | 20:26)
© REPRODUCTION RESERVED