Former England worldwide John Barnes slammed critics who’ve questioned World Cup hosts Qatar’s remedy of migrant staff, saying detractors of the nation had turned a blind eye to their progress on human rights.
Qatar, which was awarded internet hosting rights for the World Cup in 2010, has confronted intense criticism from human rights teams over its remedy of migrant staff. The nation has made adjustments to its labor legal guidelines lately, dismantling a lot of its “kafala” sponsorship system, growing the minimal wage, and organising an insurance coverage fund to assist migrants cheated of their wages.
“While there is still a long way to go, the situation is streets ahead of where they were ten years ago – with improvements in housing, facilities and wages,” Barnes, who made 79 appearances for England between 1983-1995, wrote in a column for the Times.
“It’s interesting to observe that some of those who are making a lot of noise now have had little to say about the development of Qatar over the previous 20 years.”
Qatar has additionally drawn criticism for its legal guidelines towards same-sex relationships, with homosexuality deemed unlawful within the conservative Muslim nation, however organizers have repeatedly mentioned that everybody, regardless of their sexual orientation or background, is welcome through the event.
Captains from seven European nations had deliberate to point out help for LGBTQ folks in Qatar throughout matches by sporting ‘OneLove’ armbands, however these plans had been scrapped after FIFA threatened to impose sanctions. Barnes condemned Qatar’s stance on LGBT rights, however mentioned that guests to the nation wanted to respect their legal guidelines, including that boycotting the World Cup “would have a far greater impact” than sporting an armband.
“Qatar has invited ‘everyone’ to the World Cup, gay or straight, but demand ‘everyone’ be respectful of their ways, laws and culture…,” Barnes mentioned.
“The rainbow colors and OneLove armband promote something that is illegal in Qatar, even if we think it shouldn’t be. Visitors to our country would not be allowed to promote something that’s illegal.”
Barnes added that it was hypocritical for English critics to search out fault with Qatar, pointing to the remedy of Black communities in Britain.
“While discrimination is enshrined in Qatari law, discrimination is also enshrined in British society and culture,” Barnes mentioned.
“Lots of Black people are stopped, searched and detained just because they are Black. Let’s sort ourselves out before we start to lecture and preach to the rest of the world.”
