Gianni Infantino, FIFA’s president, has taken exception to criticism that FIFA
soccer’s governing board, and Qatar, where this year’s World Cup is being held, have run roughshod over the rights of migrant workers drawn to the Middle Eastern country on promises that they would be paid fairly for their work in constructing the numerous facilities needed for the soccer tournament.
“Today I feel Qatari,” Infantino said Saturday at the start of his first news conference of the World Cup. “Today I feel Arab. Today I feel African. Today I feel gay. Today I feel disabled. Today I feel [like] a migrant worker.”
Human Rights Watch and a coalition of rights organizations have urged Qatar and FIFA to make a commitment to acknowledge and remedy the labor and human rights abuses that thousands of migrant workers suffered while preparing Qatar to host the sports event.
Rights groups have accused Qatar of subjecting migrant workers to harsh working conditions that include nonpayment of wages and long hours in oppressive heat.
Michael Page, Human Rights Watch’s deputy Middle East and North Arica director, said, “FIFA’s failure to provide a remedy while accruing billions of dollars in revenue has left everything in sight in Qatar – from the roads to the stadiums – as reminders of the migrant workers who built and delivered the games but did not receive their wages or died with no compensation for their families.”