Tribune. The kickoff of the Euro is launched and rekindles the fervor of the most popular sport. But behind the joy of playing round ball and supporting your team, a drama is playing out for the organization of the next international competition: the World Cup in Qatar from November 21 to December 18, 2022.
According to the revelations of Guardian, since the award of the competition to the emirate, more than 6,500 migrant workers have died in Qatar and on the construction sites of the stadiums and infrastructure built for the championship. A macabre question disturbs the general euphoria: can we play football on corpses?
The attribution of the World Cup to a desert country indicated from the outset that the priority was likely given to profits rather than social and environmental conditions. In fact, the migrant workers who operate on the construction sites for the construction of the infrastructure of the Cup pay the heaviest price.
Terrible and dramatic working conditions
To build stadiums, highways, and even entire cities, thousands of men are exploited on construction sites after having their passports confiscated, thus finding themselves totally at the mercy of their employers. They work between 66 and 77 hours a week, without water or shade, under a blazing sun. Housed in slums, some workers have not been paid for several months.
Among these companies that exploit these workers are many European companies: at least 11 of them operate on the sites of the World Cup. The Sherpa association was already sounding the alarm in 2015 with a first complaint for forced labor and servitude against Vinci and the French managers of its Qatari subsidiary QDVC. The Committee Against Modern Slavery (CCEM) has since joined the fight, along with several former QDVC workers.
The case is still under investigation. Unfortunately, the judicial time, whether it is prolonged for lack of means or political desire, is in fact not adapted to the needs of the victims. These serious human rights violations demonstrate the need to acquire the legal means to prevent, punish and repair violations of human rights and the environment, whether they are linked to the World Cup or to any other activities. .
The responsibility of multinationals and FIFA
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